MACROPHYTES IN AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM

Aquatic macrophytes are the vascular plants that are normally found growing in wetlands, either in or on the water, or where soils are flooded or saturated long enough for anaerobic conditions to develop in the root zone. The aquatic macrophytes occur mainly in the shallow region of lakes ponds, pools, marshes streams and rivers etc. Macrophytes are of considerable ecological and economic importance as they help in the uptake of nutrients and hence help in maintaining the chemical integrity of the respective ecosystem. They contribute significantly to the productivity of water bodies; mobilize mineral elements from the bottom sediments and provide shelter to aquatic macro invertebrates and fishes. They also respond to changes in water quality and have been used as indicators of pollution and are known as ‘bio-indicators’. When there is enough room for colonization and abundant availability of nutrients, macrophytes show a high growth rate. They assimilate nutrients directly into their tissues. Due to these they were used to solve eutrophic problems of freshwater bodies and to remove pollutants. Aquatic macrophytes belong to the following 3 categories on the basis of their habit: Emergent, free-floating, floating leaved and submerged types. Through photosynthesis, they link the inorganic environment with biotic one. Macrophytes have major effects in terms of physical (temperature, light penetration, soil characteristics) and chemical environment of wetlands (dissolved oxygen, nutrient availability) and provide the basis of support for all wetland biota.