A 2-year experimental study on nutrient and predator influences on food web constituents in a shallow lake of north-west Spain

1. A 2‐year study was carried out on the roles of nutrients and fish in determining the plankton communities of a shallow lake in north‐west Spain. Outcomes were different each year depending on the initial conditions, especially of macrophyte biomass. In 1998 estimated initial ‘per cent water volume inhabited’ (PVI) by submerged macrophytes was about 35%. Phytoplankton biomass estimated as chlorophyll a was strongly controlled by fish, whereas effects of nutrient enrichment were not significant. In 1999 estimated PVI was 80%, no fish effect was observed on phytoplankton biomass, but nutrients had significant effects. Water temperatures were higher in 1998 than in 1999. 2. In the 1998 experiment, cladoceran populations were controlled by fish and cyanobacteria were the dominant phytoplankton group. There were no differences between effects of low (4 g fresh mass m^?2) and high (20 g fresh mass m^?2) fish density on total zooplankton biomass, but zooplankton biomass was higher in the absence of fish. With the high plant density in 1999, fish failed to control any group of the zooplankton community. 3. Total biovolume of phytoplankton strongly decreased with increased nutrient concentrations in 1998, although chlorophyll a concentrations did not significantly change. At higher nutrient concentrations, flagellate algae became more abundant with likely growth rates that could have overcompensated cladoceran feeding rates. This change in phytoplankton community composition may have been because of increases in the DIN : SRP ratio. Both chlorophyll a concentration and total phytoplankton biovolume increased significantly with nutrients in the 1999 experiment. 4. A strong decline of submerged macrophytes was observed in both years as nutrients increased, resulting in shading by periphyton. This shading effect could account for the plant decline despite lower water turbidity at the very high nutrient levels in 1998.     

Impact of the fish Garra on the ecology of reservoirs and the occurrence of Microcystis blooms in semi-arid tropical highlands: an experimental assessment using enclosures

1. Many man‐made reservoirs in the semi‐arid highlands of Northern Ethiopia (Tigray) are characterised by the occurrence of intensive blooms of cyanobacteria and a dominance of small riverine fishes belonging to the genus Garra. 2. We carried out enclosure experiments to test for the effect of these small fish on abiotic characteristics, phytoplankton biomass and zooplankton community structure in the pelagic of two reservoirs (Gereb Awso and Tsinkanet). Two experiments were carried out in each of the reservoirs, one at the end of the rainy season (highest water level) and one at the end of the dry season (lowest water level). 3. The presence of Garra in general increased the amount of suspended matter, nutrient concentrations (total nitrogen and total phosphorus), phytoplankton and Microcystis biomass (including the proportion of Microcystis in the phytoplankton community), and reduced water transparency. The positive effect of the presence of Garra on nutrient concentrations and phytoplankton productivity indicate that Garra has the potential to affect food web functioning indirectly through bottom‐up effects, by enhancing nutrient concentrations through sediment resuspension and excretion of nutrients. Indeed, population densities of the cladoceran zooplankton taxa Ceriodaphnia and Diaphanosoma also showed an overall increase in enclosures with Garra. 4. However, our data also provide some evidence for a potential of Garra to exert top‐down control on large bodied daphnids (Daphnia carinata, D. barbata), although such effect varied among experiments. The limited capability of Garra to control zooplankton communities mainly reflects the low efficiency of these small, riverine and benthos‐oriented fish in foraging on zooplankton and suggests the existence of an unoccupied niche for zooplanktivorous fish in the majority of the reservoirs. 5. Although the main effects of Garra on the pelagic food web seemed to be mediated by bottom‐up mechanisms, our results also indicate that one of the key variables, the relative abundance of Microcystis, was impacted by Daphnia‐mediated trophic cascade effects.     

