Advanced Search

Journal Navigation

Journal Home

Subscriptions

Archive

Contact Us

Table of Contents

Free Access to SAGE Geography Journals - Register here

Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.
Progress in Physical Geography
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Saved Citations
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Request Reprints
Right arrow Add to My Marked Citations
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Right arrow Citing Articles via Scopus
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Moser, K.A.
Right arrow Articles by Smol, J.P.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati  
What's this?

Applications of freshwater diatoms to geographical research

K.A. Moser

Department of Geography, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 1Y8, Canada

G.M. MacDonald

Department of Geography, UCLA, 405 Hilgard Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90024-1524, USA

J.P. Smol

Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Laboratory (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario K7L 3N6, Canada

Diatoms (Bacillariophyceae) are a widely distributed group of microscopic, unicellular algae that are characterized by siliceous cell walls (frustules). The size, shape and sculpturing of diatom frustules are taxonomically diagnostic. Moreover, because of their siliceous composition, diatoms are often well preserved in stratigraphic deposits, where they can be used to infer (quantitatively or qualitatively) past environmental conditions. The sensitivity of diatoms to a wide variety of environmental variables provides geographers with a multitude of research opportunities. This review focuses on palaeoecological reconstructions that are based on freshwater diatoms. Geographical applications including studies of climatology, hydrology, geomorphology, bio geography, and water-quality assessment and monitoring are discussed.

Key Words: diatoms • environmental change • climatic change • hydrology • water quality • palaeolimnology.

Progress in Physical Geography, Vol. 20, No. 1, 21-52 (1996)
DOI: 10.1177/030913339602000102
Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?