Abstract
Cyanobacteria comprise a large group of structurally complex and ecologically significant gram-negative prokaryotes which flourish in rice paddies, and play a major role in sustaining the fertility of this ecosystem. This study aimed to characterize the abundance of cyanobacteria in various rice ecologies of India, identify the isolates and determine diversity indices in relation to the genera wise distribution. Average population counts (measured as MPN) of various locations clearly brought out the tremendous diversity among the locations sampled. Soil samples from Jeypore (Orissa state) recorded highest diversity and 20 cyanobacterial forms, spanning 9 genera were isolated. Nostoc and Anabaena were found to be the dominant genera in all the locations, in terms of their abundance and exhibited highest diversity indices. Our results suggest the need for practical utilization of these organisms towards developing region-specific inocula–which can establish better in their niche and provide maximum benefits to the crop.
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Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi for the APCess Fund project (F.No. 13(37)/2002-SW&DF) for providing financial assistance. The facilities required for carrying out this investigation provided by the Centre for Conservation and Utilization of Blue Green algae, IARI, New Delhi is gratefully acknowledged. The authors thank Dr. K.V. Bhat, Senior Scientist, NBPGR, New Delhi for his critical reading of the manuscript and assistance in statistical analyses.
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Prasanna, R., Nayak, S. Influence of diverse rice soil ecologies on cyanobacterial diversity and abundance. Wetlands Ecol Manage 15, 127–134 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11273-006-9018-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11273-006-9018-2