Influence of taxonomic and numerical resolution on the analysis of temporal changes in phytoplankton communities

From December 2003 to November 2005, we analyzed the phytoplankton community of four streams located in Central Brazil (Goias State) to evaluate if the temporal changes in phytoplankton community structure were dependent on the taxonomic/numerical resolution used to represent the data. Classification based on functional criteria was also contrasted with taxonomic classification to assess whether these classification schemes produce different ordination patterns. Procrustean analyses indicated that ordination patterns generated with data based on the presence or absence of genera correlated significantly with the patterns generated by species density. Temporal trajectories of scores derived from functional groups significantly matched those derived from analyses based on quantitative data (density or biovolume) for genus or family. In general, the results indicated that some simplifications are justifiable, mainly when one takes into account the need for uninterrupted biomonitoring programs over large spatial scales in a continent-sized country with increasing environmental problems and with a relative paucity of scientists. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.