Impact of submerged macrophytes on fish-zooplanl phytoplankton interactions: large-scale enclosure experiments in a shallow eutrophic lake

1. The impact of changes in submerged macrophyte abundance on fish-zooplankton-phytoplankton interactions was studied in eighteen large-scale (100 m²) enclosures in a shallow eutrophic take. The submerged macrophytes comprised Potamategon pectinatus L., P. pusillus L. and Callitriche hermaphroditica L. while the fish fry stock comprised three-spined sticklebacks, Gasterosteus acuteatus L., and roach, Rutilus rutilus L. 2. In the absence of macrophytes zooplankton biomass was low and dominated by cyclopoid copepods regardless of fish density, while the phytoplankton biovolume was high (up to 38 mm³1) and dominated by small pennate diatoms and chlorococcales. When the lake volume infested by submerged macrophytes (PVI) exceeded 15–20% and the fish density was below a catch per unit effort (CPUE) of 10 (approx. 2 fry m^?2), planktonic cladoceran biomass was high and dominated by relatively large-sized specimens, while the phytoplankton biovolume was low and dominated by small fast-growing flagellates. At higher fish densities, zooplankton biomass and average biomass of cladocerans decreased and a shift to cyclopoids occurred, while phytoplankton biovolume increased markedly and became dominated by cyanophytes and dinoflagellates. 3. Stepwise multiple linear regressions on log-transformed data revealed that the biomass of Daphnia, Bosmina, Ceriodaphmia and Chydorus were all significantly positively related to PVI and negatively to the abundance of fish or PVI x fish. The average individual biomass of cladocerans was negatively related to fish, but unrelated to PVI. Calculated zooplankton grazing pressure on phytoplankton was positively related to PVI and negatively to PVI x fish. Accordingly the phytoplankton biovolume was negatively related to PVI and to PVI x zooplankton biomass. Cyanophytes and chryptophytes (% of biomass) were positively and Chlorococcales and diatoms negatively related to PVI, while cyanophytes and Chlorococcales were negatively related to PVI x zooplankton biomass. In contrast diatoms and cryptophytes were positively related to the zooplankton biomass or PVI x zooplankton. 4. The results suggest that fish predation has less impact on the zooplankton community in the more structured environment of macrophyte beds, particularly when the PVI exceeds 15–20%. They further suggest that the refuge capacity of macrophytes decreases markedly with increasing fish density (in our study above approximately 10 CPUE). Provided that the density of planktivorous fish is not high, even small improvements in submerged macrophyte abundance may have a substantial positive impact on the zooplankton, leading to a lower phytoplankton biovolume and higher water transparency. However, at high fish densities the refuge effect seems low and no major zooplankton mediated effects of enhanced growth of macrophytes are to be expected.     

Strong effects of occasional drying on subsequent water clarity and cyanobacterial blooms in cool tropical reservoirs

相似文献   

Two mesocosm experiments investigating the control of summer phytoplankton growth in a small shallow lake

1. Mesocosm experiments were carried out to examine the relative importance of top down (fish predation) and bottom up (nutrient addition) controls on phytoplankton abundance in a small shallow lake, Little Mere, U.K., in 1998 and 1999. These experiments were part of a series at six sites across Europe. 2. In the 1998 experiment, top‐down processes (through grazing of large Cladocera) were important in determining phytoplankton biomass. The lack of plant refugia for zooplankton was probably important in causing an increasing chlorophyll a concentration even at intermediate fish density. Little Mere normally has abundant macrophytes but they failed to develop substantially during both years. Bottom‐up control was not important in 1998, most probably because of high background nutrient concentrations, as a result of nutrient release from the sediments. 3. In 1999 neither top‐down nor bottom‐up processes were significant in determining phytoplankton biomass. Large cladoceran grazers were absent even in the fish‐free enclosures, probably because dominance of cyanobacteria and high phytoplankton biomass made feeding conditions unsuitable. As in 1998, bottom‐up control of phytoplankton was not important, owing to background nutrient concentrations that were even higher in 1999 than in 1998, perhaps because of the warmer, sunnier weather. 4. The differing outcomes of the two experiments in the same lake with similar experimental designs highlight the importance of starting conditions. These conditions in turn depended on overall weather conditions prior to the experiments.     

