Editing Lake Balaton (section)

== Flora ==

=== Emergent and riparian vegetation ===
A nearly continuous reed (*''Phragmites australis''*) belt—locally mixed with cattail (*''Typha latifolia''*) and bulrush (*''Schoenoplectus lacustris''*)—fringes > 100 km of shoreline, providing spawning substrate, wave attenuation and nutrient sequestration.

=== Submerged macrophytes ===
Species richness peaks in protected embayments where Secchi depth exceeds 1.5 m.  Dominant taxa include *''Potamogeton perfoliatus''*, *''P. pectinatus''*, *''Myriophyllum spicatum''*, *''Ceratophyllum demersum''* and charophytes such as *''Chara tomentosa''*.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Korponai |first=J. |year=2008 |title=Distribution of submerged macrophytes along environmental gradients in large, shallow Lake Balaton, Hungary |journal=Aquatic Botany |volume=89 |pages=11–18 |doi=10.1016/j.aquabot.2008.01.002}}</ref>  
Satellite-derived phenological metrics demonstrate that these macrophyte stands create pronounced spatio-temporal complexity in primary production dynamics and habitat structure.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Tóth |first=V. R. |year=2024 |title=Making temporal dynamics relevant: The role of macrophytes in the phenological complexity of a shallow freshwater lake |journal=Ecohydrology |volume=17 |pages=e2663 |doi=10.1002/eco.2663}}</ref>

=== Phytoplankton ===
Community composition fluctuates between diatom-dominated spring assemblages (*Cyclotella*, *Aulacoseira*) and summer cyanobacterial blooms (notably *Dolichospermum lemmermannii*, *Microcystis aeruginosa*) in the western basins, whereas chlorophytes and cryptophytes prevail farther east.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Padisák |first=J. |last2=Reynolds |first2=C. S. |year=1998 |title=Selection of phytoplankton associations in Lake Balaton in response to eutrophication and restoration measures |journal=Hydrobiologia |volume=384 |pages=41–53 |doi=10.1023/A:1003255529403}}</ref>  In 2019 Balaton experienced a record-setting bloom with chlorophyll-a > 200 μg L<sup>-1</sup>, attributed to climate-driven sediment P release.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Nagy |first=K. A. |year=2022 |title=Record-setting algal bloom in polymictic Lake Balaton (Hungary) |journal=Freshwater Biology |volume=67 |pages=659–672 |doi=10.1111/fwb.13903|doi-access=free }}</ref>