Syllabus
1/ Introduction - an outline of cyanobacterial and algal diversity. (LN)
Size spectrum, generation times, life forms.
Physical and chemical environmental variables.
Lentic, lotic and terrestrial localities.
Communities: phytoplankton, phytobenthos, metaphyton, phytoedafon, cryophyton.
Importance of cyanobacteria and algae as primary producers in different ecosystems. 2/ Phytogeography (JK)
Cosmopolitism x endemism. Finlay´s theory of latent cosmopolitism of protists.
Patterns of geographical distribution of freshwater cyanobacteria and algae.
Historical x ecological determination of areals.
Dispersal of freshwater cyanobacteria and algae - examples of anemochory, zoochory, anthropogenic dispersal. 3/ Ecological aspects of genetic diversity (JK)
Neutral x functional genetic diversity.
Fundamental and realised niches.
Quantitative evaluation of sequencing data. 4/ Morphological variation associated with ecology (JK)
Ontogenetic phenotypic plasticity.
Overall community biovolume.
Eco-morphotypes above the species level 5/ Phytoplankton I (LN)
Euplankton, meroplankton and pseudoplankton.
Light conditions in the water column.
Euphotic layer, epilimnion, compensation depth.
Photosynthesis profiles in reservoirs with different trophy.
Light X shade adapted phytoplankton, PI curves.
Adaptations to light limitation.
Diurnal vertical migrations.
Influence of temperature on photosynthesis. 6/ Phytoplankton II (LN)
Nutrients sources, limiting nutrients.
Models of nutrient uptake (Monod, Droop).
Competition, competitive exclusion, coexistence (Tilman´s model).
Hutchinson´s ?paradox of the plankton".
Mixotrophy. 7/ Phytoplankton III (LN)
Loss factors.
Sinking, mechanisms of suspension, importance of turbulence.
Grazing - filtration rate, community filtration rate.
Parazitismus.
Allelopathy.
Vertical and horizontal distributions. 8/ Phytoplankton IV (LN)
Periodicity (sucession) of plankton communities.
Hutchinson´s model (Windermere).
PEG model.
Reynolds model - C, S, R strategies.
Arctic, Antarctic and mountain lakes, temperate lakes, tropical lakes. Fish ponds.
Polar x tropical oceans. 9/ Community response to anthropogenic influence. (LN)
Eutrophication.
Water blooms.
Acidification. 10/ Phytobenthos and subaerial communities (JK)
Types of phytobenthos. Basic ecological characteristics.
Effect of flow on biological characteristics and diversity of benthic algae. Phytobenthos and bioindications. Peatland as specific algal habitats.
Types of algal aero-terrestrial microbiotopes. Algae of soil surfaces and their importance for soil stabilisation and limitation of erosion processes, microbial crusts of desert and semi-desert ecosystems. Specific characteristic of soil environment for autotrophic microorganisms, vertical distribution.
Tropical aerophytic communities, parasitic aerophytic algae. 11/ Cyanobacteria and algae in extreme environments (LN)
Snow algae.
Algae of thermal springs.
Adaptations to extreme environmental conditions. 12/ Algae and sediments (JK)
Silicates - global silicon cycle, silicon limitation. Calcites - Emiliania huxleyi as a key climate regulator, biogenic origin of sediments and oil-fields. Organic sediments. Photosynthetic organisms in the fossil record.
Importance of algae in paleoecology - bioindication of ecological dynamics. Examples: Dictyochophyceae, Pediastrum, diatom analysis, cysts and scales of chrysophytes in recent and paleolimnological analysis.
Resurrection ecology. 13/ Ecological models applied to microorganisms (JK)
Niche x neutral theory. Populations as meta-communities.
Species Abundance Distribution models.
Monopolisation hypothesis.
Phylogenetic community structure.
The course is taught with the support of the project reg. number CZ.02.2.69/0.0/0.0/16_015/0002362
Annotation
Lecture provides an overview of the ecology of cyanobacteria and algae living in freshwater, marine and terrestrial habitats. After a general introduction, important communities are treated (phytoplankton, phytobenthos, subaerial and extremophile communities).
Information about their structure, environmental requirements and biotic interactions, including anthropogenic disturbances, is given. Phytogeography, paleoecology and cryptic biodiversity is also discussed.