Study on Syntaxonomic Diversity of Algal Cenoses in Soils of the Russian Far East, Using an Integrative Taxonomic Approach

Abstract

Soil is a unique ecosystem with peculiar biodiversity that includes cyanobacteria and algae. Traditionally, cyanobacterial and algal cenoses were described mainly using the dominance approach, rarely based on the Braun-Blanquet method (floristic classification). More importantly, in both cases, the species of cyanobacteria and algae in communities were identified using classical methods (light microscopy) only. In this study, we present results of soil algal cenoses classification using the Braun-Blanquet approach based on species composition data obtained via an integrative approach. Characteristic tables include 19 out of 108 samples collected in the Jewish Autonomous Region, Primorsky Territory, and Sakhalin Region (Iturup Island) in 2018 and in 2020–2021. Twenty-five species of algae from four classes were identified in these sites. We described three new associations of algal communities—Coelastrelletum aeroterrestricae ass. nova, Vischerietum magnae ass. nova, Bracteacoccetum bullati ass. nova. PCA analysis corroborated the results of syntaxonomic analysis and revealed that Coelastrelletum aeroterrestricae inhabit soils with a high value of P; Vischerietum magnae inhabit soils with high value of soil organic carbon (SOC), N, and higher humidity; and Bracteacoccetum bullati inhabit soils with high K values.