Ecological notes on the species of Phacus Dujardin (Euglenophyta) from the central region of...
Transcript of Ecological notes on the species of Phacus Dujardin (Euglenophyta) from the central region of...
Original article
Ecological notes on the species of Phacus Dujardin(Euglenophyta) from the central region of Portugal
MĂĄrio Jorge Pereira a,*, Ulisses M.M. Azeiteiro b
a Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugalb Universidade Aberta, Rua do Ameal, 752, 4200-055 Porto, Portugal
Abstract
Twenty-one species, belonging to the genus Phacus, were identified during the study of samples from the central region of Portugalcollected in lentic systems. The abundance of each taxon was determined. Water samples were taken for determination, by means of standardmethods, of physicochemical parameters (water temperature, pH, organic matter (K2Cr2O7), conductivity, alkalinity, nitrogen as N(NH4
+),N(NO2
â) and N(NO3â), orthophosphate P(PO4
3â) and metals in a total of 35 parameters). Some species were found more frequently, namelyPhacus agilis Skuja, Ph. aenigmaticus Drez., Ph. caudatus HĂŒbn., Ph. gigas Da Cunha, Ph. triqueter (Ehr.) Duj., Ph. longicauda (Ehr.) Duj.and Ph. tortus (Lemm.) Skv. Eighteen taxa were found in the sampling sites characterized by the following variation intervals of theenvironmental parameters: water temperature: 11.4â21.6 °C; pH: 6.2â7.5; dichromate oxidability: 10â59 mg lâ1; conductivity: 145â779 ”Scmâ1; nitrogen as NO3
â: n.d.â2.852 mg lâ1; orthophosphate: n.d.â0.892 mg lâ1; chloride: 14.2â109.3 mg lâ1; sodium: 10.3â47.5 mg lâ1 andtotal iron: 135â6446 ”g lâ1. In this work, information concerning the environmental conditions that preceded the occurrence of these speciesas well as results of the cytological and morphologic studies (with bright field microscopy as a resource) is presented and discussed.
© 2003 Ăditions scientifiques et mĂ©dicales Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Phacus; Phytoplankton; Ecology; Water quality
1. Introduction
The genus Phacus includes free swimming unicellularorganisms, constituted by a euglenoid cell devoid of metabo-lism, usually backventrally flattened and possessing a rigidstriated pellicle, with a longitudinal or helicoidal arrange-ment. The cell more or less flattened (Phacus lismorensis,Phacus longicauda) could be straight or incurved (Phacushelikoides, Phacus tortus), sometimes presenting accentu-ated excavations (Phacus platyaulax) and could still presenta straight or incurved tail and cells with appreciable dimen-sions. In the anterior pole, at the sub-apical position, is theopening of the ampulla from where emerges a flagellum,which is responsible for the movement of the cell. Theampulla opens distally in a dilatation designated by a reser-voir, a bulbiform zone whose dimensions vary with the spe-cies, at the base of which two flagella are implanted. In thetransition zone reservoir/canal and external to this is aneyespot which is rectangular or has a more or less varied and
reddish form. At the base of the reservoir or near it, theeyespot coalesces a vacuole that forms in its proximity.
In the cytoplasm of the cell, several chloroplasts can befound, usually discoid and regularly disposed for practicallyall the outlying portions of the cell. The main reserve sub-stance is the paramylon, observable in several forms, fre-quently being small cylindrical sticks with round boards, butalso as rings with diverse configurations and dimensions (Ph.platyaulax, Phacus gigas), bobbins (Ph. longicauda), ortricks in the form of the cell in which they are contained(Phacus trypanon). The nucleus, with granular content, oc-cupies a median or sub-median position.
Most of the species of Phacus are euplanktonics, occur-ring together with species of other genes of Euglenophyta(Euglena, Lepocinclis and Trachelomonas) (Weik, 1967).The genus Euglena possesses species which can be found infreshwater in aerobioses or anaerobioses conditions. Somespecies are exposed to ultraviolet radiation or intense light;others seek expositions with an intermediate illuminationand turn away from either very intense light or of low inten-sities. The temperature can oscillate between 5 and 40 °C andit can be found at different levels of pH (Lackey, 1968). The
* Corresponding author.E-mail address: [email protected] (M.J. Pereira).
Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
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dimensions, weight, content in nucleic acids and proteins aresubstantially altered by the pH in which Euglena gracilisgrows (Cook, 1981). The species of Euglena are usually-anaerobic facultative, with the ability to occur in placeshaving an abundance of sulphides. The places where speciesbelonging to the genes Euglena, Phacus and Trachelomonasare found can be rich in faeces and urine, easily developedand in high abundance. They also easily use, as an organicsubstratum, acetic and butyric acids, through the species ofEuglena, still requires, the vitamins of B complex for itsgrowth (Lackey, 1968). The lack of Fe, Mn and Mg not onlyalters the morphology of the cells of Euglena gracilis, butalso reduces the cellular multiplication (Hilt et al., 1987).Cook (1968) made a revision about the nutrition of Euglena,pointing out the beneficial effect of sulphur in sulphate way,phosphorous, vitamin B1, vitamin B12, of iron and zinc on itsgrowth. He also refers to the use of nitrates, ammonia andsome amino acids as a source of nitrogen. The carbon sourcesare very diverse, including carbohydrates, alcohols and car-boxylic acids.
In this work, information concerning the environmentalconditions that preceded the occurrence of several species ofPhacus as well as results of the cytological and morphologic
studies (with bright field microscopy as a resource) are pre-sented and discussed.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Sampling sites
Twenty stations were selected (Fig. 1), distributed over theRivers Caima (Vale de Cambraâ40°50.12 N 08°23.82 W,Barbeitoâ40°50.11 N 08°24.23 W), AntuĂŁ (Vila daLoureiroâ40°46.87 N 08°30.56 W, Estarrejaâ40°45.00 N08°34.12 W), Vouga (Lamas do Vougaâ40°38.53 N08°27.91 W, SegadĂŁesâ40°36.68 N 08°30.92 W), Ăgueda(Ăguedaâ40°34.40 N 08°27.04 W, Ăis daRibeiraâ40°35.20 N 08°30.10 W), Levira (VilaVerdeâ40°30.80 N 08°30.83 W, PerrĂŁesâ40°32.99 N08°29.82 W) and CĂ©rtima (Vale EstĂȘvĂŁoâ40°27.85 N08°27.60 W, S. JoĂŁo de Azenhaâ 40°29.84 N 08°27.42 W,PerrĂŁesâ40°33.20 N 08°29.70 W), the remaining ones dis-tributed over the riversides: Ribeira da Horta (Eixoâ40°37.60 N 08°33.23 W), Ribeira do Pano(Vessadaâ40°39.61 N 08°35.11 W, Ponte do
Fig. 1. Map with indication of the sampling places in the Caima River: (1) Vale de Cambra, (2) Barbeito; AntuĂŁ River: (3) Vila da Loureiro, (4) Estarreja; LeviraRiver: (5) Vila Verde, (6) PerrĂŁes; CĂ©rtima River: (7) Vale EstĂȘvĂŁo, (8) SĂŁo JoĂŁo de Azenha, (9) PerrĂŁes, (10) Espinhel, (11) Requeixo; Ăgueda River: (12)Ăgueda, (13) Ăis da Ribeira; Vouga River: (14) Lamas do Vouga, (15) SegadĂŁes; (16) Canal of SegadĂŁes; (17) Canal of Frossos; Ribeira da Horta: (18) Eixo;Ribeira do Pano: (19) Vessada, (20) Ponte do Pano.
S34 M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
Panoâ40°35.20 N 08°30.10 W), canals (Frossosâ40°39.97 N 08°33.02 W and SegadĂŁesâ40°36.62 N08°30.88 W) and a zone belonging to the CĂ©rtima River, butwith lagunar characteristics as in the case of Pateira deFermentelos, and also with two sampling points, one situatedin Espinhel (40°34.11 N 08°29.93 W) and another in Re-queixo (40°35.58 N 08°31.48 W) before the confluence withthe Ăgueda River.
