300013 UE Microscopical course on freshwater algae (2015S)

The algae studied in this course are common freshwater species of lakes in Austria. The course gives a brief introduction into the main taxonomic groups of phytoplankton species, the quantitative analysis by Utermöhl technique and the evaluation of community structure according to the EU Water Framework Directive. Key-reference species of each taxonomic algal group will be studied by light-microscopy. Further we will determine the biovolume of phytoplankton of a lake sample aimed at estimating phytoplankton biomass. These quantitative results describing the phytoplankton composition will be used to evaluate the community structure by statistical tools of the Water Framework Directive. Instructions for the simple construction of counting chambers allowing a quantitative analysis are given. The course is an addition to the detailed algal summer course on monitoring and the indication of the trophic state with focus on benthic algal species of rivers lectured by Prof. M. Schagerl.