Structure of the Communities of Epiphyton Algae in the Water Bodies Differing in the Level of Contamination

Abstract

The structure of the communities of epiphyton algae was studied in the water bodies of the «Oleksandriya» State Dendrological Park (the town of Bila Tserkva, Ukraine). It has been found that the ponds located in the Western ravine were characterized by an essentially higher level of complex anthropogenic contamination (by inorganic compounds of nitrogen and phosphorus, chloride, sulfate, and organic substances) compared to the water bodies of the Middle and Eastern ravines. Respectively, the types of the communities of epiphyton algae (syntaxa) distinguished in the water bodies differing in the level of contamination also differed in the composition, number, and ecological characteristics of diagnostic taxa, in the species richness of epiphyton algae on the whole, in the average number of species in individual communities, in their taxonomic structure, in the quantitative indices of algae development, and in the complex of dominant species. It has been found that the communities of epiphyton algae registered in the ponds of the Western ravine belong to the association Gomphonemo parvuli-Nitzschietum paleae, whereas the communities of epiphyton occurring in the Middle and Eastern ravines - to the association Cocconeo placentulae-Naviculetum tripunctatae. The obtained data on the communities of epiphyton algae can be used for synbioindication of the state of water bodies differing in the level of contamination in performing ecological monitoring.