Oligochaetes of the River Rhine. Preliminary records

Oligochaetes from bottom surveys of the Rhine River from Lake Constance to the Dutch border were identified to species in order to specify the response of communities to river pollution and impoundment. In these preliminary surveys, 37 species of Naididae and Tubificidae were determined, far more than the few easily identifiable species normally identified from such surveys. These studies will allow comparison to the oligochaete populations of other large European river systems.