First record of Ceratium furcoides (Dinophyta), an invasive species, in a temporary high-altitude lake in the Iron Quadrangle (MG, Southeast Brazil)/Primeiro registro de Ceratium furcoides (Dinophyta), uma espécie invasora, em um lago temporário de alta altitude no Quadrilátero Ferrífero (MG, Sudeste do Brasil)

• Published in: Brazilian journal of biology 2015-03, Vol.75 (1), p.98-98
• Main Authors: Moreira, R A, Rocha, O, Santos, R M, Laudares-Silva, R, Dias, E S, Eskinazi-Sant'Anna, E M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Algae; Aquatic ecosystems; Ceratium furcoides; Cysts; Dinophyta; Microorganisms; Native species; Parks & recreation areas; Water shortages
• ISSN: 1519-6984; 1678-4375

This paper is recording for the first time the presence of Ceratium furcoides, an invasive species, in a shallow, natural intermittent pool formed at a high-altitude at the southern end of the Iron Quadrangle, Minas Gerais State (Southeast Brazil). Samples were collected in October and November of 2010 (rainy period). The population density of this organism observed in Lagoa Seca ("Dry Pool") was very low, at most 4 ind L^sup -1^. Mountain lakes are extremely vulnerable to atmospheric deposition of organisms, making them valuable witnesses both of the many forms of impact arising from human activities and of the extended global connections that facilitate the dispersion and introduction of new species over great distances. Studies on the population dynamics of C. furcoides in natural tropical systems are still rare and very recent to the Brazilian scenario and hence the monitoring of its dynamics and the potential impact on aquatic communities of its becoming established are essential to an understanding of the process of bioinvasion by this species.