Virio- and Bacterioplankton of the Coastal Water of the Moscow River

The first study on the dynamics of virioplankton abundance (VA) in the coastal waters of the Moscow River in the autumn–winter period at stations differing in the level of anthropogenic impact has been performed. The VA in the waters of the more polluted Dzerzhinsky st. (with a mean of 235.6 ± 71.5 × 10 6 particles/mL, varying from 167.79 to 397.39 × 10 6 particles/mL) was higher than in the waters of the less polluted Tushino st. (with a mean value of 129.0 ± 39.6 × 10 6 particles/mL, varying from 61.01 to 186.85 × 10 6 particles/mL) throughout the study. Positive correlation was observed ( R = 0.6, p < 0.01) between the abundances of virio- and bacterioplankton in the waters of the Dzerzhinsky st. We assume that a significant proportion of the virioplankton of the coastal waters o of the Moscow River is represented by bacteriophages. Three quarters of the differences in the VA dynamics were significantly positively correlated with the content of ammonium and phosphates in the waters at the Dzerzhinsky st. Apparently, an increase in the nutrient load is the main factor responsible for the high VA in the waters of the Moscow River in the autumn–winter period.