Influência da morfometria de lagos na diversidade fitoplanctônica

Abstract

Morphometry is the measurement of various elements of form, and it includes methods to measure since the physical dimensions of an individual to the dimensions of a system. Morphological evaluations are good study mechanisms in many areas of science and work as fundamental tools from a microscopic scale to the dimensions of an ecosystem. In lakes, the understanding of the factors involving morphometric variables is of great importance. These factors can contribute with a lot of information about the structures and functions, on the dynamics of food chains, and on regulating the flow of substances such systems. The morphology of lakes is also an important factor in the species distribution at different levels of observation, whether local, regional or global. Results supporting this applicability were found in this study, which used the phytoplankton community as a model. It was performed surveys on morphometric features and phytoplankton richness in 26 Amazonian clear water lakes and on 40 different natural and artificial lakes, 20 lakes in Brazil and 20 lakes in different regions of the world. Through linear regression, we found significant positive relationships (p<0.005) between phytoplankton richness and morphometric parameters such as area, perimeter, volume, shoreline development and volume development. Although, the shoreline development was the one that best correlated to the phytoplankton diversity, featuring such an edge effect in lakes.