Recovery of zooplankton diversity in a restored Mediterranean temporary marsh in Doñana National Park (SW Spain)

Abstract

Over 30 years after drainage for agriculture, a 2700 ha temporary marshland was recently restored in Doñana National Park. We describe the recovery of zooplankton communities (copepods, cladocerans and rotifers) in 47 new temporary ponds excavated as part of the restoration project during the first two hydroperiods (April 2006 and, and compare them to those of eight reference sites in the surrounding marshland. Major changes in the species composition and abundance occurred in new ponds between years. While rotifers and cyclopoid copepods dominated in terms of number of individuals in 2006, calanoid copepods and cladocerans were the most abundant groups in 2007. Rotifer species richness was significantly lower in 2007, but there was an increase in Simpson and b-diversity in 2007 owing largely to a dramatic decline in the abundance of Hexarthra cf. fennica (rare in reference sites) from 93% of all rotifer individuals in new ponds in 2006 to only 32% in 2007. In contrast, species richness of copepods and cladocerans was significantly higher in new ponds in 2007, but there were no changes in Simpson diversity. b-Diversity of cladocerans was also significantly higher in 2007. In 2006, the species richness of cladocera and copepods was significantly lower in new ponds than in reference sites, but by 2007 there were no differences in richness or Simpson diversity. Overall, 7 copepod, 13 cladoceran and 26 rotifer taxa were recorded in new ponds, including 80% of taxa recorded in reference sites. These results indicate that zooplankton communities can be rapidly restored in Mediterranean temporary wetlands, at least when large source populations in the surrounding area reduce dispersal limitation. They also illustrate the importance of comparing different metrics of richness and diversity in studies of zooplankton restoration.

Effect of restoration on zooplankton community in a permanent interdunal pond

“…In addition, community composition also changed if compared with the community found some years before restoration. These changes are in agreement with other studies where fast colonization by zooplankton, vegetation or macroinvertebrates has been reported (Williams et al, 2008;Badosa et al, 2010). An improvement of the trophic state was one of the main changes registered by the comparison of environmental variables, suggested because the mean chlorophyll a concentration decreased.…”

“…Furthermore, zooplankton species from continental water bodies show good adaptations for dispersal and colonization of new habitats (Havel and Shurin, 2004). The success of this colonization mostly depends on these species dispersal capacity, influenced by regional factors (connectivity among water bodies, pond isolation or regional diversity; Frisch and Green, 2007;Badosa et al, 2010) and by local factors such as environmental variables, including habitat heterogeneity and the amount and viability of the sediment egg bank, which will hatch and grow under such potential environmental conditions (Brendonck and De Meester, 2003;Vandekerkhove et al, 2005).…”

Taxonomy, distribution, and ecology of crustacean zooplankton in trough waters of Ankara (Turkey)

“…This cleaning process may be one of the reasons that a low number of different species were found in some troughs, suggesting that there might be not enough time to recolonize. Among zooplanktons, rotifers and copepods are faster colonizers in the new water habitats than cladocerans (Badosa et al, 2010). Frisch and Green (2007) also concluded that cyclopoid copepods, especially the Eucylops and Tropocyclops genera, were early colonizers with the capacity to colonize the water column after rehydration.…”

Re-establishment of zooplankton communities in temporary ponds after autumn flooding: Does restoration age matter?

“…High dispersal rates and rapid colonization have been repeatedly reported in zooplankton (De Meester et al 2002;Louette and De Meester 2005). However, other studies have reported few species dominating the community during repopulation (Bohonak and Jenkins 2003;Badosa et al 2010). Moreover, variation in historical colonization processes leading to priority effects (invasion resistance by the resident community) is thought to be a primary mechanism creating variation in community structure (Chase 2003).…”

“…Arrival in a habitat is determined by a species regional abundance (Louette et al 2008) and its dispersal ability, which can differ enormously among zooplankton species (Cáceres and Soluk 2002;Badosa et al 2010) resulting in important differences between pond communities (Jenkins and Buikema 1998). High dispersal rates and rapid colonization have been repeatedly reported in zooplankton (De Meester et al 2002;Louette and De Meester 2005).…”