2.2. Environmental parameters
Several parameters were measured: temperature (air andwater), pH, oxygen (dissolved and percentage of saturation),conductivity, mineralization, alkalinity (carbonate and bicar-bonate), BOD5, CQO (dichromate and permanganate), phos-phates, silica, ammonium, nitrites, nitrates, chlorides, Ca,Mg, Na, K, Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn (totals), in agreement withreference methods (Geerberg et al., 1992; Hall and Lucas,1981; Rodier, 1971).
2.3. Microscopical studies
The phytoplankton was collected with a net of nylonhaving a mesh-size of 25 ”m. The collected material wassubdivided into two samples: one to be used for immediatestudy and the other for later studies. The latter one was fixedin the place of its crop with a formaldehyde solution to obtaina final concentration of 5%. Epiphytic, epipsamic, and epil-itic microalgae were also selected and conserved in the sameconditions.
The taxonomic study was carried out by making use of amicroscope of light base Leitz Biomed. The samples in-tended for the quantification of the abundance of differenttaxa present in the phytoplankton were cropped in a 1 l glassbottle and immediately fixed in a saturated mixtureiodine/iodide of potassium (lugol) 1 ml of this fixer wasadded for each 100 ml of the sample. After preparing theappropriate concentration, usually 50x, it was quantified us-ing Sedgwick-Rafter chambers, a microscope and by makinguse of the abundance quotations method (Frontier, 1969;LeitĂŁo, 1984) or by using the method described by Lund et al.(1958). Under the present conditions, the method of abun-dance quotations was used, while for not many abundantspecies, the method of Lund et al. (1958) was used. Insituations where there is a difficulty in the identification ofthe taxa, the inverted microscope is used as a resource (LeitzLabovert FS). For the identification of the taxa, several floraswere used (Asaul, 1975; Huber-Pestalozzi, 1955; Popova,1966; Popova and Safonova, 1976; Starmach, 1983).
2.4. Statistical treatment
With the results obtained for the 20 sampling sites andfrom the 26 samples cropped in each one, tables ofpresence/absence and respective abundance were con-structed. Using the same results, the averages for stationgrouped into nine periods were calculated.
The physical-chemical data and the abundance (x cel lâ1)converted into ln (x+1) of different taxa (Gauch Jr., 1982)with a frequency equal or greater than five in a total of 2 yearsin the crop period, were treated by canonical correspondenceanalysis (CCA) using the computer program CANOCO, ver-sion 3.1 (Ter Braak, 1990). The set of environmental vari-ables, which best explain the species data was searched usingthe option âforward selection of environmental variablesâ.The statistical significance of the amount of variance addedby each variable was tested by the Monte Carlo permutationtest, using 19 permutations (P = 0.05). Only significantvariables were included. The environmental variables thatexplained better the occurrence of taxa were researchedusing the option âprogressive selection of environmentalvariablesâ. The contribution of the variance of each variablewas tested using the test of permutations of Monte Carlo,using 19 permutations (P †0.05). Only the significant vari-ables were included.
The medium values for each selected parameter, as well asthe respective amplitude, were obtained using the followingformulas presented by Birks et al. (1990):
uk = ïżœi = 1
n
yik xi/ïżœi = 1
n
yik
tk = ïżœïżœi = 1
n
yikïżœ xi â uk ïżœ2/ïżœ
i = 1
n
yikïżœ1/2
ûk is the optimum value to estimate for each taxon.yik is the abundance of each taxon k in sample i.xi is the value of the parameter in sample i.tk is the tolerance of each taxon for the parameter in cause.
2.5. Saprobic system
The formula proposed by Zelinka and Marvan (1961 inSlĂĄdecek, 1973) was used to evaluate the qualityof the waterin different periods of sampling, with the help of algologicalinventory and respective abundance. For this the followingsaprobic valences proposed by SlĂĄdecek (1973) and SlĂĄ-decek and Perman (1978) for the different taxa were alsoused.Zelinka and Marvan
X = ïżœi â 1
n
hi gi xi/ïżœi â 1
n
hi gi
X is the saprobic level of the limnossaprobic zone, n is thenumber of taxa present in the sample, h is the absoluteabundance of the taxon, g is the indicative value of the taxonand x is the saprobic valency of the taxon at each level(SlĂĄdecek, 1973).
3. Results and discussion
Twenty-one species, belonging to the genus Phacus, wereidentified from the samples collected from the central regionof Portugal in lentic systems. The abundance of each taxonwas determined in 520 collected samples. Water samples
S35M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
were taken for the determination, by means of standardmethods, of physicochemical parameters (water tempera-ture, pH, organic matter (K2Cr2O7), conductivity, alkalinity,nitrogen as NH4
+, NO2â and NO3
â, phosphorus as orthophos-phate (PO4
3â) and metals in a total of 35 parameters).Some species were found with particular frequency,
namely, Phacus agilis Skuja, Ph. aenigmaticus Drez., Ph.caudatus HĂŒbn., Ph. gigas Da Cunha, Ph. triqueter (Ehr.)Duj., Ph. longicauda (Ehr.) Duj. and Ph. tortus (Lemm.)Skv. All 21 taxa were found with major frequency and abun-dance in the sampling sites and were characterized by thefollowing variation intervals of the environmental param-eters: water temperature (11.4â21.6 °C), pH (6.2â7.5)dichromate oxidability (10â59 mg lâ1), conductivity(145â779 ”S cmâ1), nitrogen as NO3
â (n.d.â2.852 mg lâ1),orthophosphate (n.d.â0.892 mg lâ1), chloride (14.2â109.3 mg lâ1), sodium (10.3â47.5 mg lâ1) and total iron (135â6446 ”g lâ1).
3.1. Environmental parameters
The physical-chemical parameters of the water revealedan expected variation of increment in spring and summer anddecrease in winter (Table 1). The nutrients showed an inversepattern. The environmental conditions showed the influenceof climate; in addition, the chemical composition of therocks, the nature of the substratum and the anthropogenicsubstances originating from industrial activities contributed alot to the organic matter content in the aquatic ecosystems.
3.2. Species ecology
As a result of the CCA, it was possible to project Fig. 2, inwhich the environmental variables and the taxa are repre-sented. The taxa are particularly distributed along quadrantstwo and three, along the negative segment of axis 1 and withthe association explained by water temperature, pH, conduc-tivity, organic matter, chloride (2a choice), sodium, potas-sium, iron and manganese totals and, to a lesser extent, silica.In quadrant 1 are distributed the associated forms of phos-phates, nitrites, nitrates, in contrast to the water temperatureand median to high values of pH, conductivity and alkalinity.Distributed along the positive segment of axis 1 and inquadrant four, are the associated taxa, mainly in spring,autumn and winter in a large amount of oxygenated water,with low mineralization, conductivity, pH, alkalinity, organicmatter, sodium, potassium and iron.
The species also distributed themselves particularly alongquadrants two and three. Euglenophyta are mainly distrib-uted along these quadrants, associated with medium to highvalues of water temperature, pH, organic matter, chloride,sodium, potassium, iron and manganese. In quadrants twoand three, it is possible to identify several species of Phacus,quadrant two: Ph. agilis, Ph. lismorensis, Ph. orbicularis,Ph. pleuronectes, Ph. triqueter; quadrant three: Ph. gigas,Ph. longicauda, Ph. tortus, Ph. trypanon. Ph. acuminatus,
Ph. aenigmaticus, Ph. caudatus, Ph. pyrum are distributedalong quadrant 1.
