H
HOME | ALL ABOUT BIOFILMS | OUR RESEARCH | PUBLICATIONS | POSTER SESSION | ABOUT US
YOU ARE HERE : HOME
...............................................
Events
Andrew Dopheide has won an Honorable Mention for his poster "Stream Micro-ecology: Life in a Biofilm" at the International Science & Engineering Visualization Challenge.
...............................................
What's new?
The data about biodiversiy of macroinvertebrates, ciliate protozoa and bacteria within our four stream sites is available online.
Click here to go to the biodiversity data
Technical note: Microscopic Examination of Stream Biofilms
Click here to go to publication page
The results of our survey about stream restoration are available online
Click here to see them
...............................................
What is a stream biofilm?
A stream biofilm is the layer of greenish-brown slime that is found on rocks, plants and other surfaces in a stream. This layer is composed of microscopic bacteria, algae, and protozoans in a complex polymer linked assemblage.
Stream biofilms play key roles in primary production, cycling of nutrients, water quality, suspended solid removal and energy flow to higher trophic levels. So they constitute a major component of the stream ecosystem and must be better understood to facilitate successful stream restoration or rehabilitation.
Learn more about biofilms...
About the Stream Biofilm Project...
The Stream Biofilm Project is carried out by a team of researchers based at the University of Auckland (New Zealand). The role of biofilms in stream ecology has received little attention at the microbial level and the dynamics of the biofilm populations and interactions with larger organisms is only patchily described although it has become clear recently that stream biofilms form a critical component in stream food web. That's why we have over recent years developed techniques for studying the diversity and function of the bacteria in these biofilms, and we have extended our work into investigating the relationship between biofilms and stream food webs. The project aims to improve knowledge about stream ecosystems and support stream restoration.
Learn more about our research...
...............................................
Contact us
Stream Biofilm Research group
The University of Auckland
School of Biological Sciences
3a Symonds Street
Auckland City (New Zealand)
-----
streambiofilm
gmail.com
...............................................
...............................................
...............................................
...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................
© Stream Biofilm Project, The University of Auckland 2009
...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................