Ecological restoration in eutrophic Lake Wuli: A large enclosure experiment

A large-scale enclosure experiment for lake restoration was carried out in Lake Wuli, a northern bay of shallow and eutrophic Lake Taihu in China. The large enclosure with an area of 10 ha was set up in the littoral zone and was bordered by waterproof fabric which did not cover the sediments. Multiple approaches were used and included fish removal, piscivorous fish stocking, shoreline reconstruction, aquatic macrophyte planting, benthic macro-animal stocking, and silver carp cultivation in pens for reduction of cyanobacteria. The results showed that the coverage of aquatic macrophytes increased from 0% to 45.7%. Mean concentrations of TN and TP inside the enclosure from May 2004 to May 2008 were 22.2% and 26.0% of those outside, respectively. Secchi depth was 0.40 m outside the enclosures and 0.75 m inside. However, responses of phytoplankton to the restoration project lagged behind improvement of water quality and reestablishment of aquatic plants. The phytoplankton biomass gradually decreased after the third year of the restoration. Stocking piscivorous fish and planting submerged macrophytes could not increase zooplankton biomass and enhance graze pressure on phytoplankton, most likely due to high omnivorous fish density and lower nutrition inside the enclosure. Higher grazing pressure of zooplankton on phytoplankton was observed in May and October every year. Zooplankton to phytoplankton biomass ratios were significantly negatively correlated with phytoplankton biomass outside (r = −0.440, p < 0.01) and inside the enclosure (r = −0.336, p < 0.05) from February 2004 to March 2007. Therefore, phytoplankton biomass inside and outside the enclosure was lower in May and October. Higher grazing pressure of zooplankton on phytoplankton in spring may result in occurrence of the clear-water phase that facilitated growth of submerged macrophytes in the littoral in Lake Wuli, and a clear-water state and improved water quality would likely be sustained throughout the year after reestablishment of submerged macrophytes.     

The influence of plant-associated filter feeders on phytoplankton biomass: a mesocosm study

Low phytoplankton biomass usually occurs in the presence of submerged macrophytes, possibly because submerged macrophytes enhance top-down control of phytoplankton by offering a refuge for efficient grazers like Daphnia against fish predation. However, other field studies also suggest that submerged macrophytes suppress phytoplankton in the absence of Daphnia. In order to investigate these mechanisms further, we conducted an outdoor mesocosm experiment to study the effect of submerged macrophytes (Elodea nuttallii) on phytoplankton and zooplankton biomass. The experiment combined four nutrient addition levels (0, 10, 100, and 1000 μg P l⁻¹; N/P ratio: 16) with three macrophyte levels (no macrophytes, artificial macrophytes, and real macrophytes). We inoculated the tanks with species-rich inocula of phytoplankton and zooplankton but excluded fish or macro-invertebrates. Probably due to the lack of predators in the mesocosms, potential grazing rates of pelagic zooplankton (estimated from zooplankton biomass) did not differ between the macrophyte treatment combinations. Compared to the treatment combinations without macrophytes, lower phytoplankton biomass occurred in the treatment combinations with real macrophytes at all the nutrient addition levels and in those with artificial macrophytes at all the nutrient levels except the highest. Significantly, higher abundances of plant-associated filter feeders (Simocephalus vetulus and Ceriodaphnia spp.) occurred in the treatment combinations with real and artificial macrophytes. The estimated potential grazing rate of these plant-associated filter feeders indicated that these filter feeders could be responsible for the lower phytoplankton biomass in the presence of real and artificial macrophytes. Our results suggest that the plant-associated filter feeders may be significant grazers in vegetated shallow lakes.     

Mesocosm experiments on nutrient and fish effects on shallow lake food webs in a Mediterranean climate

