Diatoms as indicators of eutrophication in the SW part of the Gulf of Gdańsk, the Baltic Sea

Abstract

The aim of this study was to reconstruct paleoenvironmental changes of the SW part of the Gulf of Gdańsk. Three subbottom sedimentary cores were analyzed with respect to diatom flora. Post-Littorina Sea assemblages were noticed in the lower parts of the cores, whilst the present-day eutrophication of the gulf was evidenced in their superficial sediments, with high abundance of so-called 'anthropogenic assemblage' taxa. Shifts in the species composition might have been caused by intensified nutrient load increasing organic matter concentrations and possible silica limitation. Copyright © of Institute of Oceanography, University of Gdansk, Poland.