Zooplankton in high-mountain lakes of Altai

Abstract

In July to August 1999August -2001 zooplankton species were recorded in high mountain lakes of Altai (1800-2400 m above sea level). The abundance of zooplankton varies considerably, but the average val ues of abundance and biomass are low. According to zooplankton characteristics, the high mountain lakes are oligotrophic and oligosaprobic. The species composition of the zooplankton community depends on the area and depth of the lakes, and the quantitative indices, particularly in the littoral zone, are determined by water temperature.

Environmental features and dynamics of plankton communities in a mountain glacial moraine lake (Baikal Lake basin, Russia)

“…The accumulation and presence of lipids in the body is characteristic of wintering older stages and mature individuals of cyclopoids and calanoids, especially in northern and alpine lakes (Sargent & Falk-Petersen, 1988;Vanderploeg et al, 1992). In the present study, the water temperature and depth are the determining factors for copepods vertical distribution as well as for pelagial of Altai (Burmistrova & Ermolaeva, 2013) and European mountain lakes (Pinel-Alloul et al, 1999). The abundance of Cyclops abyssorum significantly increases (from 0.18-0.54 × 10 3 individuals × m -3 to 3.85-15.22 × 10 3 individuals × m -3 ) with a decreasing temperature.…”

“…The abundance of Arctodiaptomus neithammeri increases (from 0.83-3.62 × 10 3 individuals × m -3 to 33.53-60.74 × 10 3 individuals × m -3 ) with an increasing depth. The high density of cyclopoids and calanoids in the lower layers is also noted in mountain lakes in Switzerland (Winder et al, 2003), Finland (Viljanen et al, 2009), and Russia (Vetsler, 2009;Burmistrova & Ermolaeva, 2013). The location of copepods in deeper, cold, dark and food-poor water layers (below 10 m) is an adaptation to the reduced consumption by fish (Gliwicz & Rowan, 1984), as well as due to the peculiarity of their ecology (low temperature optimum (8-10°С), the ability to store lipids and to actively reproduce in the bottom layers) (Ferrara et al, 2002;Rivyer, 2012;Skála, 2015).…”

“…In Lake Shebety, the littoral plankton community is more diverse and dense than the pelagic. The species composition is determined by the lake area and depth, quantitative indicators are the temperature of the water, which is most pronounced in the littoral zone (Burmistrova & Ermolaeva, 2013). Cyanobacterialgreen phytoplankton and rotiferan zooplankton assemblages develop in shallow parts.…”

“…They prefer warm lake shallow parts with plant growth and good mixing of water masses (Gillooly & Dodson, 2000), where a higher number of ecological niches facilitates their colonisation. So, they can expand the boundaries of their vertical migration to avoid the predator press (Burmistrova & Ermolaeva, 2013). The species diversity of filter-feeding microphagous rotifers is the highest in the littoral areas, while predatory species, such as Asplanchna priodonta Gosse, 1850, dominate in the deep-water parts of the lake.…”

“…Lake Shebety could be used as a pattern for studying the biodiversity of a mountain oligotrophic non-industrialised water body located in the temperate zone. Some moun-tain lakes in Europe (Marchetto, 1998;Fott et al, 1999;Tolotti, 2001), Eastern Siberia (Bondarenko et al, 2017), and Altai (Burmistrova & Ermolaeva, 2013) are typically used as pattern ecosystems in ecological monitoring.…”