3.2.1. Phacus acuminatus Stokes var. variabilisLemmermann, 1899
Used code: PHAC, Fig. 6.The oval cells, lightly asymmetrical in relation to the
longitudinal axis and having a short tail acuminate, possess alength that varies between 28.5 and 29.3 ”m, a width between21.5 and 22.1 ”m and a thickness between 7.8 and 8.8 ”m.This material presents dimensions that enchase within thosepresented by Weik (1967) for type (22â36 Ă 17â24 ”m), aswell as those by Tell and Conforti (1986) and NĂ©meth (1997)(25â30 Ă 18â27 ”m). Tell and Conforti (1986), for the varietyPh. acuminatus var. variabilis, 22.5 Ă 19.0 ”m, values infe-rior to those found in our material.
This form was gathered in CĂ©rtima River (Vale EstĂȘvĂŁo, S.JoĂŁo de Azenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Ăgueda River(Ăgueda, Ăis da Ribeira), AntuĂŁ River (Vila da Loureiro,Estarreja), Levira River (Vila Verde, PerrĂŁes), Vouga River
Table 1Measured parameters and amplitudes of values found
Parameters Units AmplitudeWater temperature °C 5.7â30.0pH Sörensen Scale 5.4â8.4Conductivity ”S cmâ1 48.2â1392.5Mineralization mg lâ1 58.2â1056.3Dissolved oxygen mg lâ1 0.1â16.2Oxygen, percentage of saturation at 25 °C 1.1â168.4Oxidability to the KMnO4 mg lâ1 n.d.â15.9Oxidability to the K2Cr2O7 mg lâ1 n.d.â93BOD5 mg lâ1 n.d.â53.1Alkalinity mg lâ1 2.0â334.9Carbonates mg lâ1 1.8â277.5Nitrogen (NH4
+) mg lâ1 0.03â4.61Nitrogen (NO2
â) mg lâ1 n.d.â0.492Nitrogen (NO3
â) mg lâ1 n.d.â7.096Silica (SiO2) mg lâ1 0.17â11.50Phosphorus (PO4
3â) mg lâ1 n.d.â7.750Chloride (Clâ) mg lâ1 6.0â238.0Calcium (Ca2+) mg lâ1 2.0â256.0Magnesium (Mg2+) mg lâ1 n.d.â52.2Sodium (Na+) mg lâ1 2.6â136.6Potassium (K+) mg lâ1 0.21â160.35Dissolved iron ”g lâ1 7â5000Dissolved manganese ”g lâ1 2â2045Dissolved aluminium ”g lâ1 n.d.â729Dissolved zinc ”g lâ1 n.d.â1624Dissolved nickel ”g lâ1 n.d.â54Dissolved copper ”g lâ1 n.d.â55Dissolved lead ”g lâ1 n.d.â705Total iron ”g lâ1 26â12240Total manganese ”g lâ1 3â4371Total aluminium ”g lâ1 39â9312Total zinc ”g lâ1 n.d.â2203Total nickel ”g lâ1 n.d.â67Total copper ”g lâ1 n.d.â138Total lead ”g lâ1 n.d.â3369
n.d., not detected.
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(Lamas do Vouga, SegadĂŁes), canals of SegadĂŁes and Frossosand also in ribeira da Horta (Eixo) and Ribeira do Pano(Vessada, Ponte do Pano) (Fig. 1). It occurred predominantlyin the following conditions, with values for the studied pa-rameters and respective variation as: water temperature: 16.9± 3.2 °C (8.6â21.7); pH: 6.9 ± 0.5 (6.2-7.4); conductivity:483.7 ± 284.4 ”S cmâ1; bicarbonate: 129.8 ± 90.7 mg lâ1;organic matter (KMnO4): 4.1 ± 2.8 mg lâ1; organic matter(K2Cr2O7): 26 ± 16 mg lâ1; orthophosphate: 0.446 ± 0.446mg lâ1; silica: 4.06 ± 1.83 mg lâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.77± 0.68 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen: 0.044 ± 0.044 mg lâ1; nitrogenin nitrates way: 0.998 ± 0.998 mg lâ1; chlorides: 45.5 ± 25.5
mg lâ1; calcium: 57.1 ± 51.8 mg lâ1; magnesium: 13.3 ± 10.4mg lâ1; sodium: 27.0 ± 12.0 mg lâ1; potassium: 4.09 ± 2.85mg lâ1; total iron: 1682 ± 1652 ”g lâ1; total manganese: 248 ±220 ”g lâ1; total aluminium: 490 ± 448 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of xenossaprobics to a-mesossaprobics oc-curring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.2. Phacus aenigmaticus Drez epolski, 1925Used code: PHAE, Fig. 8.Dimensions: length, 30.4â31.3 ”m; width, 7.8â9.6 ”m;
thickness, 7.0 ”m. The cells attenuated in a tail possess three
Fig. 2. Biplot of freshwater algae taxa and environmental variables in planes 1â2 of CCA. The arrows represent selected variables. ” scale, species; c scale,environmental variables; %, percentage variance of species data; k, eigenvalue. The more clear and entire squares correspond to Euglenophyta.
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large chloroplasts with disposition in each of the angles of thecell. Some forms reveal the presence of a haplopyrenoid ineach of the plasts. The flagellum presents a length similar tothat of the cell. This material presents dimensions slightlysuperior to the ones presented by Weik (1967) (17â24 Ă10â13 ”m), still indicating the spiral of the pellicle from theright to the left and several discoid chloroplasts appearingonly as one and having large size. Our materials appearsimilar to the variety model presented by Pochmann (1942)(22â32 Ă 9â15 ”m), Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (22â32 Ă 9â15”m), Tell and Conforti (1986) (22â32 Ă 9â15 ”m) andNĂ©meth (1997) (22â30 Ă 9â19 ”m) particularly in terms ofdimensions. WoĆowski (1998) mentions the species ofPh. striatus FrancĂ© (Syn.: Ph. aenigmatica Drez epolski1921/1922), having dimensions that are only slightly inferior
to this material (24.5â27.0 Ă 8.2 ”m). The cell similar to Ph.aenigmaticus presents several chloroplasts. Also, Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) mentions the species Ph. striatus FrancĂ©,with lesser dimensions (20â24 Ă 4â9 ”m).
This form was gathered in CĂ©rtima River (S. JoĂŁo daAzenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Ăgueda River (Ăis daRibeira), Caima River (Vale de Cambra, Barbeito), AntuĂŁRiver (Vila da Loureiro, Estarreja), Levira River (Vila Verde,PerrĂŁes), Vouga River (Lamas do Vouga, SegadĂŁes), in vala inSegadĂŁes, vala de Frossos, Ribeira da Horta (Eixo) andRibeira do Pano (Vessada, Ponte do Pano) (Fig. 1).
It occurred predominantly in the following conditionswith values for the studied parameters and respective varia-tion as: water temperature: 15.1 ± 3.7 °C (7.8â25.0 °C); pH:6.7 ± 0.5; 5.7â7.8); conductivity: 360.0 ± 215.2 ”S cmâ1;bicarbonate: 78.4 ± 65.1 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4):4.3 ± 2.7 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 29 ± 15 mg lâ1;orthophosphate: 0.228 ± 0.228 mg lâ1; silica: 3.94 ± 1.61 mglâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.86 ± 0.77 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen:0.026 ± 0.026 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 0.823 ± 0.823mg lâ1; chlorides: 44.5 ± 30.3 mg lâ1; calcium: 30.1 ± 26.1mg lâ1; magnesium: 8.1 ± 7.5 mg lâ1; sodium: 28.0 ± 17.7 mglâ1; potassium: 4.32 ± 2.70 mg lâ1; total iron: 1752 ± 1352 ”glâ1; total manganese: 266 ± 212 ”g lâ1; total aluminium: 431± 389 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of oligossaprobics to polissaprobics occur-ring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.3. Phacus agilis Skuja var. okobojiensis Allerge &Jahn, 1943
Used code: PHAG, Fig. 5The acuminated cells possess two big parietal chloroplasts
and small paramylon grains dispersed by the cytoplasm,besides two paramylon caps, perforated and parietal. Theaxial nucleus occupies a sub-median position. It was notpossible to observer the striation of the pellicle. This materialpresents dimensions (length, 13.8â16.4 ”m; width,10.0â11.5 ”m; thickness, 8.8 ”m) coincident with those pre-sented by Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (12â23 Ă 9â13 ”m) andTell and Conforti (1986) (12.0â23.0 Ă 9.5â11.0 ”m).WoĆowski (1998) gives a representation similar to ours, with-out striation and indicating only the level of species. Hismaterial presents a variation between 15.1 and 18.3 Ă 9.2 ”m.The description given by Skuja (1976) with respect to thespecies is similar either in terms of dimensions (13â17 Ă8â11 ”m) or morphology, if we exclude the slight striation inthe material referred by us here.
