This study aims to understand the underlying reasons for the poor flotation response of marine microalgae. The flotation performance and hydrophobicity of a freshwater microalga (Chlorella sp. BR2) were compared to those of a marine microalga (Tetraselmis sp. M8) at different salinities in the presence of a cationic collector, tetradecyl trimethylammonium bromide. It was found that microalgal hydrophobicity played a more important role than salinity in determining the flotation performance. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.