Abstract:To understand species diversity and spatial distribution of benthic diatom in Zeng River, a branch of Dongjiang River, Guangdong Province, southern China. The benthic diatoms were sampled in January and May, 2010, respectively. The diatom species were identified according to KLB classification system and photos provided by Patrick Environmental Research Center. The correlation between the dominant species and some influential factors were studied with multivariate analysis method based on the sample data and environmental parameters. Altogether 42 genera and 178 species were identified. Compared with those in January, the number of diatom decreased and the species composition changed in May. The species distribution exhibited regular pattern from downstream to upstream, in which Nitzschia occupied a significant proportion in the fourth class stream, Navicula in the third class stream, and Achnanthes in the first and second class streams. The abundance of Nitzschia was strongly correlated with total phosphorus and conductivity. It suggested that Nitzschia genus could be used to develop biological index for monitoring the water condition of Zeng River.