Distribution, species composition and status of the intertidal blue-green algal mats

Lucien Hoffmann

A b s t r a c t: Before the 1991 Gulf War extensive blue-green algal mats covered the intertidal zone, most of which were severely affected by the subsequent oil spill. By mid-1992, areas where the tar layer had been covered by sediment were recolonised. Different types of mats with a marked zonation were observed.

AL-THUKAIR, A. & AL-HINAI, K. 1993. Distribution and environmental status of algal mat located on the east coast of Saudi Arabia following the oil spill. Proceedings of the Scientific Workshop on the Results of the R-V Mt. Mitchell Cruise, Kuwait 1993 (in press).
HOFFMANN, L. in prep. Microbial mats of the northwestern Arabian Gulf.