Direct and Indirect Effects of Solar Ultraviolet Radiation on Attached Bacteria and Algae in Lotic Systems

I examined the effects of solar ultraviolet radiation (UVR) on attached bacteria and algal densities in lotic systems in outdoor artificial stream apparatus. Flumes were covered with four types of film for UVR screening treatments, and attached bacterial cell densities and their temporal variations were compared between conditions excluding and including solar UVR. Attached bacterial cell densities were depressed by solar UVR, and both accrual rate and saturated density were significantly lower in the +UVR (full solar radiation) condition than in −UVR and dark conditions. Solar UVR also indirectly affected the rate of algal accrual. Microscopic direct observations of attached bacterial cell density and algae on substrata showed that solar UVR depressed the accrual of attached bacteria and consequently the frequency of sites with high bacterial cell density that can trap suspended algae in the water. The final amount of algal accrual in the +UVR condition was one-fourth of that in the −UVR condition. Therefore, the effects of solar UVR may be more serious in systems where periphyton are frequently removed by floods.     

UV-B irradiance gradient affects photosynthesis and pigments but not food quality of periphyton

• 1 This laboratory study examined the effect of a gradient of UV‐B radiation (280–320 nm) on photosynthesis and food quality of periphyton, the trophic base of many freshwater benthic communities. Four irradiances of UV‐B (0, 0.6, 1.2, and 2.3 W m^‐2) were delivered by UV‐B lamps (313 nm peak irradiance) over a 13‐day period in the first experiment and over a 4‐h period in the second experiment. These irradiances were roughly equivalent to 0, 1, 2, and 4 times the ambient biologically effective (DNA) midsummer, midday UV‐B irradiance in Tennessee.
• 2 Rates of photosynthesis and photosynthetic pigments were significantly reduced by irradiances greater than ambient during the 13‐day experiment, suggesting that food supply rates to grazers would be depressed by increases in current UV‐B levels. Effects on community structure were minor, but mean diatom cell size decreased at higher UV‐B irradiances.
• 3 Irradiated periphyton was fed in surplus to juvenile snails (Physella gyrina) in the first experiment as a bioassay for food quality. Snail growth was the same on all four diets, suggesting that UV‐B did not affect food quality. Nitrogen and phosphorus content of the periphyton were not affected by UV‐B, either.
• 4 Photosynthesis by low‐biomass periphyton in the second experiment was significantly depressed by irradiances above ambient after only 4 h. Photosynthesis by the high biomass periphyton was not significantly affected by UV‐B, suggesting that self‐shading reduced UV‐B effects.

     

Fine sediment effects on feeding and growth in the invertebrate grazers Potamopyrgus antipodarum (Gastropoda,Hydrobiidae) and Deleatidium sp. (Ephemeroptera,Leptophlebiidae)

The influence of fine sediment (<63 m diameter) upon the assimilation rates of the snail Potamopyrgus antipodarum, and the mayfly Deleatidium sp. were determined by allowing individuals to feed upon ¹⁴C radiolabelled periphyton which had been contaminated with varying quantities of sediment (sediment:food ratios of: 0:1, 1:1, 5:1, 10:1, 50:1, 100:1 [dry weight]). For both grazers, the assimilation rate falls in direct proportion to the sediment fraction in the (sediment+food) matrix. In a second experiment the growth of P. antipodarum was monitored over 3 months when fed organic matter that had been contaminated with fine sediment at ratios of 0:1, 1:1, 5:1, 10:1, 50:1, 100:1, 500:1. In contrast to the monotonic relation between sediment and short-term assimilation, growth rates (mm shell height d^–1) were highest at intermediate levels of sediment contamination (5:1 and 10:1 by dry weight) and lowest in the treatment with no sediment added. Growth rates were significantly lower, and mortality high, at sediment:food contamination ratios above 50:1. The reasons for the contrast between the results from the short-term and the long-term experiments are unknown at present, but the fact that snail growth was greatest at intermediate levels of sediment contamination might indicate that they derive trace nutrients from ingested sediment.     

Periphyton nutrient limitation and other potential growth-controlling factors in Lake Okeechobee,U.S.A.

Periphyton nutrient limitation was assessed in Lake Okeechobee, a large, shallow, eutrophic lake in the southeastern U.S.A. Nutrient assays were performed to determine if the same nutrients that limit phytoplankton also limit periphyton growth in the lake. Nutrient diffusing clay substrates containing agar spiked with nitrogen, phosphorus, or both, along with nutrient-free controls, were incubated at four sites in the lake. Three sites were located in a pelagic–littoral interface (ecotone) and one site was located in the interior littoral region. Incubations lasted for 20–26 days, and were repeated on a quarterly basis between 1996 and 1997, to incorporate seasonal variability into the experimental design. The physical and chemical conditions at each site also were measured. Periphyton biomass (chlorophyll a and ash-free dry mass) was highest at the littoral and northern ecotone sites. At the littoral site, nitrogen limited biomass in four of five incubations, although the largest biomass differences between the treatments and controls (3 g cm^–2 as chl) were probably not ecologically significant. Periphyton biomass at the western and southern ecotone sites was low compared to the other two sites. Increases in water column depth and associated declines in light penetration strongly correlated with periphyton growth and suggested that they may have limited growth most often at all three ecotone sites. Nitrogen also was found to limit periphyton growth approximately 20% of the time at the ecotone sites and phosphorus was found to limit growth once at the west site.     