This form was gathered in CĂ©rtima River (Vale EstĂȘvĂŁo, S.JoĂŁo da Azenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Ăgueda River(Ăgueda, Ăis da Ribeira), Caima River (Barbeito), AntuĂŁRiver (Vila da Loureiro, Estarreja), Levira River (Vila Verde,PerrĂŁes), in canals of SegadĂŁes and Frossos, Ribeira da Horta(Eixo) and Ribeira do Pano (Vessada, Ponte do Pano).
It occurred predominantly in the following conditionswith the values for the studied parameters and respective
Fig. 3. Phacus stokesii Lemmermann.
Fig. 4. Phacus skujai Skvortzow.
Fig. 5. Phacus agilis Skuja var. okobojiensis Allerge & Jahn.
S38 M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
variations as: water temperature: 15.9 ± 4.0 °C (7.7â25.0);pH: 6.8 ± 0.5; 5.7â7.8); conductivity: 456.2 ± 202.1 ”S cmâ1;bicarbonate: 106.1 ± 67.7 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4):5.0 ± 2.9 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 34 ± 17 mg lâ1;orthophosphate: 0.205 ± 0.205 mg lâ1; silica: 3.96 ±1.74 mg lâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.86 ± 0.77 mg lâ1; nitricnitrogen: 0.025 ± 0.025 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way:0.968 ± 0.968 mg lâ1; chlorides: 54.9 ± 31.6 mg lâ1; calcium:44.4 ± 31.6 mg lâ1; magnesium: 11.8 ± 8.7 mg lâ1; sodium:30.6 ± 13.1 mg lâ1; potassium: 4.97 ± 2.94 mg lâ1; total iron:2293 ± 1832 ”g lâ1; total manganese: 298 ± 208 ”g lâ1; totalaluminium: 450 ± 408 ”g lâ1. WoĆowski (1998) indicates pHvalues (6.8â7.5) for its occurrence that practically coincidewith those mentioned in this work. This taxon was found inplaces characterized by the presence of a range ofb-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobics occurring predomi-nantly in b-mesossaprobic to a-mesossaprobic environ-ments.
3.2.4. Phacus caudatus HĂŒbner, 1886Used code: PHCA, Fig. 7.
Dimensions: length, 33.1â36.2 ”m; width, 16.0â21.2 ”m;thickness, 10.6â11.8 ”m, tail, 4.0 ”m. The cells possess ashort and straight tail.
This material presents dimensions that are enchasingthemselves within those presented by Huber-Pestalozzi(1955) (31â50 Ă 15â25 ”m), Weik (1967) (27â46 Ă 14â22”m), by Tell and Conforti (1986) (31â50 Ă 15â25 ”m) and byWoĆowski (1998) (31.1â41.1 Ă 17.5â21.7 ”m).
This form was gathered in sampling sites of CĂ©rtima River(Vale EstĂȘvĂŁo, S. JoĂŁo de Azenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Re-queixo), AntuĂŁ River (Vila da Loureiro), Levira River (VilaVerde, PerrĂŁes), Vouga River (Lamas do Vouga, SegadĂŁes),canals of SegadĂŁes and Frossos, and also in Ribeira da Horta(Eixo) and Ribeira do Pano (Vessada, Ponte do Pano).
It occurred predominantly in following conditions withthe values for the studied parameters: water temperature:15.7 ± 3.5 °C (7.7â21.9 °C); pH: 6.9 ± 0.5 (5.7â7.4); conduc-tivity: 513.3 ± 251.7 ”S cmâ1; bicarbonate: 122.7 ± 82.0 mglâ1; organic matter (KMnO4): 3.9 ± 2.3 mg lâ1; organic matter(K2Cr2O7): 27 ± 14 mg lâ1; orthophosphate: 0.438 ± 0.438mg lâ1; silica: 4.16 ± 1.44 mg lâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.80± 0.71 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen: 0.043 ± 0.043 mg lâ1; nitrogenin nitrates way: 1.238 ± 1.238 mg lâ1; chlorides: 44.6 ± 17.9mg lâ1; calcium: 54.5 ± 43.3 mg lâ1; magnesium: 13.1 ± 9.9mg lâ1; sodium: 30.4 ± 13.2 mg lâ1; potassium: 3.86 ± 2.33mg lâ1; total iron: 1624 ± 1451 ”g lâ1; total manganese: 275 ±241 ”g lâ1; total aluminium: 401 ± 359 ”g lâ1. WoĆowski(1998) indicates pH values (7.0â7.7) for this species thatparticularly coincide with those referred to in this work.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of oligossaprobics to a-mesossaprobics oc-curring predominantly in a-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.5. Phacus gigas Da Cunha, 1913Used code: PHGI, Fig. 12.
Fig. 6. Phacus acuminatus Stokes var. variabilis Lemmermann.
Fig. 7. Phacus caudatus HĂŒbner.
S39M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
Dimensions: length, 125.3â134.3 ”m; width, 82.0â88.6”m; tail, 28.6â28.7 ”m. The cells possess a longitudinalstriation that accompanies the cellsâ contour. Several discoidplasts present a regular distribution in the whole cell. Acircular ring of paramylon frequentlyoccupies a median posi-tion in the cell, other rings, smaller and in large amounts, aredispersed by the cell, particularly in its inferior half. Thismaterial presents dimensions slightly superior to those givenby Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (100 Ă 70 ”m, tail 20 ”m) andTell and Conforti (1986) (100â115 Ă 70â80 ”m, tail,20â23 ”m).
This form is relatively frequent in CĂ©rtima River, insteadof Espinhel and Requeixo, Levira River (PerrĂŁes), VougaRiver (Lamas do Vouga), canal of SegadĂŁes and Frossos and
Ribeira da Horta and Ribeira do Pano (Vessada, Ponte doPano), and in frequent conditions coincident with the follow-ing values for the studied parameters and respective varia-tions: water temperature: 18.1 ± 3.5 °C (12.4â25.0 °C); pH:6.9 ± 0.3 (5.9â7.5); conductivity: 460.4 ± 95.6 ”S cmâ1;bicarbonate: 148.1 ± 49.1 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4):5.7 ± 1.7 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 34 ± 11 mg lâ1;orthophosphate: 0.085 ± 0.051 mg lâ1; silica: 5.92 ± 2.93 mglâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.84 ± 0.75 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen:0.009 ± 0.008 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 0.287 ± 0.287mg lâ1; chlorides: 58.7 ± 31.2 mg lâ1; calcium: 49.0 ± 9.3 mglâ1; magnesium: 11.7 ± 5.7 mg lâ1; sodium: 32.3 ± 11.5 mglâ1; potassium: 5.65 ± 1.73 mg lâ1; total iron: 3884 ± 2562 ”glâ1; total manganese: 523 ± 239 ”g lâ1; total aluminium: 327± 265 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobicsoccurring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.6. Phacus helikoides Pochmann, 1942Used code: PHHE, Fig. 19.
Dimensions: length, 105.0â149.5 ”m; width, 45.0â52.0 ”m.
