Microscopic algae → sensitive bioindicators
React rapidly to salinity, nutrients, and organic matter
Reveal water quality and ecological balance
Few integrated diatom studies in Morocco
Critical gap in semi-arid reservoirs like Sidi Chahed
The spatial and temporal distribution of diatom assemblages and their ecological status (BDI) in the Sidi Chahed system are primarily governed by: geogenic salinity, seasonal hydrodynamics, and anthropogenic pressures.