Relationships of Phytoplankton with Certain Environmental Factors in the South Euboikos Gulf (Greece)

The abundance and taxonomic diversity of phytoplankton have been studied in relation to certain environmental factors in the South Euboikos Gulf, a restricted tidal embayment on the eastern coast of Greece. The northern part of the gulf with higher tidal current, influenced by sewage and industrial effluents, showed high concentrations of nutrients, a greater total density of phytoplankton, relatively high chlorophyll a content, and a lower taxonomic diversity when compared with the southern part. The phytoplankton cycle was largely due to changes in diatom concentration. A slight variation in the occurrence of species and dominance could be observed along the salinity gradients.