Weik (1967) presents material with dimensions with avariation in length which is more restricted than that found inour material (125â126 Ă 48â50 ”m); the material referred byWoĆowski (1998) being inferior either in length (81.5â94.0”m), or in width (33.5â38.0 ”m). Our material is slightlysuperior in terms of length to that referred by Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (70â120 Ă 30â54 ”m). This form wasgathered in Pateira de Fermentelos (CĂ©rtima River) and inRibeira da Horta and Ribeira do Pano, in conditions charac-
Fig. 8. Phacus aenigmaticus Drez epolski.
Fig. 9. Phacus raciborskii Drez epolski.
S40 M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
terized by the presence of a range b-mesossaprobics toa-mesossaprobics.
3.2.7. Phacus horridus Pochmann, 1942Used code: PHHO, Fig. 11.
Dimensions: length, 35.6 ”m; width, 22.2 ”m; thickness,11.3â15.2 ”m, tail, 6â5 ”m. The material has inferior dimen-sions to those described by Tell and Conforti (1986) and tothose of Argentina (47â57 Ă 30â36 ”m), but is superior tothose mentioned by Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (30 Ă 22 ”m).
This form was gathered in CĂ©rtima River (Espinhel, Re-queixo), Ăgueda River (Ăis da Ribeira), Vouga River (Lamasdo Vouga), in the canal of SegadĂŁes and Ribeira da Horta andin Ribeira do Pano (Vessada, Ponte do Pano), in situationscharacterized by the presence of a range of b-mesossaprobicsto a-mesossaprobics occurring predominantly inb-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.8. Phacus lismorensis Playfair, 1921Used code: PHLI, Fig. 16.Dimensions: length, 55.0â142.9 ”m; width, 27.0â40.0
”m; thickness, 15.0 ”m; tail, 39.5â57.1 ”m. The cells possessa long, straight or oblique tail. The cell possesses a longitu-dinal striation, several discoid plasts and several paramylondiscoid grains one of them being prominent, flattened, centraland ventral. This material presents characteristics, as well asdimensions, that enchase, at least in part, within those pre-sented by Weik (1967) (128â145 Ă 38â56 ”m; tail, 60â79”m). The values presented by Huber-Pestalozzi (1955)(85â100 Ă 30 ”m; tail, 35â40 ”m) are inferior limits com-pared to the values represented here. This form was gatheredin Rivers CĂ©rtima (PerrĂŁes, Espinhel), Levira (PerrĂŁes), andin the canal of Frossos and Ribeira da Horta (Fig. 1). Itoccurred predominantly in the following conditions: watertemperature: 16.4 ± 2.9 °C (12.7â20.0 °C); pH: 6.9 ± 0.4(6.4â6.7); conductivity: 565.2 ± 122.5 ”S cmâ1; bicarbonate:138.3 ± 52.9 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4): 4.6 ± 2.2 mglâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 31 ± 16 mg lâ1; orthophos-phate: 0.108 ± 0.073 mg lâ1; silica: 3.47 ± 1.45 mg lâ1;ammonium nitrogen: 0.81 ± 0.72 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen:0.020 ± 0.018 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 1.212 ± 1.057mg lâ1; chlorides: 61.1 ± 30.0 mg lâ1; calcium: 53.9 ± 19.7mg lâ1; magnesium: 16.2 ± 9.8 mg lâ1; sodium: 30.1 ± 9.2 mglâ1; potassium: 4.62 ± 2.16 mg lâ1; total iron: 2056 ± 1734 ”glâ1; total manganese: 287 ± 173 ”g lâ1; total aluminium: 324± 282 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobicsoccurring predominantly in a-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.9. Phacus longicauda (Ehrenberg) Dujardin, 1841Used code: PHLO, Fig. 17.Dimensions: length, 141.8â157.5 ”m; width, 52.4â64.3
”m; thickness, 34.1 ”m; tail, 58.8â62.9 ”m. The cells possessa long, straight tail. The cell possesses a longitudinal striationthat accompanies the cellsâ contour. A bobbin of paramylonoccupies a central position, possessing, in its posterior por-tion, the accommodated nucleus. Weik (1967) presents mate-rial with dimensions (122â179 Ă 47â63 ”m; tail, 54â96 ”m),as well as characteristics that enchase within those presentedin this work. The materials referred by Skuja (1976) (90â160Ă 40â62 ”m), Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (85â190 Ă 40â70 ”m)and Tell and Conforti (1986) for the variety model (85â160 Ă40â70 ”m) coincide with our material in its superior limits.The variety model given by WoĆowski (1998) possesses infe-rior dimensions (81.0â97.0 Ă 22.0â41.0 ”m) compared to the
Fig. 10. Phacus platyaulax Pochmann.
S41M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
material studied by us. The pH values (7.5â8.0) presented areslightly superior.
This form was gathered in Rivers Caima (Vale de Cam-bra), Levira (PerrĂŁes), CĂ©rtima (PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Re-queixo), in the canal of Frossos and Ribeira da Horta andRibeira do Pano in Ponte do Pano, predominantly in thefollowing conditions: water temperature: 18.1 ± 3.5 °C(7.7â25.0 °C); pH: 7.1 ± 0.4 (5.7â7.4); conductivity: 494.1 ±108.8 ”S cmâ1; bicarbonate: 136.6 ± 40.5 mg lâ1; organicmatter (KMnO4): 5.5 ± 3.6 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7):37 ± 21 mg lâ1; orthophosphate: 0.107 ± 0.074 mg lâ1; silica:3.84 ± 1.06 mg lâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.85 ± 0.76 mg lâ1;nitric nitrogen: 0.019 ± 0.019 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates
way: 0.741 ± 0.741 mg lâ1; chlorides: 68.1 ± 41.2 mg lâ1;calcium: 47.9 ± 15.8 mg lâ1; magnesium: 16.3 ± 8.9 mg lâ1;sodium: 34.0 ± 10.6 mg lâ1; potassium: 5.54 ± 3.56 mg lâ1;total iron: 1521 ± 1445 ”g lâ1; total manganese: 302 ± 197 ”glâ1; total aluminium: 354 ± 264 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of oligossaprobics to a-mesossaprobics oc-curring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.10. Phacus orbicularis HĂŒbner, 1886Used code: PHOR, Fig. 13.
The cells are practically circular, with a length of63.0â71.7 ”m; width, 45.2â47.8 ”m; thickness, 11.3â19.6”m, tail, 12.2â15.2 ”m. The cells possess a longitudinalstriation that accompanies the cellsâ contour. Several discoidplasts present a regular distribution in the whole cell. Acircular ring of paramylon occupies a median position in thecell, other smaller ones and those in small amount are dis-persed by the cell. The axial nucleus occupies a sub-medianposition, below the central ring of paramylon.
This material presents dimensions that enchase withinthose referred by Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (50â100 Ă 30â60”m), as well as characteristics, that enchase within thosereferred by Weik (1967) (45â74 Ă 30â50 ”m; tail, 7â17 ”m),Tell and Conforti (1986) (32â100 Ă 22â60 ”m, tail, 19â25”m) and WoĆowski (1998) (46.0â67.5 Ă 19.5â46.5 ”m) forPh. orbicularis fo. orbicularis. This taxon was found inseveral sampling sites in rivers CĂ©rtima (Vale EstĂȘvĂŁo, Per-rĂŁes, Requeixo), Ăgueda (Ăis da Ribeira), Levira (PerrĂŁes),Vouga (Lamas do Vouga), in the canal of SegadĂŁes andFrossos, Ribeira da Horta and in Ribeira do Pano (Vessada,Ponte do Pano).
It occurred predominantly in the following conditionswith the values for the studied parameters and respectivevariation as: water temperature: 16.2 ± 3.6 °C (7.7â25.0 °C);pH: 6.7 ± 0.5 (5.7â7.5); conductivity: 452.9 ± 113.3 ”S cmâ1;bicarbonate: 106.4 ± 59.5 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4):
Fig. 11. Phacus horridus Pochmann.
Fig. 12. Phacus gigas Da Cunha.
