Periphyton | Glossary - Diatoms of North America

Periphyton

Periphyton refers to the assemblage of organisms attached to solid substrates in benthic habitats, including algae, bacteria, protozoa and invertebrates. Periphyton could also be called biofilm, aufwuchs or microphytobenthos.

Alternative Terms

aufwuchs: A community of algae, invertebrates, protozoa and fungi attached to submerged surfaces in aquatic ecosystems.
epiphyton

Citations

Allan, J.D. (1995) Stream Ecology: Structure and Function of Running Waters Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, 388 pp.
Dodds, W.K. and Whiles, M.R. (2010) Concepts of Ecology: Concepts and Environmental Applications of Limnology. Second Edition. Elsevier Inc. 829 pp.
Driscoll, R.J. and Waterford, Z.L. (1994) Potamogeton acutifolius and epiphytic diatoms at Buckenham. Transactions of the Norfolk Norwich Nature Society 30(1): 80-88
Smol, J.P. and Stoermer, E.F. (2010) The Diatoms: Applications for the Environmental and Earth Sciences, Second Edition. Cambridge University Press, 667 p.
Stevenson, R.J. and Bahls, L.L. (1999) Periphyton Protocols In: Barbour, M.T., Gerritsen, J., Snyder, B.D. and Stribling, J.B. 1999. Rapid Bioassessment Protocols for Use in Streams and Wadeable Rivers: Periphyton, Benthic Macroinvertebrates, and Fish, Second Edition, EPA 841-B-99-002. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Washington, D.C. http://water.epa.gov/scitech/monitoring/rsl/bioassessment/

Periphyton — Illustration of various diatoms and their life habits in the periphyton.

Periphyton Edlund — Darkfield image of living periphyton assemblage composed of diatoms attached to the green alga, Cladophora.

Aufwuchs — Cocconeis and a protozoan form periphyton (aufwuchs) growing on the green alga Cladophora.