1. Nutrient and fish manipulations in mesocosms were carried out on food‐web interactions in a Mediterranean shallow lake in south‐east Spain. Nutrients controlled biomass of phytoplankton and periphyton, while zooplankton, regulated by planktivorous fish, influenced the relative percentages of the dominant phytoplankton species. 2. Phytoplankton species diversity decreased with increasing nutrient concentration and planktivorous fish density. Cyanobacteria grew well in both turbid and clear‐water states. 3. Planktivorous fish increased concentrations of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP). Larger zooplankters (mostly Ceriodaphnia and copepods) were significantly reduced when fish were present, whereas rotifers increased, after fish removal of cyclopoid predators and other filter feeders (cladocerans, nauplii). The greatest biomass and diversity of zooplankton was found at intermediate nutrient levels, in mesocosms without fish and in the presence of macrophytes. 4. Water level decrease improved underwater light conditions and favoured macrophyte persistence. Submerged macrophytes (Chara spp.) outcompeted algae up to an experimental nutrient loading equivalent to added concentrations of 0.06 mg L^?1 PO₄‐P and 0.6 mg L^?1 NO₃‐N, above which an exponential increase in periphyton biomass and algal turbidity caused characean biomass to decline. 5. Declining water levels during summer favoured plant‐associated rotifer species and chroococcal cyanobacteria. High densities of chroococcal cyanobacteria were related to intermediate nutrient enrichment and the presence of small zooplankton taxa, while filamentous cyanobacteria were relatively more abundant in fishless mesocosms, in which Crustacea were more abundant, and favoured by dim underwater light. 6. Benthic macroinvertebrates increased significantly at intermediate nutrient levels but there was no relationship with planktivorous fish density. 7. The thresholds of nutrient loading and in‐lake P required to avoid a turbid state and maintain submerged macrophytes were lower than those reported from temperate shallow lakes. Mediterranean shallow lakes may remain turbid with little control of zooplankton on algal biomass, as observed in tropical and subtropical lakes. Nutrient loading control and macrophyte conservation appear to be especially important in these systems to maintain high water quality.     

Experimental study of the impacts of silver carp on plankton communities of eutrophic Villerest reservoir (France)

We examined the impact of five silver carp biomass levels (0, 8, 16, 20, and 32 g m⁻³) on plankton communities and water quality of Villerest eutrophic reservoir (France). We realized the experiments using outdoor mesocosms. The presence of silver carp led to changes in zooplankton and phytoplankton assemblages. High fish biomass strongly reduced cladoceran abundance (through predation). Silver carp inefficiently grazed down particles < 20 μm. More importantly, however, the suppression of herbivorous cladocerans resulted in the increase of small size algae which were relieved from grazing and benefit from high nutrient concentrations. In contrast, in mesocosms without fish, the dominance of cladocerans (mainly Daphnia) controlled small size algae and probably also larger size algae (colonial chlorophytes, cyanobacteria). Thus, the Secchi disc transparency increased markedly. Through cascade effects, the modification of grazers communities led to changes in the utilization patterns of the added nutrients by phytoplankton communities. In high fish biomass treatments, nutrients were more efficiently accumulated into particulate fractions compared with no-fish and low-fish biomass treatments that were characterized by higher dissolved nutrients concentrations. Zooplankton was an essential source of food for silver carp. The productivity of zooplankton sustained a moderate silver carp biomass (up to 16 g m⁻³). In the presence of the highest fish biomass, the productivity of zooplankton was not large enough and silver carps fed on additional phytoplankton. Although mesocosms with high fish biomass were characterized by a slight cyanobacteria development compared with other fish mesocosms, silver carp was not effective in reducing cyanobacteria dominance. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Do fish regulate phytoplankton in shallow eutrophic Northeast Brazilian reservoirs?

SUMMARY 1. In a comparative study, we examined the potential for fish to structure planktonic food webs in shallow mesotrophic to hypereutrophic Northeast Brazilian reservoirs. The food webs were dominated by three guilds of fish (facultative piscivores, generalist planktivores and omnivores), small herbivorous zooplankton and bloom‐forming cyanobacteria, with few littoral macrophytes. 2. A principal component's analysis on data from 13 reservoirs (27 sampling dates in 1995–99) revealed that euphotic depth, the relative density of phytoplankton (i.e. the percentage of overall phytoplankton density) represented by cyanobacteria, and the relative biomass of fish (i.e. percentage of overall biomass) represented by omnivores and facultative piscivores, explained most of the variance in the data. Physico‐chemical conditions, lake morphometry and rainfall were secondary factors. 3. Phytoplankton was related to fish guild structure. Chlorophyll concentration increased with total phosphorus and the relative biomass of omnivorous fish, decreased with the relative biomass of facultative piscivores, but was unrelated to the biomass and mean body size of herbivorous zooplankton. Chlorophyll concentration and the densities of filamentous and colonial cyanobacteria decreased with the ratio of the biomass of facultative piscivores to that of omnivores (FP : OM). 4. We propose two complementary mechanisms for the observed relationships between fish and phytoplankton. At a low biomass of facultative piscivores, juvenile zooplanktivorous fishes may induce a trophic cascade on zooplankton in the littoral zone. Regardless of piscivore biomass, piscivores and omnivores may regulate phytoplankton via multichannel omnivory because of the predominance of omnivorous or detritivorous foraging behaviour. 5. Manipulative experiments are needed to explore further whether, depending on priorities in the use of the reservoir, fisheries management could alter the FP : OM ratio either to enhance fish yields or to reduce phytoplankton densities and cyanobacterial blooms.     