S42 M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
6.6 ± 2.9 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 41 ± 13 mg lâ1;orthophosphate: 0.101 ± 0.101 mg lâ1; silica: 3.91 ± 1.89 mglâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 1.02 ± 0.93 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen:0.016 ± 0.016 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 0.526 ± 0.526mg lâ1; chlorides: 67.6 ± 32.1 mg lâ1; calcium: 39.4 ± 16.5mg lâ1; magnesium: 11.2 ± 4.6 mg lâ1; sodium: 34.9 ± 11.3mg lâ1; potassium: 6.57 ± 2.86 mg lâ1; total iron: 2744 ± 1464”g lâ1; total manganese: 439 ± 436 ”g lâ1; total aluminium:584 ± 542 ”g lâ1. WoĆowski (1998) attributes the occurrenceof Ph. orbicularis fo. orbicularis to pH values between 6.6and 7.6, which are values that practically coincide with thesuperior limit in the species found by us.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobicsoccurring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.11. Phacus platyaulax Pochmann, 1942Used code: PHPL, Fig. 10.Dimensions: length, 36.2â38.9 ”m; width, 26.2â31.5 ”m;
thickness, 12.0â19.6 ”m. The cells possess a short and in-curved tail. The cell possesses several discoid plasts and twoellipsoid and perforated paramylon grains, prominent, with alateral position in the cell. In our material, the dimensionsenchase themselves within that described by Tell and Con-forti (1986) (30â38 Ă 22â28 ”m), the gamut of amplitudepresented by Pochmann (1942) and Huber-Pestalozzi (1955)(36â38 Ă 27â28 ”m) being slightly less.
This form was gathered in Rivers CĂ©rtima (Vale EstĂȘvĂŁo,S. JoĂŁo de Azenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Caima(Barbeito), Levira (PerrĂŁes), in the canal of SegadĂŁes andFrossos and in Ribeira da Horta and Ribeira do Pano (Ves-sada, Ponte do Pano).
It occurred predominantly in following conditions withthe values for the studied parameters and respective variationas: water temperature: 16.1 ± 3.8 °C (9.0â25.0 °C); pH: 6.8 ±0.5 (5.7â7.5); conductivity: 513.0 ± 185.2 ”S cmâ1; bicar-bonate: 120.2 ± 70.8 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4): 5.9 ±2.7 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 40 ± 15 mg lâ1;orthophosphate: 0.186 ± 0.186 mg lâ1; silica: 3.78 ± 1.69 mglâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 1.23 ± 1.01 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen:0.021 ± 0.021 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 0.416 ± 0.416mg lâ1; chlorides: 68.2 ± 34.1 mg lâ1; calcium: 47.2 ± 28.6mg lâ1; magnesium: 13.0 ± 8.1 mg lâ1; sodium: 35.0 ± 10.5mg lâ1; potassium: 5.90 ± 2.71 mg lâ1; total iron: 2399 ± 1503”g lâ1; total manganese: 318 ± 229 ”g lâ1; total aluminium:527 ± 485 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobicsoccurring predominantly in a-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.12. Phacus pleuronectes (O.F. Mueller) Dujardin, 1841Used code: PHPE, Fig. 14.Dimensions: length, 46.1 ”m; width, 31.3 ”m; thickness;
tail, 5.5 ”m. Very similar in form to Ph. orbicularis, butsmaller and presenting ovoid cells and the anterior pole isattenuated. The cell presents several paramylon discs, par-ticularly dispersed in the anterior portion of the cell. One ofthe grains occupies an approximately central position andpossesses large dimensions. Several and discoid chloroplastsoccupy the anterior portion of the cell. This material presentsdimensions that enchase within those presented by Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (40â80 Ă 30â50 ”m), Weik (1967) (33â58Ă 25â42 ”m; tail, 5â10 ”m) and in terms of the descriptionand inferior limits of dimensions (40â100 Ă 29â70 ”m; tail,5â7 ”m) presented by Tell and Conforti (1986) in the varietymodel. The variety model described by WoĆowski (1998) isslightly lesser in terms of dimensions (24.0â44.7 Ă 17.5â34.0 ”m) than the forms found in our material.
Fig. 13. Phacus orbicularis HĂŒbner.
Fig. 14. Phacus pleuronectes (O.F. Mueller) Dujardin.
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Species sampled in Levira River (PerrĂŁes), CĂ©rtima River(PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo) and in the canal of SegadĂŁes.
3.2.13. Phacus pyrum (Ehrenberg) Stein, 1878Used code: PHPY, Fig. 21.Dimensions: length, 40.6 ”m; width, 17.5 ”m; thickness,
16.3 ”m; tail, 13.9 ”m. The cells possess two lateral caps of
paramylon besides small discoid rings dispersed by the cyto-plasm. For this species, Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) mentionsdimension of 30â55 Ă (7?)â21 ”m and WoĆowski (1998)mentions the following dimensions: 28.3â51.0 Ă 12.0â21.1”m. NĂ©meth (1997) refers to this species treaty as a varietymodel, using the same values as those of Pochmann (1942),which are presented by Huber-Pestalozzi (1955). This authorstill associates this species, at variety level, Phacus rudiculaand Phacus trypanon, with the same dimensions referred byPochmann (1942) and Huber-Pestalozzi (1955).
This form was gathered in Rivers CĂ©rtima (Vale EstĂȘvĂŁo,S. JoĂŁo de Azenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Ăgueda(Ăgueda, Ăis da Ribeira), AntuĂŁ (Estarreja), Levira (VilaVerde, PerrĂŁes), Vouga (Lamas do Vouga) and in the canal ofSegadĂŁes and Frossos, and Ribeira da Horta and Ribeira doPano (Vessada, Ponte do Pano).
It occurred predominantly in the following conditionswith the values for the studied parameters and respectivevariation: water temperature: 15.6 ± 3.2 °C (11.2â21.4 °C);pH: 6.8 ± 0.6 (5.7â7.8); conductivity: 510.0 ± 268.9 ”S cmâ1;bicarbonate: 115.4 ± 89.6 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4):4.2 ± 2.8 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 28 ± 15 mg lâ1;orthophosphate: 0.384 ± 0.384 mg lâ1; silica: 3.92 ± 1.31 mglâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.74 ± 0.65 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen:0.032 ± 0.032 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 0.891 ± 0.891mg lâ1; chlorides: 47.7 ± 25.5 mg lâ1; calcium: 54.0 ± 47.0mg lâ1; magnesium: 12.8 ± 9.3 mg lâ1; sodium: 29.6 ± 14.3mg lâ1; potassium: 4.23 ± 2.76 mg lâ1; total iron: 1378 ± 1282”g lâ1; total manganese: 255 ± 218 ”g lâ1; total aluminium:520 ± 478 ”g lâ1. WoĆowski (1998) mentions pH valuesbetween 6.8 and 8.9 for its occurrence.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobicsoccurring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic toa-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.14. Phacus raciborskii Drez epolski, 1925Used code: PHRA, Fig. 9.Dimensions: length, 40.0â53.1 ”m; width, 11.9â15.6 ”m.
The material have superior dimensions to those provided byPochmann (1942) and Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (35 Ă 10â12”m), being situated in the superior limit of those given byWoĆowski (1998): 34.0â41.0 Ă 10.5â16.5 ”m. This authorstill refers to its occurrence at pH between 6.8 and 8.4.
This form was gathered in CĂ©rtima River (PerrĂŁes, Espin-hel, Requeixo), the canal of SegadĂŁes and Ribeira do Pano(Ponte do Pano), in places characterized by the presence of arange of b-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobics occurringpredominantly in a-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.15. Phacus rudicula (Playfair) Pochmann, 1942Used code: PHRU, Fig. 22.Dimensions: length, 46.9â53.1 ”m; width, 15.0â22.5 ”m;
thickness, 11.3â18.8 ”m; tail, 17.5â18.8 ”m. The cells pos-sess two lateral paramylon caps besides small discoid ringsdispersed by the cytoplasm. The pellicle appears spiralled, to
Fig. 15. Phacus triqueter (Ehrenberg) Dujardin.
