Phytoplanktonic Biodiversity in Upper Lake of Bhopal, India

Asrar Amin Khan, Tasleem Arif Shah

Abstract: Phytoplankton is an important organism that sustains majority of aquatic life with its primary productivity. The phytoplankton diversity and composition are an expression of the environmental health and quality of the existing water body. A study was carried out to examine the diversity, composition and distribution of phytoplankton and were used to study the Upper Lake, Bhopal. Four sampling stations { Khanugaon (U1), Boat Club (U2), Medical College (U3), Reference station (Ur) } were selected from the Upper Lake. Sampling were carried out from May to Oct.2014. Phytoplankton samples were collected by plankton sampler net with mesh size of 25um. Result obtained showed that a total of 90 phytoplankton species (belonging to Chlorophyceae, Bacillariophyceae, Cyanophyceae, Euglenophyceae and Dinophyceae) were recorded. During the sampling, 82, 89, 77, and 90 species of phytoplankton were recorded in station U1, U2, U3 and Ur respectively. Species composition was almost uniform in all the selected stations, where as species diversity varies across stations.

Keywords: Algal classes, phytoplankton, diversity, Upper Lake