Indirect effect of different fish communities on nutrient chlorophyll relationship in shallow hypertrophic water quality reservoirs

Effects of different fish communities on the proportion of different nitrogen and phosphorous forms and the amount of phytoplankton (chlorophyll a) were examined in two consecutive years (1992–1993) in three Hungarian shallow water reservoirs (Cassette and outer reservoir of the Kis–Balaton Water Protection System, and Marcali reservoir). Possible interactions between nutrient concentrations and the amount of phytoplankton in these reservoirs were also examined. Considerable differences in the proportions of different nutrient forms were observed between the three test sites, which could be explained by the presence of different fish stocks in these reservoirs. In the Cassette, the fish biomass necessary for a water quality improvement was around 50 kg ha⁻¹. Phytoplankton biomass was controlled by the zooplankton, consequently chlorophyll a concentrations decreased considerably, while those of dissolved nutrients significantly increased. In the outer reservoir, phytoplankton was controlled bottom-up, since the 250 kg ha⁻¹ fish biomass was larger than the critical value due to the high proportion of planktivorous species. Chlorophyll a concentrations were high, and nutrients were mainly in particulate form (in algal cells). In the Marcali reservoir, the recently introduced silver carp population could not control fully the phytoplankton. The biomass of phytoplankton decreased only slightly, while its composition changed considerably. Although biomanipulation with silver carp is suitable for ceasing cyanobacterial blooms, reduction of the amount of planktivorous fish seems to be a more adequate method for increasing water transparency, rather than introduction of phytoplankton feeding fish.

     

Grazer control and nutrient limitation of phytoplankton biomass in two Australian reservoirs

1. Grazer and nutrient controls of phytoplankton biomass were tested on two reservoirs of different productivity to assess the potential for zooplankton grazing to affect chlorophyll/phosphorus regression models under Australian conditions. Experiments with zooplankton and nutrients manipulated in enclosures, laboratory feeding trials, and the analysis of in-lake plankton time series were performed. 2. Enclosures with water from the more productive Lake Hume (chlorophyll a = 3–17.5 μg l^–1), revealed significant zooplankton effects on chlorophyll a in 3/6, phosphorus limitation in 4/6 and nitrogen limitation in 1/6 of experiments conducted throughout the year. Enclosures with water from the less productive Lake Dartmouth (chlorophyll a = 0.8–3.5 μg l^–1), revealed significant zooplankton effects in 5/6, phosphorus limitation in 5/6 and nitrogen limitation in 2/6 of experiments. 3. While Lake Hume enclosure manipulations of the biomass of cladocerans (Daphnia and Diaphanosoma) and large copepods (Boeckella) had negative effects, small copepods (Mesocyclops and Calamoecia) could have positive effects on chlorophyll a. 4. In Lake Hume, total phytoplankton biovolume was negatively correlated with cladoceran biomass, positively with copepod biomass and was uncorrelated with total crustacean biomass. In Lake Dartmouth, total phytoplankton biovolume was negatively correlated with cladoceran biomass, copepod biomass and total crustacean biomass. 5. In both reservoirs, temporal variation in the biomass of Daphnia carinata alone could explain more than 50% of the observed variance in total phytoplankton biovolume. 6. During a period of low phytoplankton biovolume in Lake Hume in spring–summer 1993–94, a conservative estimate of cladoceran community grazing reached a maximum of 0.80 day^–1, suggesting that Cladocera made an important contribution to the development of the observed clear-water phase. 7. Enclosure experiments predicted significant grazing when the Cladocera/Phytoplankton biomass ratio was greater than 0.1; this threshold was consistently exceeded during clear water phase in Lake Hume. 8. Crustacean length had a significant effect on individual grazing rates in bottle experiments, with large Daphnia having highest rates. In both reservoirs, mean crustacean length was negatively correlated with phytoplankton biovolume. The observed upper limit of its variation was nearly twice as high compared to other world lakes.     

