Distribution of the Macrophyte Communities in the Danube Reflects River Serial Discontinuity

The Danube is the second-longest river in Europe that is subjected to various man-made alterations, including those related to hydro-power plants. We surveyed and analyzed the presence and abundance of macrophytes in the main channel from 2582 river kilometers (rkm) to 171 rkm. We also assessed selected habitat parameters in the sampled river stretches. Sixty-eight different plant species were recorded along the entire course. Among neophytes, we found Elodea nuttallii, E. canadensis, Vallisneriaspiralis and Azolla filiculoides. Based on similarity analysis, we distinguished 15 plant communities, most of which were defined as associations, which were classified into 5 alliances and represented three vegetation classes, namely vegetation of rooted hydrophytes Potamogetonetea, the vegetation of pleustophytes Lemnetea and vegetation of marshes Phragmitetea. The number and abundance of plant species, as well as plant communities recorded in single stretches, varied along the course. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) revealed that environmental parameters explained 21% of plant species composition. CCA runs with neophytes explained 41% of the variance, and current velocity, water transparency, species number and bank structure were significant variables. The present study revealed that the free-running sections of the river are poor in number and abundance of plant species, whereas impounded reaches mainly show an opposite result. View Full-Text

Keywords: Danube; large river; macrophytes; neophytes; plant communities; distribution

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MDPI and ACS Style

Janauer, G.A.; Exler, N.; Anačkov, G.; Barta, V.; Berczik, Á.; Boža, P.; Dinka, M.; Georgiev, V.; Germ, M.; Holcar, M.; Hrivnák, R.; Igić, R.; Ozimec, S.; Sârbu, A.; Schmidt, B.; Schmidt-Mumm, U.; Schütz, W.; Sipos, K.; Szalma, E.; Topić, J.; Tsoneva, S.; Valachovič, M.; Valchev, V.; Vukov, D.; Zelnik, I.; Gaberščik, A. Distribution of the Macrophyte Communities in the Danube Reflects River Serial Discontinuity. Water 2021, 13, 918. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13070918

AMA Style

Janauer GA, Exler N, Anačkov G, Barta V, Berczik Á, Boža P, Dinka M, Georgiev V, Germ M, Holcar M, Hrivnák R, Igić R, Ozimec S, Sârbu A, Schmidt B, Schmidt-Mumm U, Schütz W, Sipos K, Szalma E, Topić J, Tsoneva S, Valachovič M, Valchev V, Vukov D, Zelnik I, Gaberščik A. Distribution of the Macrophyte Communities in the Danube Reflects River Serial Discontinuity. Water. 2021; 13(7):918. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13070918

Chicago/Turabian Style

Janauer, Georg A., Norbert Exler, Goran Anačkov, Veronika Barta, Árpád Berczik, Pal Boža, Mária Dinka, Valeri Georgiev, Mateja Germ, Matej Holcar, Richard Hrivnák, Ružica Igić, Siniša Ozimec, Anca Sârbu, Brigitte Schmidt, Udo Schmidt-Mumm, Wolfgang Schütz, Katalin Sipos, Elemér Szalma, Jasenka Topić, Sonya Tsoneva, Milan Valachovič, Vladimir Valchev, Dragana Vukov, Igor Zelnik, and Alenka Gaberščik. 2021. "Distribution of the Macrophyte Communities in the Danube Reflects River Serial Discontinuity" Water 13, no. 7: 918. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13070918

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Distribution of the Macrophyte Communities in the Danube Reflects River Serial Discontinuity

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