PHYTOPLANKTON STRUCTURE IN SCADAR LAKE

Ecological evaluation of Scadar Lake is based in biomonitoring, especially in phytoplancton correlated with nutrient enrichment. Sampling sites were selected in the Scadar Lake of Albanian side. The present study aimed at comparing phytoplankton and Chlorophyll a as bioindicators of water quality in Scadar Lake. Changes in phytoplankton community structure, Chlorophyll a peak and nutrient concentrations indicated that the trophic level of the lake is still eutrophic. Phytoplankton is widely considered to be the first biological community to respond to eutrophication pressures and is the most direct indicator of all the Water Framework Directive. Utermöhl method (Utermöhl 1931 and EU Guidance Standard (EN 15204:2006) was used for estimation of the phytoplankton (ind-L). About 19 taxa of microscopic algae were found in Scadar lake. Phytoplankton,belonging mainly to Bacillariophyceae (Diatoms), Xanthophyceae, Chlorophyceae.