Two sub-Antarctic and Northern Europe distributed diatom species found in a middle-mountain lake in France

ABSTRACT

During a survey of the diatom flora of Longemer Lake (Xonrupt-Longemer, Vosges, France), two species with an unusual biogeographical distribution were observed. Psammothidium abundans, previously considered being a sub-Antarctic endemic but today also found in rivers in Sweden, Ireland and the UK, and Achnanthidium sublineare, up to now confined to northern Europe, were identified. These are the first records of these rare diatom species in France (A. sublineare) and in a European lake (P. abundans). Since there are only a few illustrations of these two species in the literature, both populations are illustrated using light and scanning electron microscopy in order to provide a detailed morphological account. Details on their actual biogeographical distribution are added.

KEYWORDS:

• Achnanthidium sublineare
• Psammothidium abundans
• diatoms
• France
• lake
• Vosges

Acknowledgments

We thank two anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments that greatly improved this manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

Funding for this research was partly provided in the framework of the project DIATOMS (LIST – Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology).

Notes on contributors

David Heudre

David Heudre is a hydrobiologist at the Direction Régionale de l’Environnement, de l’Aménagement et du Logement Grand Est. He has written several articles and has been working on diatoms, aquatic plants and algae in rivers and lakes. He has been teaching on bioassessment using diatoms. Contribution: Sample collection, LM photos, plates and writing of the article.

Carlos E. Wetzel

Carlos E. Wetzel is a botanist and a researcher at the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology. He has written over 90 articles and he has been working on diatoms in rivers, lakes and soils. Carlos E. Wetzel has been teaching numerous training courses on diatom ecology and taxonomy designed for biologists, technicians and ecologists, contributing to the continuous improvement in the Water Framework Directive implementation in Europe. Contribution: SEM photos, discussion of results and development of the manuscript.

Bart Van de Vijver

Bart Van de Vijver is a full-time researcher at the Meise Botanic Garden, Belgium, and a part-time professor at the University of Antwerp, Belgium. His research focuses mainly on the taxonomy, morphology and biogeography of Antarctic freshwater and terrestrial diatoms. He has been studying non-marine diatoms in various parts of the Antarctic region for more than 20 years. He has described almost 400 new taxa and revised an additional 250 taxa. Contribution: identification of diatom species, discussion of results and assistance with the writing and editing of the manuscript.

Laura Moreau

Laura Moreau is a hydrobiologist at the Direction Régionale de l’Environnement, de l’Aménagement et du Logement Grand Est. She has been working on diatoms and planktonic algae in rivers and lakes. She has been teaching on bioassessment using phytoplankton. Contribution: Sample collection, map editing and development of the manuscript.

Luc Ector

Luc Ector is a botanist and senior researcher at the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology. He has written over 185 articles and has been working on diatoms in rivers, lakes and soils for the last 30 years. He was the President of the “Association des Diatomistes de Langue Française (ADLaF)”, which organizes annual meetings on diatom taxonomy, ecology and related subjects. Over the last 20 years, he has been organizing and teaching numerous training courses on diatom ecology and taxonomy designed for biologists, technicians and ecologists, contributing to the continuous improvement in the Water Framework Directive implementation in Europe. Contribution: identification of diatom species, discussion of results, development, revision and editing of the manuscript.