Fig. 16. Phacus lismorensis Playfair.
S44 M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
the right, with 6â8 grooves. Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) men-tions the same values as those of Pochmann (1942) for thisspecies (24â35 Ă 15â26 ”m; tail, 14â18 ”m).
This taxon was gathered from Rivers CĂ©rtima (S. JoĂŁo deAzenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Ăgueda (Ăgueda, Ăisda Ribeira), Caima (Barbeito), AntuĂŁ (Estarreja), Levira(PerrĂŁes), Vouga (Lamas do Vouga, SegadĂŁes), the canal ofSegadĂŁes and Frossos and Ribeira da Horta and in Ribeira doPano (Vessada, Ponte do Pano).
It occurred predominantly in following conditions withthe values for the studied parameters and respective varia-tions: water temperature: 15.0 ± 3.2 °C (7.7â22.0 °C); pH:6.6 ± 0.5 (5.7â7.4); conductivity: 391.8 ± 189.8 ”S cmâ1;bicarbonate: 73.0 ± 53.2 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4):5.3 ± 3.0 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 32 ± 15 mg lâ1;orthophosphate: 0.131 ± 0.131 mg lâ1; silica: 3.77 ± 1.19 mglâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.69 ± 0.60 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen:0.022 ± 0.022 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 0.825 ± 0.825mg lâ1; chlorides: 48.8 ± 28.5 mg lâ1; calcium: 32.9 ± 22.2mg lâ1; magnesium: 8.6 ± 5.9 mg lâ1; sodium: 28.0 ± 11.9 mglâ1; potassium: 5.28 ± 3.02 mg lâ1; total iron: 2150 ± 1396 ”glâ1; total manganese: 246 ± 205 ”g lâ1; total aluminium: 530± 488 ”g lâ1. This taxon was found in places characterized bythe presence of a range of oligossaprobics toa-mesossaprobics occurring predominantly inb-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.16. Phacus similis Christen, 1962
Used code: PHSI.The taxon was collected in several places: rivers Caima
(Barbeito), AntuĂŁ (Estarreja), Levira in PerrĂŁes, CĂ©rtima(PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Ăgueda (Ăis da Ribeira),Vouga (Lamas do Vouga, SegadĂŁes), in the canal of SegadĂŁesand Frossos and in Ribeira da Horta and Ribeira do Pano(Vessada, Ponte do Pano). The values for the studied param-eters and respective variations are as follow: water tempera-ture: 14.4 ± 3.2 °C (7.7â21.0 °C); pH: 6.5 ± 0.4 (5.7â7.0);conductivity: 386.2 ± 192.9 ”S cmâ1; bicarbonate: 72.7 ±53.4 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4): 6.2 ± 3.3 mg lâ1;organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 39 ± 16 mg lâ1; orthophosphate:0.152 ± 0.152 mg lâ1; silica: 3.79 ± 1.16 mg lâ1; ammoniumnitrogen: 0.98 ± 0.89 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen: 0.022 ± 0.022mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 0.419 ± 0.419 mg lâ1;chlorides: 59.0 ± 37.4 mg lâ1; calcium: 30.4 ± 17.3 mg lâ1;magnesium: 8.4 ± 6.5 mg lâ1; sodium: 31.1 ± 15.3 mg lâ1;potassium: 6.16 ± 3.27 mg lâ1; total iron: 2306 ± 1554 ”g lâ1;total manganese: 193 ± 159 ”g lâ1; total aluminium: 374 ±330 ”g lâ1. WoĆowski (1998) indicates pH values of 6.8â7.0in environment which were found to be coincident with oursuperior limit.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of oligossaprobics to polissaprobics occur-ring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.17. Phacus skujai Skvortzow, 1928Used code: PHSK, Fig. 4.Fig. 17. Phacus longicauda (Ehrenberg) Dujardin.
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Dimensions: length, (15.0) 17.5â24.0 ”m; width, 7.5â12.5”m; thickness, 5.6â6.3 ”m. It is a form consisting of anobliquely truncated pole and a posterior pole acuminate thatpossesses a section approximately elliptical with a medianconcave re-entrant. The longitudinal section appears convexin the ventral face and concave in the anterior portion up tothe middle of the cell, then appears convex up to the attenu-ation that delimits the beginning of the posterior pole acumi-nation. Their cells possess a red and elongated eyespot,several discoid plasts (>16) of about 3 ”m diameter. Thecytoplasm shows one or two paramylon rings with a smalland circular perforation. The reservoir, spherical and sub-apical allows the flagellum of about half of the cell length toexit. This material presents dimensions similar to those pre-sented by Pochmann (1942) (13â33 Ă 5â11 Ă 3â4 ”m),Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (13â33 Ă 5â11 ”m), Weik (1967)(22 Ă 11 ”m) and Tell and Conforti (1986) (13â30 Ă 5â17”m). The paramylon discs are not oblong, as mentioned byWeik (1967) but are discoid. The form was gathered in CaimaRiver (Barbeito), AntuĂŁ River (Vila da Loureiro, Estarreja),Levira River (Vila Verde, PerrĂŁes), CĂ©rtima River (Vale Es-tĂȘvĂŁo, S. JoĂŁo de Azenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo),Ăgueda River (Ăis da Ribeira), Vouga River (Lamas doVouga, SegadĂŁes), in the canal of SegadĂŁes and Frossos andalso in Ribeira da Horta and Ribeira do Pano (Vessada, Pontedo Pano).
The values for the studied parameters and respectivevariations are as follows: water temperature: 15.7 ± 3.3 °C(9.0â22.0 °C); pH: 6.9 ± 0.5 (5.7â7.8); conductivity: 512.5 ±
196.2 ”S cmâ1; bicarbonate: 117.4 ± 68.1 mg lâ1; organicmatter (KMnO4): 4.5 ± 3.1 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7):31 ± 19 mg lâ1; orthophosphate: 0.286 ± 0.286 mg lâ1; silica:3.84 ± 1.37 mg lâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.78 ± 0.69 mg lâ1;nitric nitrogen: 0.038 ± 0.038 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitratesway: 1.426 ± 1.426 mg lâ1; chlorides: 54.0 ± 32.4 mg lâ1;calcium: 52.3 ± 37.8 mg lâ1; magnesium: 12.1 ± 7.3 mg lâ1;sodium: 32.2 ± 15.3 mg lâ1; potassium: 4.53 ± 3.11 mg lâ1;total iron: 1491 ± 1356 ”g lâ1; total manganese: 248 ± 237 ”glâ1; total aluminium: 426 ± 373 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to polissaprobics occur-ring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.18. Phacus stokesii Lemmermann, 1901Used code: PHSE, Fig. 3.Dimensions: length, 41.8 ”m; width, 30.6 ”m. Pochmann
(1942) mentions a length of 13â20 ”m and a width of12â15 ”m. Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) mentions a length of46â48 ”m and a width of 39.0â41.6 ”m. WoĆowski (1998)mentions the following dimensions for this species:36.5â40.0 Ă 33.5â36.0 ”m and a pH value of 8.3 for itsoccurrence. This material enchases itself within the dimen-sions given by NĂ©meth (1997) for Ph. stokesii f. stokesii(37.2â48 Ă 30â41.6 ”m) and within those referred byWoĆowski (1998) as an inferior limit and those of Huber-
Fig. 18. Phacus tortus (Lemmermann) Skvortzow.
Fig. 19. Phacus helikoides Pochmann.
S46 M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
Pestalozzi (1955) as a superior limit for species. It is a speciesidentified from samples of Pateira de Fermentelos in Espin-hel (Fig. 1).
3.2.19. Phacus tortus (Lemmermann) Skvortzow, 1928Used code: PHTO, Fig. 18.Dimensions: length, 111.3 ”m; width, 53.1 ”m; tail,
50.0 ”m. The cells possess a long and straight tail. Ourmaterial coincides with the superior limit of the interval ofdimensions given by Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (80â112 Ă38â52 ”m), whereas the dimension of the material of Weik(1967) (63â100 Ă 26â48 ”m; tail, 25â38 ”m) are slightlyinferior to ours.
