Macrophytes of Sacred Himalayan Lake Dodi Tal, India: Quantitative and Diversity Analysis

Biodiversity is one of the most important characteristics of the aquatic ecosystem for maintaining its stability and resilience [1]. Aquatic macrophytes are macroscopic forms of aquatic vegetation, including macroalgae, mosses, ferns and angiosperms found in aquatic habitat. They have evolved from many diverse groups and often demonstrate extreme flexibility in structure and morphology in relation to changing environmental conditions [2]. Macrophytes of freshwater ecosystems have diverse roles to play in the structure and functioning of these ecosystems [3]. Macrophytes are considered as an important component of the aquatic ecosystem not only as the habitat and food source for aquatic life, but also act as an efficient accumulator of heavy metals [4-7] and as an important participant in the natural processes of water self-purification of water [8]. Aquatic macrophytes represent the most important biotic component of the littoral zone of the lake ecosystem [9]. Different forms of macrophytes exhibit seasonally variable growth patterns [3]. Number of species and importance values of macrophytes, determines the species diversity of a community [10]. Importance Value Index (IVI), a quantitative parameter, is useful, for providing the details on density and frequency of a species in relation to community [11]. However, the species diversity is a useful index for the comparison of communities under the influence of anthropogenic disturbances [12].