Ecology, Diversity And Community Structure Of Periphyton In The Datpul Gad Stream A Spring Fed Tributary Of River Nayar From Uttarakhand, India

Abstract

The paper focuses on the ecology, diversity, and community structure of periphyton in the Datpul Gad stream during the period of 2019-2020. The stream is a significant spring-fed tributary of the River Nayar, situated in the Agroda village of Pauri district, Uttarakhnad state. Several physico-chemical parameters were examined from October 2019 to September 2020 to assess the periphyton growth conditions. These parameters included water temperature, current velocity, dissolved oxygen, pH, total alkalinity, and total hardness. The results indicated that all these physico-chemical parameters were favorable for periphyton growth during the winter season. The periphyton community in the stream comprised 12 genera, including Diatoma, Navicula, Cymbella, Fragillaria, Synedra, Gomphonema, Nitzschia, and Tabellaria from the Bacillariophyceae, Ulothrix, Stigeoclonium, and Spirogyra from the Chlorophyceae and Phormidium from the Myxophyceae. The density of periphyton was found to be highest during the winter season and lowest during the monsoon season. To assess the diversity of the periphyton community, the Shannon-Wiener diversity index and Margalef index were calculated. The researchers employed multivariate cluster analysis and the Simper test to determine the similarity and average dissimilarity of periphyton composition among different seasons. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) was performed to investigate the influence of abiotic factors on periphyton abundance. Additionally, multivariate Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was conducted to depict the abundance of periphyton during different seasons.Overall, the study provides insights into the periphyton community dynamics, diversity, and response to abiotic factors in the Datpul Gad stream throughout the 2019-2020 period.