Phytoplankton of the La Trobe River, Victoria

Abstract

Phytoplankton was sampled on a monthly basis for 1 year at five stations on the La Trobe River in Gippsland, Victoria. In the upper, mostly forested, reaches of the river, chlorophyll a concentrations and cell densities were uniformly very low, and the dominant algae were detached benthic diatoms and flagellated species. In the plains section of the river, downstream of an impoundment (Lake Narracan), spring and autumn blooms occurred, with a marked reduction in abundance in midsummer and midwinter. The lowland planktonic flora was dominated by centric diatoms, particularly Melosira distans in autumn and Skeletonema potamos in spring.