Response of fish and plankton to nutrient loading reduction in eight shallow Danish lakes with special emphasis on seasonal dynamics

1. For 13 years the response of the plankton and fish community to a decline in external phosphorus loading was studied in eight lakes with a mean depth <5 m. We conducted chi‐square analyses of sign of slope (positive or negative) of bimonthly averages of plankton variables for the eight lakes versus time. For fish, we compared results from two periods, i.e. 1989–1994 versus 1994–2001 as less data were available. 2. Fish community structure tended to respond to the lowered concentration of total phosphorus (TP), although not all changes were significant. While catch per unit effort (multi‐mesh sized gill nets) of cyprinids (especially bream, Abramis brama and roach, Rutilus rutilus) was highest in the first 5‐year period, the quantitative importance particularly of perch (Perca fluviatilis), pike (Esox lucius) and rudd (Scardinius erythropthalmus), a littoral species, increased significantly after 1994. 3. No changes occurred in zooplankton biomass, except for an increase in November and December. Biomass of small cladocerans, however, declined during summer and autumn, and the proportion of Daphnia to cladoceran biomass also increased. Average body weight of Daphnia and that of all cladocerans increased. The proportion of calanoids among copepods decreased in summer and the average body weight of cyclopoids and calanoids decreased during summer and autumn/early winter. 4. Total biovolume of phytoplankton declined significantly in March to June and tended to decline in November and December as well, while no significant changes were observed during summer and autumn. Non‐heterocystous cyanobacteria showed a decreasing trend during summer and autumn, while heterocystous cyanobacteria increased significantly in late summer. An increase in late summer was also evident for cryptophytes and chrysophytes, while diatoms tended to decline during most seasons. 5. We conclude that phytoplankton, and probably also fish, responded rapidly to reduced loading, whereas the effect on zooplankton was less pronounced. However, increases in body weight of cladocerans and the zooplankton to phytoplankton biomass ratio during summer indicate reduced top‐down control on zooplankton and enhanced grazing on phytoplankton. This conclusion is supported by a tendency for fish biomass to decline and a shift towards greater dominance by piscivores and, thus, an increased likelihood of predator control of zooplanktivorous cyprinids.     

Testing predictions of the lake food web theory on pelagic communities of Australian reservoirs

Several predictions of the theory developed for pelagic food webs of the Northern Hemisphere were tested on water bodies of Eastern Australia. Eleven reservoirs, representing trophic and latitudinal gradients were sampled for nutrients, phytoplankton, zooplankton and pelagic fish. Two models of regression analysis, which analysed possible interactions between trophic levels were based on different sets of data. In one, each reservoir was represented by only one pair of observations – annual mean or single observation (“regional model”). In the other, seasonal means of four frequently sampled reservoirs similar in productivity were used (“temporal model”). Significant variation in total phytoplankton biovolume (TPB) was predicted by total phosphorus concentration (TP), total nitrogen concentration (TN), mean crustacean length and acoustic biomass of planktivorous fish in both models. This suggested that nutrient limitation, zooplankton grazing and positive effects of fish were probably important in controlling the biomass of primary producers at both regional and temporal scales. In the regional model, the biomass of fish was also negatively correlated with Daphnia biomass and mean crustacean length, suggesting that the trophic cascade hypothesis may be applicable to Eastern Australia for the considered range of reservoir productivities. The biovolume of cyanobacteria was not correlated to any variables tested in the regional model. In contrast, nutrient and food web variables had significant effects on cyanobacterial biovolume in the temporal model. This suggested that factors governing seasonal succession were probably more important for cyanobacteria than variation in reservoir productivity or location. Contrary to previous views, no negative relationship between total biomass of zooplankton and TPB was found in both models, suggesting that the community structure of zooplankton rather than its total biomass mediates top‐down effects. Many predictions of the food web theory remained robust in spite of substantial differences in animal taxonomy and physical environment of Australian ecosystems.     

