First record of the species Encyonema bonapartei Heudre, C.E.Wetzel & Ector (Cymbellales, Bacillariophyceae) in Serbia

Abstract

Encyonema bonapartei Heudre, C.E.Wetzel & Ector is a diatom species originally documented in 2016, following its discovery in three canals in the eastern region of France. In 2021, an extensive hydrobiological survey in a mountainous part of southwestern Serbia led to the first finding of this taxon outside of France, i.e. in the Uvac Special Nature Reserve –in Lake Zlatar (Zlatarsko jezero) and in the Marić River (Marića reka). Detailed light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy observations of a large population recorded in Lake Zlatar confirmed the unique morphological characteristics of E. bonapartei, which is also the first record for the diatom flora of Serbia. The present work provides new information on the distribution and ecological preferences of E. bonapartei, taking into account physical and chemical characteristics of its habitats in Serbia.