Microorganisms of the East African Great Lakes and their response to environmental changes

15 pages, 4 figures

We have reviewed the phytoplankton composition and succession in the East African Great Lakes, their response to environmental changes, and the communities of microorganisms of the microbial fodd web. Recent studies in some great lakes,as well as well as progress in understanding phytoplankton succession and response to environmental factors, enable us to update knowledge of the phytoplankton ecology of these lakes. In particular, we present information indicating that phytoplankton composition in lakes Tanganyika and Kivu may reflect recent changes as a result of global warming or species introduction. we also stress the importance of microbes (at the base of the food web) in these systems and suggest that the microbial food web, which has been mostly overlooked until recently, may play a very large role in determining productivity and nutrient cycling in these large lakes

Were supported by different Belgian Institutions: For Lake Tanganyika, by the Belgian Science Policy Office (projects CLIMLAKE and CLIMFISH) FNRS( Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique ) and the Belgian Technical Cooperation (BTC); For lake Kivu, the University of Namur and CUD (Commission Univeritaire pour le Développement) which financed the ECOSYKI project, provided the main support. Several students from the Laboratory of Freshwater ecology benefited from fellowships from FRIA (Fonds pour la formation à la Recherche dans l'Industrie et dans l'agriculture) FNRS,BTC,IFS (International Foundations for Science) SIL (International S. of Limnology) King Léopold III Fund for Nature Exploration and Conservation and Foundation to Promote Scientific REsearch in Africa We are also indebted to the DOF of Mpulungu, Zambia, to the Tanzanian Fisheries Research Institute (TAFIRI) Unité d'Enseignement et Recherche Hydrobiologie Appliquée (UERHA) of the Institut Supériur Pédagogique (SP), DR. of Congo

Peer reviewed