Phytoplankton biomass is mainly controlled by hydrology and phosphorus concentrations in tropical hydroelectric reservoirs

Phytoplankton is widely recognized as being regulated mainly by resources (nutrients and light) and predation by higher trophic levels. In reservoirs, these controls also can be modulated by hydrology, for example through the influence of flow pulses generated by the operation of the dam. In this study, we tested the influence of light, nutrients, and zooplankton grazing pressure, and also hydrology (as water residence time) on the phytoplankton biomass in eight tropical hydroelectric reservoirs, which differ in size, morphometry, location, trophic state, and water residence time. Our hypothesis was that, as these reservoirs are used for hydroelectric purposes, the control that would otherwise be exerted on phytoplankton biomass primarily by resource availability and grazing will also be modulated by hydrology. Low phytoplankton biomass (range of system medians = 12–299 μg C l⁻¹) occurred in most systems, except for one highly eutrophic reservoir (median = 1331 μg C l⁻¹). Our data showed that phosphorus was more often likely to be the limiting nutrient in these systems, as assessed through nutrient limitation indexes (nitrogen and phosphorus), based on concentrations and ratios. For most reservoirs, excluding the eutrophic system with high cyanobacteria biomass, seasonal water residence time was the variable that best explained phytoplankton variation among the several environmental variables analyzed in this study (P < 0.0001; adjusted r ² = 0.38). Hydrology was an important and additional factor modulating phytoplankton in these tropical reservoirs, directly removing phytoplankton populations and their potential zooplankton grazers by washout, and also affecting nutrient availability.     

Eutrophication mediates rapid clonal evolution in Daphnia pulicaria

相似文献   

Effects of omnivorous filter‐feeding fish and nutrient enrichment on the plankton community and water transparency of a tropical reservoir

1. The major aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that nutrient enrichment and the introduction of the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), an exotic omnivorous filter‐feeding fish, operate interdependently to regulate plankton communities and water transparency of a tropical reservoir in the semi‐arid northeastern Brazil. 2. A field experiment was performed for 5 weeks in 20 enclosures (9.8 m³) to which four treatments were randomly allocated: tilapia addition (F), nutrient addition (N), tilapia and nutrient addition (F + N) and a control treatment with no tilapia or nutrient addition (C). A two‐way repeated measures anova was undertaken to test for time, tilapia and nutrient effects and their interactions on water transparency, total phosphorus and total nitrogen concentrations, phytoplankton biovolume and zooplankton biomass. 3. Nutrient addition had no effect except on rotifer biomass, but there were significant fish effects on the biomass of total zooplankton, copepod nauplii, rotifers, cladocerans and calanoid copepods and on the biovolume of total phytoplankton, large algae (GALD ≥ 50 μm), Bacillariophyta and Zygnemaphyceae and on Secchi depth. In addition, we found significant interaction effects between tilapia and nutrients on Secchi depth and rotifers. Overall, tilapia decreased the biomass of most zooplankton taxa and large algae (diatoms) and decreased water transparency, while nutrient enrichment increased the biomass of rotifers, but only in the absence of tilapia. 4. In conclusion, the influence of fish on the reservoir plankton community and water transparency was significant and even greater than that of nutrient loading. This suggests that biomanipulation of filter‐feeding tilapias may be of importance for water quality management of eutrophic reservoirs in tropical semi‐arid regions.     

Trophic structure, species richness and biodiversity in Danish lakes: changes along a phosphorus gradient

