PyroFarms grows and sells bioluminescent phytoplankton that can produce light at night and fresh oxygen during the daytime. We sell Pyrocystis fusiformis a species of marine dinoflagellate or phytoplankton that we call PyroDinos. PyroDinos use sunlight to grow (like a plant) and produce a brilliant blue light at night known as bioluminescence. PyroDinos also remove CO2 from your environment, which reduces greenhouse gas and gets you closer to carbon neutral. PyroDinos alongside the oceans' phytoplankton remove more CO2 than all land plants combined.

The Bio-Orb provides a new system for learning. The Bio-Orb is a glass micro-aquarium filled with bioluminescent phytoplankton (algae). Easy to care for, like a house plant, the Bio-Orb will produce natural light at night with no batteries or electricity (bioluminescence). The Bio-Orb is a self-contained science lesson that provides the ideal environment for growing PyroDinos at home, in the classroom, or at the office. The Bio-Orb presents a wide range of science topics such as; bioluminescence, circadian rhythm, photosynthesis, climate change, and marine food webs.

Bioluminescence is what PyroDinos are best known for. Bioluminescence is the production of light by a living organism that occurs only at night, in the dark, and when these Dinos are gently agitated. Many other organisms produce their own bioluminescence. Some examples are fireflies, certain species of mushrooms and bacteria. When you see bioluminescence in a complex organism (like an Angler fish) it is most likely from a symbiotic bacteria that is living within that organism.
Bioluminescence is caused by a chemical reaction between a light emitting molecule and an enzyme that are generically referred to as luciferin and luciferase. During, and throughout, the dinoflagellate nighttime cycle these light producing molecules are produced. Thus the longer into the nighttime cycle the more potential for light production. The best way to view dinoflagellate bioluminescence is in a very dark room well after the nighttime cycle has begun.

In nature, it is hypothesized that the bioluminescence produced by these dinoflagellates acts as a burglar alarm to attract a larger predator who will eat the PyroDinos’ predator. PyroDinos produce blue light because blue light wavelengths are more compact and travel more efficiently through water.