pleuston

American  

[ploo-stuhn, -ston] / ˈplu stən, -stɒn /

noun

Biology.

1. a buoyant mat of weeds, algae, and associated organisms that floats on or near the surface of a lake, river, or other body of fresh water.

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pleuston British  

/ -stɒn, ˈpluːstən /

noun

1. a mass of small organisms, esp algae, floating at the surface of shallow pools

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Other Word Forms

• pleustonic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of pleuston

First recorded in 1905–10; from German Pleuston, from Greek pleûs(is) “a sailing” (from pleîn “to sail, go by sea”) + -ton, on the model of nekton, plankton