1. Using data from 71, mainly shallow (an average mean depth of 3 m), Danish lakes with contrasting total phosphorus concentrations (summer mean 0.02–1.0 mg P L?l), we describe how species richness, biodiversity and trophic structure change along a total phosphorus (TP) gradient divided into five TP classes (class 1–5: <0.05, 0.05–0.1, 0.1–0.2, 0.2–0.4,> 0.4 mg P L?1).
2. With increasing TP, a significant decline was observed in the species richness of zooplankton and submerged macrophytes, while for fish, phytoplankton and floating‐leaved macrophytes, species richness was unimodally related to TP, all peaking at 0.1–0.4 mg P L?1. The Shannon–Wiener and the Hurlbert probability of inter‐specific encounter (PIE) diversity indices showed significant unimodal relationships to TP for zooplankton, phytoplankton and fish. Mean depth also contributed positively to the relationship for rotifers, phytoplankton and fish.
3. At low nutrient concentrations, piscivorous fish (particularly perch, Perca fluviatilis) were abundant and the biomass ratio of piscivores to plankti‐benthivorous cyprinids was high and the density of cyprinids low. Concurrently, the zooplankton was dominated by large‐bodied forms and the biomass ratio of zooplankton to phytoplankton and the calculated grazing pressure on phytoplankton were high. Phytoplankton biomass was low and submerged macrophyte abundance high.
4. With increasing TP, a major shift occurred in trophic structure. Catches of cyprinids in multiple mesh size gill nets increased 10‐fold from class 1 to class 5 and the weight ratio of piscivores to planktivores decreased from 0.6 in class 1 to 0.10–0.15 in classes 3–5. In addition, the mean body weight of dominant cyprinids (roach, Rutilus rutilus, and bream, Abramis brama) decreased two–threefold. Simultaneously, small cladocerans gradually became more important, and among copepods, a shift occurred from calanoid to cyclopoids. Mean body weight of cladocerans decreased from 5.1 μg in class 1 to 1.5 μg in class 5, and the biomass ratio of zooplankton to phytoplankton from 0.46 in class 1 to 0.08–0.15 in classes 3–5. Conversely, phytoplankton biomass and chlorophyll a increased 15‐fold from class 1 to 5 and submerged macrophytes disappeared from most lakes.
5. The suggestion that fish have a significant structuring role in eutrophic lakes is supported by data from three lakes in which major changes in the abundance of planktivorous fish occurred following fish kill or fish manipulation. In these lakes, studied for 8 years, a reduction in planktivores resulted in a major increase in cladoceran mean size and in the biomass ratio of zooplankton to phytoplankton, while chlorophyll a declined substantially. In comparison, no significant changes were observed in 33 ‘control’ lakes studied during the same period.     

Responses of phytoplankton to fish predation and nutrient loading in shallow lakes: a pan-European mesocosm experiment

1. The impacts of nutrients (phosphorus and nitrogen) and planktivorous fish on phytoplankton composition and biomass were studied in six shallow, macrophyte‐dominated lakes across Europe using mesocosm experiments. 2. Phytoplankton biomass was more influenced by nutrients than by densities of planktivorous fish. Nutrient addition resulted in increased algal biomass at all locations. In some experiments, a decrease was noted at the highest nutrient loadings, corresponding to added concentrations of 1 mg L^?1 P and 10 mg L^?1 N. 3. Chlorophyll a was a more precise parameter to quantify phytoplankton biomass than algal biovolume, with lower within‐treatment variability. 4. Higher densities of planktivorous fish shifted phytoplankton composition toward smaller algae (GALD < 50 μm). High nutrient loadings selected in favour of chlorophytes and cyanobacteria, while biovolumes of diatoms and dinophytes decreased. High temperatures also may increase the contribution of cyanobacteria to total phytoplankton biovolume in shallow lakes.     

Vegetation structure and ecology of the Cufada Lagoon (Guinea-Bissau)

The Cufada Lagoon, in the southern part of Guinea‐Bissau, West Africa, is a shallow lagoon with a surface area of 190 ha in the rainy season. The vascular flora and physico‐chemical characteristics of the lagoon were studied in December 1997 (end of the wet season) and May 1998 (dry season). The lagoon water is soft, with acid pH, low conductivity and low transparency. The maximum depth is 2.25 m in the rainy season and 1.20 m in the dry season. A total of 46 vascular plant species were recorded, 32 being emergent macrophytes, mostly Gramineae and Cyperaceae, five floating‐leaved, three submerged, one surface‐floating and also five shrubs. Cluster analysis of the floristic data shows two main groups of inventories in both seasons, grouping almost nine‐tenths of the vegetation samples. The inventories in these groups correspond to two main vegetation types and can be spatially arranged. In the deepest inner part of the lagoon, Nymphaea lotus is the most important species, while Oryza longistaminata dominates in the shallower part. In spite of the shallow depth, the middle of the lagoon remains uncolonized by macrophytes. The main factors limiting the colonization by plants of the lagoon seem to be the low mineral and nutrient content of the water and its low transparency.