The Department of Ecology at the College of Science, University of Basrah, organized a seminar exploring the relationship between the presence of diatoms and various physicochemical environmental factors.

Presented by master’s student Hawraa Talib Hassan, the seminar examined how physical and chemical environmental factors influence the species composition and ecological preferences of diatom communities in aquatic environments.

The session covered the general characteristics of diatoms, as well as their ecological and economic significance. It also addressed key environmental factors within the Shatt al-Arab and the marshlands—such as temperature, light, salinity, and pH levels—along with the availability of nutrients and their direct and indirect effects on the abundance and spatial distribution of diatom communities in these regions.

Furthermore, the seminar discussed the inverse relationship between temperature and diatom growth, noting that cells tend to become smaller at higher temperatures. It also highlighted the preference of diatoms for lower light conditions for growth, and examined how rising water salinity affects the distribution and ecological preferences of diatoms across freshwater, brackish, and marine environments.