Diatomeas epilíticas de la cuenca alta del río Laja, Guanajuato, México: Epilithic diatoms in the Upper Laja River Basin, Guanajuato, Mexico

Abstract

This study investigates the epilithic diatoms from the Dolores and Laja Rivers, located within the Upper Laja River Basin, Guanajuato, Mexico. The samples were collected during the cold-dry (January) and rainy (October) seasons of 2011. One-hundred seventy three infrageneric taxa were identified, 7 of which are new records for Mexico: Fallacia monoculata, Hantzschia abundans, Navigiolum uruguayense, Neidium bisulcatum, Nitzschia solita, Planothidium incuriatum and Sellaphora bacilloides; it is worth mentioning that Navigiolum is a new record at the genus level. Furthermore, 3 species are new records for the state of Guanajuato: Gomphonema laticollum, G. subclavatum and Gomphosphenia lingulatiformis. Teratological forms of 6 species were also found in the sampling sites with higher nutrient concentrations, with relative abundances varying from 0.8 to 8.3%.