ABSTRACT ........................................................ 7
1 INTRODUCTION ................................................. 9
2 AIMS AND SCOPE .............................................. 11
3 NATURAL AND ANTHROPOGENIC ACIDIFICATION AND ITS ECOLOGICAL
CONSEQUENCES ................................................ 13
3.1 The role of water pH ................................... 13
3.2 Description of natural and anthropogenic acid
sources ................................................ 15
3.3 Anthropogenic acidification and its ecological
consequences ........................................... 17
3.4 Diatoms as indicators of water acidity and
related factors ........................................ 21
4 MATERIAL AND METHODS ........................................ 24
4.1 Field samples .......................................... 24
4.2 Laboratory methods ..................................... 27
4.3 Data analysis .......................................... 28
5 DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREAS .............................. 30
6 RESULTS ..................................................... 38
6.1 Diatom community patterns vs. water chemistry in
relation to different water types ...................... 39
6.2 Diatom community patterns in relation to altitude ...... 46
6.3 Diatom community patterns in relation to different
geographical regions in Poland and Finland ............. 49
6.4 Diatoms as indicators of pH, alkalinity and TOC ........ 60
6.5 Restoration and recovery of acidified aquatic
ecosystems ............................................. 68
6.5.1 Diatoms as indicators of restoration: effect
of water neutralization ......................... 68
6.5.2 Diatoms as indicators of lake recovery .......... 71
7 DISCUSSION .................................................. 79
8 NOTES ON AUTECOLOGY OF SELECTED DIATOM TAXA ................ 101
9 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS .................................... 105
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................. 107
REFERENCES .................................................... 110
APPENDIX (Codes of diatom taxa used in the graphs and
tables) .................................................... 140
PLATES ........................................................ 145
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