Relationships between phytoplankton dynamics and the availability of light and nutrients in a shallow sub-tropical lake

Philips, Edward J.; Cichra, Mary F.; Havens, Karl E.; Hanton, Charles; Badylak, Susan; Rueter, Beate; Randall, Mike; Hansen, Phyllis

doi:10.1093/plankt/19.3.319

Cited by 97 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 33 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Given the affinity of cyanobacteria and other primary producers for NH 4 ? , it is surprising that nutrient limitation bioassays conducted on natural phytoplankton assemblages often use only NO 3 -as the N source (e.g., Aldridge et al 1995;Phlips et al 1997). It seems possible that using only NO 3 -could underestimate the potential degree of N limitation, particularly if cyanobacteria are a significant fraction of the phytoplankton community.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nutrient ratios and phytoplankton community structure in the large, shallow, eutrophic, subtropical Lakes Okeechobee (Florida, USA) and Taihu (China)

et al. 2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Analysis of ten-and four-year datasets for the large, shallow, subtropical, and eutrophic Lakes Okeechobee (USA) and Taihu (China), respectively, suggest that resource-ratio explanations for cyanobacteria dominance may not apply to these two lakes. Datasets were examined to identify relationships between nutrient ratios [total nitrogen (TN):total phosphorus (TP) and ammonium (NH 4 ? ):oxidized N (NO x )] and phytoplankton community structure (as proportions of cyanobacteria and diatoms to total phytoplankton biomass). Datasets were pooled by sampling month, averaged lake-wide, and analyzed with linear regression. In Okeechobee, the cyanobacteria proportion increased and the diatom proportion decreased with increasing TN:TP. In Taihu, cyanobacteria decreased with increasing TN:TP, but the opposite trend observed for diatoms was marginally significant. Okeechobee cyanobacteria increased and diatoms decreased with increasing NH 4 ? :NO x , but no significant relationships between phytoplankton and NH 4 ? :NO x were observed in Taihu. Both lakes had significant relationships between phytoplankton community structure and total nutrients, but these relationships were the opposite of those expected. Relationships between phytoplankton community structure and water quality parameters from the previous month resulted in improved relationships, suggesting a predictive capability. Statistical analysis of the entire datasets (not pooled) supported these and additional relationships with other parameters, including temperature and water clarity.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nutrient ratios and phytoplankton community structure in the large, shallow, eutrophic, subtropical Lakes Okeechobee (Florida, USA) and Taihu (China)

et al. 2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, evidence supporting the importance of DIN in cyanobacterial bloom formation is equivocal: Lathrop (1988) found that additions of NH 4 ? and NO 3 -did not prevent blooms of Microcystis, Stockner and Shortreed (1988) added NH 4 ? and NO 3 -to an oligotrophic lake with low N:P and stimulated a bloom of Anabaena, whereas Varis et al (1989) found a negative relationship for several cyanobacteria species (including A. flos-aquae) and ammonia, and Philips et al (1997) found decreasing levels of DIN corresponding to cyanobacterial blooms. The similar temporal pattern of N-deficiency in both lakes also suggests that nitrogen deficiency was not a principal factor in the different composition of the autumn forming bloom species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Temporal discontinuity of nutrient limitation in plankton communities

2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Ideas on how various measures of nutrient limitation relate to plankton biomass and species composition are re-examined. While long-term and multi-lake studies typically focus on determining overall biomass, seasonal studies are more focused toward understanding species composition. We use physiological assays to assess short-term nutrient deficiency of nitrogen and phosphorus in two moderately fertile lakes. While biomass in the lakes was considered to ultimately be limited by total phosphorus, nutrient assays were variable in time. Nutrient ratios (TN:TP, PN:PP, PC:PP and PC:PN) did not predict shortterm deficiencies, notably that nitrogen deficiency occurred in these phosphorus-limited lakes. In one of our study lakes, there was a relaxation of phosphorus deficiency despite phosphate concentrations occurring below traditional detection limits. Following this period, there was an autumn bloom of Aphanizomenon flos-aquae. This relationship corresponds with other studies that have found A. flos-aquae to be a poor competitor for phosphorus. In contrast, phosphorus deficiency remained high prior to the autumn diatom bloom in our other study lake. Deficiency measures remain an excellent means of assessing physiological status of plankton communities and provide greater insight into species compositional changes, especially when other potential indicators like dissolved nutrient concentrations are inconclusive. Regardless of the nutrient limitation indicator used for a given study, it is critical to consider the appropriate scale of the measure.

show abstract

“…The pelagic region (1,400 km 2 ) of this lake is comprised of: (a) a deeper (up to 5 m), turbid central zone with sediments of unconsolidated mud, phosphorus-rich water, and a low phytoplankton biomass (Olila and Reddy, 1993;Phlips et al, 1997); (b) a shallower (2-3 m) mud-bottomed north zone, which receives large inputs of phosphorus from nearby tributaries and often has phytoplankton blooms (Havens et al, 1994); and (c) sand and peatbottomed south and west zones, located between the pelagic and littoral regions. At the interface of these pelagic and littoral zones, the underwater irradiance is favorable both for phytoplankton and periphyton growth (Phlips et al, 1993).…”

Section: Study Sitementioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative analysis of Lake Periphyton communities using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and light microscope counts

et al. 1999

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and light microscope counts were used to characterize the taxonomic composition of epiphyton and epipelon at seven locations in a subtropical lake. Both methods indicated that algae were dominated by diatoms and cyanobacteria. However, the methods often gave dramatically different estimates of relative biomass among algal divisions, and there was no consistent pattern of co-variation. Large differences in underwater irradiance may have caused variation in accessory pigment to chlorophyll a ratios, invalidating application of the generic HPLC-based model. In large heterogeneous lakes, it may be necessary to use a suite of models, tailored to site-specific environmental conditions, if HPLC is to be used for evaluation of algal community structure.

show abstract

Relationships between phytoplankton dynamics and the availability of light and nutrients in a shallow sub-tropical lake

Cited by 97 publications

References 33 publications

Nutrient ratios and phytoplankton community structure in the large, shallow, eutrophic, subtropical Lakes Okeechobee (Florida, USA) and Taihu (China)

Nutrient ratios and phytoplankton community structure in the large, shallow, eutrophic, subtropical Lakes Okeechobee (Florida, USA) and Taihu (China)

Temporal discontinuity of nutrient limitation in plankton communities

Comparative analysis of Lake Periphyton communities using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and light microscope counts

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About