Algal chlorophyll a is commonly used as a surrogate for algal biomass. Data from three lakes in western Nebraska, five wetlands in north-central North Dakota, and two lakes in north-central Minnesota represented a range in algal biovolume of over four orders of magnitude and a range in chlorophyll a from less than 1 to 380 mg∙m−3. Analysis of these data revealed that there was a linear relation, log10 algal biovolume = 5.99 + 0.09 chlorophyll a (r2 = 0.72), for cases in which median values of chlorophyll a for open-water periods were less than 20 mg∙m−3. There was no linear relation in cases in which median chlorophyll a concentrations were larger than 20 mg∙m−3 for open-water periods, an occurrence found only in shallow prairies lakes and wetlands for years in which light penetration was the least.