ALGAL COMPETITION IN AN EPILITHIC RIVER FLORA1

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Abstract
SUMMARY: Field and laboratory procedures demonstrate that the effluent from the Willimantic, Connecticut, sewage treatment plant changes the numerical composition of the dominant epilithic algae in the Shetucket River. This effect is due to the effluent altering the competitive balance between chlorella sp. and Achnanthes deflexa Reim. The chlorella completely dominates highly polluted stretches of the river, and shares dominance with A. deflexa in other areas. The degree of river pollution can be estimated by enumerating the natural standing crops of these 2 algae. A 2‐membered assay utilizing these organisms is a sensitive laboratory pollution monitor and a useful predictive tool. Dominant stands of these epilithic species develop in polluted and unpolluted zones in this river due to competition for the limited area on the cobbles.