The taxon gathered in Rivers Caima (Barbeito), AntuĂŁ(Estarreja), Levira (PerrĂŁes), CĂ©rtima (S. JoĂŁo de Azenha,PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Vouga (Lamas do Vouga), inthe canal of SegadĂŁes and Frossos and also in Ribeira daHorta and Ribeira do Pano (Vessada, Ponte do Pano).
The values for the studied parameters and respectivevariations are as follow: water temperature: 17.4 ± 3.6 °C(7.7â25.0 °C); pH: 6.7 ± 0.5 (5.7â7.8); conductivity: 412.6 ±139.6 ”S cmâ1; bicarbonate: 104.0 ± 62.6 mg lâ1; organicmatter (KMnO4): 6.7 ± 3.7 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7):40 ± 18 mg lâ1; orthophosphate: 0.082 ± 0.082 mg lâ1; silica:4.26 ± 2.15 mg lâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.93 ± 0.84 mg lâ1;nitric nitrogen: 0.013 ± 0.013 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitratesway: 0.374 ± 0.374 mg lâ1; chlorides: 63.5 ± 33.1 mg lâ1;calcium: 40.5 ± 26.7 mg lâ1; magnesium: 11.1 ± 7.1 mg lâ1;sodium: 34.2 ± 12.7 mg lâ1; potassium: 6.73 ± 3.69 mg lâ1;total iron: 2933 ± 2151 ”g lâ1; total manganese: 422 ± 405 ”glâ1; total aluminium: 594 ± 552 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to polissaprobics occur-ring predominantly in a-mesossaprobic environments.
3.2.20. Phacus triqueter (Ehrenberg) Dujardin, 1841Used code: PHTR, Fig. 15.
Dimensions: length, 73.3 ”m; width, 44.3 ”m; thickness,17.6 ”m; tail, 11.9 ”m. This material presents dimensions, aswell as characteristics, that enchase within those presentedby Weik (1967) (52â82 Ă 35â51 ”m; tail, 7â14 ”m), beingslightly superior to those of Skuja (1976) (37â50 Ă 30â35”m), Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (37â68 Ă 30â45 ”m), Tell andConforti (1986) (37â68 Ă 30â45 ”m; tail, 7â8 ”m) andclearly superior to those of WoĆowski (1998) (40.0 Ă24.0â27.0 ”m).
The form was gathered in CĂ©rtima River (Vale EstĂȘvĂŁo, S.JoĂŁo de Azenha, PerrĂŁes, Espinhel, Requeixo), Ăgueda River(Ăis da Ribeira), AntuĂŁ River (Estarreja), Levira River (Per-rĂŁes) and in the canal of SegadĂŁes and Frossos and Ribeira daHorta and Ribeira do Pano (Ponte do Pano). The values forthe studied parameters and respective variations are as fol-low: water temperature: 17.9 ± 3.7 °C (10.6â25.0 °C); pH:6.9 ± 0.4 (6.1â7.4); conductivity: 460.3 ± 178.2 ”S cmâ1;bicarbonate: 124.2 ± 73.9 mg lâ1; organic matter (KMnO4):5.0 ± 2.9 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 34 ± 16 mg lâ1;orthophosphate: 0.268 ± 0.268 mg lâ1; silica: 4.35 ± 2.03 mglâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 0.86 ± 0.77 mg lâ1; nitric nitrogen:0.042 ± 0.042 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way: 0.693 ± 0.693mg lâ1; chlorides: 52.8 ± 25.0 mg lâ1; calcium: 52.0 ± 45.2mg lâ1; magnesium: 14.1 ± 10.5 mg lâ1; sodium: 32.0 ± 11.4mg lâ1; potassium: 5.04 ± 2.86 mg lâ1; total iron: 2344 ± 2175”g lâ1; total manganese: 364 ± 293 ”g lâ1; total aluminium:578 ± 536 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobicsoccurring predominantly in b-mesossaprobic environments.
Fig. 20. Phacus trypanon Pochmann.
Fig. 21. Phacus pyrum (Ehrenberg) Stein.
Fig. 22. Phacus rudicula (Playf.) Pochmann.In all the figures of Phacus, the scale bars represent 10 ”m.
S47M.J. Pereira, U.M.M. Azeiteiro / Acta Oecologica 24 (2003) S33âS48
3.2.21. Phacus trypanon Pochmann, 1942Used code: PHTY, Fig. 20.Dimensions: length, 41.7â43.9 ”m; width, 17.8â21.7 ”m;
tail, 15.2â18.3 ”m. The cells possess two lateral paramyloncaps besides small discoid rings dispersed by the cytoplasm.Huber-Pestalozzi (1955) (28â30 Ă 17â18 ”m) and Weik(1967) present material with dimensions inferior (31â32 Ă13â14 ”m; tail, 12â14 ”m) to ours, presenting 7â8 groovesand two paramylon parietal caps. It seems similar to Ph.pseudonordstedtii (Pochmann, 1942), this being the lastovate and appearing more flattened. Ph. trypanon is orbicu-lar, and symmetric in the anterior pole. WoĆowski (1998)mentioned the following dimensions for this species:23.0â30.5 Ă 11.5â14.5 ”m and a pH value of 7.5 for itsoccurrence. This taxon was collected in several places, rivers,canals and swamps (CĂ©rtima RiverâVale EstĂȘvĂŁo, PerrĂŁes,Espinhel, Requeixo; Ăgueda RiverâĂis da Ribeira; LeviraRiverâVila Verde, PerrĂŁes; canal of SegadĂŁes; canal of Fros-sos; Ribeira da Horta; Ribeira do PanoâVessada, Ponte doPano) (Fig. 1). It occurred predominantly in following con-ditions with the values for the studied parameters and respec-tive variation as: water temperature: 16.5 ± 3.8 °C (11.2â25.0°C); pH: 6.6 ± 0.5 (5.7â7.5); conductivity: 420.0 ± 156.9 ”Scmâ1; bicarbonate: 92.2 ± 57.2 mg lâ1; organic matter(KMnO4): 5.7 ± 3.0 mg lâ1; organic matter (K2Cr2O7): 36 ±16 mg lâ1; orthophosphate: 0.102 ± 0.102 mg lâ1; silica: 4.02± 1.76 mg lâ1; ammonium nitrogen: 1.03 ± 0.96 mg lâ1; nitricnitrogen: 0.018 ± 0.018 mg lâ1; nitrogen in nitrates way:0.384 ± 0.384 mg lâ1; chlorides: 62.6 ± 36.3 mg lâ1; calcium:35.5 ± 19.9 mg lâ1; magnesium: 9.4 ± 5.3 mg lâ1; sodium:33.0 ± 14.0 mg lâ1; potassium: 5.69 ± 2.97 mg lâ1; total iron:2819 ± 1812 ”g lâ1; total manganese: 336 ± 282 ”g lâ1; totalaluminium: 575 ± 533 ”g lâ1.
This taxon was found in places characterized by the pres-ence of a range of b-mesossaprobics to a-mesossaprobicsoccurring predominantly in a-mesossaprobic environments.
4. Conclusion
The 21 taxa were found in the sampling sites character-ized by the following variation intervals of the environmentalparameters: water temperature 11.4â21.6 °C; pH: 6.2â7.5;dichromate oxidability: 10â59 mg lâ1; conductivity: 145â779”S cmâ1, nitrogen as NO3
â: n.d.â2.852 mg lâ1; orthophos-phate: n.d.â0.892 mg lâ1; chloride: 14.2â109.3 mg lâ1; so-dium 10.3â47.5 mg lâ1 and total iron: 135-6446 ”g lâ1. In thefuture, other parameters should be studied in order to obtain abetter insight into the distribution and biology of the genus.
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