Summary
Detailed analyses are presented of the phytoplankton of two pairs of gravel pits in the Surrey-Middlesex area of the Thames Valley. One of each pair has been recently excavated while the other is much older.
Gravel dredging was fairly localised during the investigation, so that it was possible to study an area of disturbed water and an area of undisturbed water in each pit.
The distribution of the algae in general and the frequency of the principal members of the phytoplankton were correlated, as far as possible with the physical and chemical features of the environment.
Certain algae were found to favour the new or alternatively the old pits and there was some indication that some of the algae recorded in larger numbers thrived best in the disturbed or otherwise the undisturbed water of a pit.
The total number of species observed in the new pits was considerably smaller than that in the old pits. Estimates of the total phytoplankton indicates that the new pits are richer, but less varied than the old pits.
All the pits were flooded once by Thames water during the course of the investigation. Reasons are given for concluding that this flooding did not cause undue contamination with river phytoplankton.
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Karim, A.G.A. Algal flora of certain gravel pits in the Thames Valley, U.K.. Hydrobiologia 30, 577–599 (1967). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00964035
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00964035