Microbial ecology of a tropical freshwater lake

Abstract

Badenal groups involved in nutrient cycling in a natural freshwater lake in South India were analysed monthly (1981-1984) with reference to the hydrobiological conditions The aerobic heterotrophic bacterial counts were low to water (O·01-5 58 x 103 ml- 1) and high in The sediment (21 00 - 800·00 X 103 commensurate with their organic content. A similar pattern was observed with regard to populations phospholytic, proteolytic, amylolytic, aerobic and anaerobic cellulolytic, methanogenic and iron bacteria. The bacterial group in the nitrogen cycle and cohforms were in moderate ranges. The study showed the significance of bacterial activity to aquatic production and decomposition processes. The heterotrophic food chain was shown to play an important role in the trophic dynamics of this  'mesotrophic' lake.