Sk. Meegan et Sa. Perry, PERIPHYTON COMMUNITIES IN HEADWATER STREAMS OF DIFFERENT WATER CHEMISTRY IN THE CENTRAL APPALACHIAN MOUNTAINS, Journal of freshwater ecology, 11(3), 1996, pp. 247-256
To examine impacts of acidification, we studied periphyton communities
in three West Virginia streams whose mean pH varied from 4.2 to 7.8.
We measured algal composition, cell densities, chlorophyll a, ash free
dry weight, and areal and chlorophyll-specific production in the wint
er and spring of 1993 and 1994. The most acidic stream had the lowest
species richness and few diatoms and was dominated by a green-alga. Th
e most alkaline stream had the highest species richness and was domina
ted by Chlamydomonas. Chlorophyll a and ash free dry weight were signi
ficantly lower in the most acidic stream. Areal production was not dif
ferent between streams, whereas chlorophyll-specific production was hi
ghest in the acidic stream.