Vegetos
(An International Journal of Plant Research & Biotechnology)
Phytoplankton as environmental indicator for evaluating water pollution in the Kadambrayar River, Ernakulam District, Kerala, India
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Research Articles | Published: 08 April, 2025
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Keywords: Pollution, River, Phytoplankton, Pearson’s correlation, Water quality
Abstract
The present study was carried out in Kadambrayar River, Ernakulam district, Kerala to assess the relationship between algal communities and water pollution. A total of 72 algae species across 4 classes are documented from the Kadambrayar River. The results indicated that the water in the Kadambrayar River is highly polluted and has high eutrophication, especially in the downstream area. A significant abundance of the class Euglenophycaeae with more pollution tolerance was observed in the polluted site. Among Euglenophyceae, polluted sites are predominantly noted by the genera Trachelomonas, Euglena, and Phacus. These genera exhibit a high level of tolerance to organic pollution, highlighting their adaptability in such environments. There is a positive correlation of biological oxygen demand (BOD), nitrate, and phosphate with the Euglenophycaeae members. The dissolved oxygen (DO) levels showed a negative correlation with the abundance of Euglenophyceae suggesting that members within the phytoplankton community may reliably indicate pollution. Also most importantly, this river water is not suitable for drinking or any other purposes like irrigation, industrial purposes without proper treatment. Our study findings concluded that the physico–chemical parameters in the Kadambrayar River are influenced by the taxa of microalgae such as Euglenophyceae and Chlorophyceae. This provides foundational data for understanding the seasonal and dynamic relationships between pollution parameters and microalgae populations.
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Author Information
Forest Ecology & Biodiversity Conservation Division, KSCSTE-Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi, India