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Badri M, Rezaee M, Mostafavi H, Sayyadi M. Investigating the Ecological Condition of the Tajen River Estuary Using the Nygaard-Palmer Index. Iranian Journal of Applied Ecology 2024; 13 (1) :1-15
URL: http://ijae.iut.ac.ir/article-1-1218-en.html
URL: http://ijae.iut.ac.ir/article-1-1218-en.html
Department of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Management, Environmental Sciences Research Institute, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran.
Abstract: (229 Views)
Most of the world's aquatic ecosystems are experiencing a substantial decline in their ecological services. This research was conducted to investigate the ecological condition of the Tajen estuary using the Nygaard-Palmer index at six stations during both cold and warm seasons. The results led to the identification of 32 genera belonging to 27 orders and 8 classes of phytoplankton. The identified phytoplanktons were classified into five orders: Ochrophyta, Chlorophyta, Cyanophyta, Euglenophyta, and Pyrrophyta. The highest species richness was observed in Bacillariophyceae. Thirteen genera that are tolerant to pollution were identified, and the results indicated that the ecological condition of the Tajen estuary is undesirable, with a status index calculated as very polluted, exceeding 20 in both warm and cold seasons. Field investigations also revealed that the Tajen estuary is affected by various environmental hazards at both local and catchment scales. These hazards have created unfavorable conditions and pressure on this habitat, resulting in a shift towards more pollution-tolerant species within the estuary. Overall, this index can be recommended for the biological and ecological assessment of other estuaries in the southern Caspian Sea basin. To reduce uncertainty, other suitable complementary indices may also be employed.
Keywords: Biological index, Environmental assessment, Phytoplankton, Estuary, Southern Caspian Sea basin.
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