Effect of continuous nutrient enrichment on microalgae colonizing hard substrates

In order to understand the effect of changing nutrient conditions on benthic microalgae on hard substrates, in-situ experiments with artificial substrates were conducted in Kiel Fjord, Western Baltic Sea. As an extension of previous investigations, we used artificial substrates without silicate and thus were able to supply nutrient media with different Si:N ratios to porous substrates, from where they trickled out continuously. The biofilm developing on these substrates showed a significant increase in biovolume due to N + P enrichment, while Si alone had only minor effects. The stoichiometric composition of the biomass indicated nitrogen limitation during most of the year. The C:N ratios were lowered by the N + P addition. The algae were dominated by diatoms in most cases, but rhodophytes and chlorophytes also became important. The nutrient treatment affected the taxonomic composition mostly at the species level. The significance of the results with regard to coastal eutrophication is discussed.     

Light- and nutrient-limited periphyton in low order streams of Oahu,Hawaii

To date, most studies of light- and nutrient-limited primary productivity in forested streams have been carried out in deciduous forests of temperate, continental regions. Conceptual models of light and nutrient limitation have been developed from these studies, but their restricted geographic range reduces the generality of such models. Unlike temperate continental streams, streams on tropical high islands are characterized by flashy, unpredictable discharge and riparian canopies that do not vary seasonally. These contrasting conditions suggest that patterns of light and nutrient limitation in tropical streams may differ from those in temperate streams. The effects of light, and nitrogen and phosphorus availability on periphyton accrual (measured as chlorophyll a per unit area) were investigated using field experiments in 4 low-order streams on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Levels of chlorophyll a in partially-shaded stream pools were significantly greater than in heavily-shaded pools, and nutrient-enrichment increased the level of chlorophyll a in partially-shaded pools but not in heavily-shaded pools. In each stream, phosphate enrichment resulted in an increase in the level of chlorophyll a, but nitrate enrichment had no effect. Spates following rainstorms occur frequently in these streams, and may increase periphyton productivity by increasing the flux of nutrients to algal cells. However, differences in inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations measured during spates and baseflow were small, and during some spates, concentrations of these two nutrients declined relative to baseflow concentrations. These observations suggest that phosphorus limitation was not alleviated by spates.     

Preliminary observations on Gibbula umbilicalis (da Costa, 1778) on the Portuguese coast

Physiological indicators of nitrogen and phosphorus deficiency were used to determine the role of these nutrients in the development and proliferation of Cladophora in the Manawatu River, New Zealand. Nitrogen indicator tests showed that surplus nitrogen was available at all times. During a sustained low flow period when the dissolved reactive phosphorus was between 4–5 mg m^–3, phosphorus indicator tests revealed that the Cladophora proliferations were phosphorus deficient. A downstream trend of reduced nitrogen and phosphorus availability was also observed during this period. Sudden high river flows were frequent and had a major influence on the Cladophora biomass.     

不同氮磷浓度下周丛生物对水体中磺胺和恩诺沙星的去除

周丛生物膜是一种对水体污染物净化的新兴生物技术。有关水体不同氮磷营养水平下周丛生物对水体抗生素类污染物去除作用的研究还未见报道。本研究设置4个氮磷营养盐浓度水平[N-P (mg·L^-1):2-0.2、5-0.5、8-0.8、11-1.1],用塑料筐装置在室外培养周丛生物膜,对其生长、光合活力、物种组成以及对磺胺和恩诺沙星去除作用进行中型模拟试验。结果表明: 各处理组中周丛生物的生物量随培养时间的增加而升高,光合色素含量和光合活力则呈现先降低后上升的“单峰”模式,表明生物膜中的藻类会受到抗生素的胁迫,但可快速适应并恢复活力。除此之外,不同氮磷浓度处理造成各组生物群落组成差异,随营养盐浓度的升高,周丛藻类物种丰富度逐渐下降,但各处理胶网藻和小球藻都具有较高的相对丰度;16S rRNA高通量测序发现,根瘤菌科、放线菌门和莫拉氏菌科菌群在(N-P)2-0.2组显著富集,而几丁质嗜菌科在4个处理中的相对丰度都处在最高水平。所有处理的磺胺去除率均高于50%,而恩诺沙星去除率均达到90%以上,其中,(N-P)2-0.2 mg·L^-1组对磺胺的去除率(65.8%)显著高于其他各组,但各处理对恩诺沙星的去除率差异不显著,表明周丛生物在较宽的N-P营养水平范围内对磺胺和恩诺沙星均具有良好的去除能力。各处理组对水体可溶性氮的去除效果不明显,但对可溶性磷的去除效果显著。本研究为水体磺胺和恩诺沙星的生态去除提供了基础数据,为研发水体抗生素类新型污染物生态去除技术提供了新思路。     

The Genus Cladophora Kützing (Ulvophyceae) as a Globally Distributed Ecological Engineer

The green algal genus Cladophora forms conspicuous nearshore populations in marine and freshwaters worldwide, commonly dominating peri‐phyton communities. As the result of human activities, including the nutrient pollution of nearshore waters, Cladophora‐dominated periphyton can form nuisance blooms. On the other hand, Cladophora has ecological functions that are beneficial, but less well appreciated. For example, Cladophora has previously been characterized as an ecological engineer because its complex structure fosters functional and taxonomic diversity of benthic microfauna. Here, we review classic and recent literature concerning taxonomy, cell biology, morphology, reproductive biology, and ecology of the genus Cladophora, to examine how this alga functions to modify habitats and influence littoral biogeochemistry. We review the evidence that Cladophora supports large, diverse populations of microalgal and bacterial epiphytes that influence the cycling of carbon and other key elements, and that the high production of cellulose and hydrocarbons by Cladophora‐dominated periphyton has the potential for diverse technological applications, including wastewater remediation coupled to renewable biofuel production. We postulate that well‐known aspects of Cladophora morphology, hydrodynamically stable and perennial holdfasts, distinctively branched architecture, unusually large cell and sporangial size and robust cell wall construction, are major factors contributing to the multiple roles of this organism as an ecological engineer.