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Gregersen R, Howarth JD, Atalah J, Pearman JK, Waters S, Li X, Vandergoes MJ, Wood SA. Paleo-diatom records reveal ecological change not detected using traditional measures of lake eutrophication. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 867:161414. [PMID: 36621498 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Lakes provide crucial ecosystem services and harbour unique and rich biodiversity, yet despite decades of research and management focus, cultural eutrophication remains a predominant threat to their health. Our ability to manage lake eutrophication is restricted by the lack of long-term monitoring records. To circumvent this, we developed a bio-indicator approach for inferring trophic level from lake diatom communities and applied this to sediment cores from two lakes experiencing eutrophication stress. Diatom indicators strongly predicted observed trophic levels, and when applied to sediment cores, diatom predicted trophic level reconstructions were consistent with monitoring data and land-use histories. However, there were significant recent shifts in diatom communities not captured by the diatom-based index or monitoring data, suggesting that conventional trophic level indices obscure important ecological change. New approaches, such as the one in this study, are critical to detect early changes in water quality and prevent the decline of lake ecosystems worldwide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rose Gregersen
- Victoria University of Wellington, PO Box 600, Wellington 6012, New Zealand.
| | - Jamie D Howarth
- Victoria University of Wellington, PO Box 600, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
| | - Javier Atalah
- Cawthron Institute, Private Bag 2, Nelson 7042, New Zealand
| | - John K Pearman
- Cawthron Institute, Private Bag 2, Nelson 7042, New Zealand
| | - Sean Waters
- Cawthron Institute, Private Bag 2, Nelson 7042, New Zealand
| | - Xun Li
- GNS Science, PO Box 30-368, Lower Hutt 5040, New Zealand
| | | | - Susanna A Wood
- Cawthron Institute, Private Bag 2, Nelson 7042, New Zealand
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2
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Gregersen R, Howarth JD, Wood SA, Vandergoes MJ, Puddick J, Moy C, Li X, Pearman JK, Moody A, Simon KS. Resolving 500 Years of Anthropogenic Impacts in a Mesotrophic Lake: Nutrients Outweigh Other Drivers of Lake Change. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2022; 56:16940-16951. [PMID: 36379054 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c06835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Interactions among multiple stressors, legacies of past perturbations, and the lack of historical information make it difficult to determine the influence of individual anthropogenic impacts on lakes and separate them from natural ecosystem variability. In the present study, we coupled paleolimnological approaches, historical data, and ecological experiments to disentangle the impacts of multiple long-term stressors on lake ecosystem structure and function. We found that the lake structure and function remained resistant to the impacts of catchment deforestation and erosion, and the introduction of several exotic fish species. Changes in ecosystem structure and function were consistent, with nutrient enrichment being the primary driver of change. Significant and sustained changes in the lake diatom community structure (and their nutrient requirements), bacterial community function, and paleolimnological proxies of ecosystem function coincided with nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers in the catchment. The results highlight that the effects of increased nutrient inputs are much stronger than the influence of other, potentially significant, drivers of ecosystem change, and that the degree of nutrient impact can be underestimated by environmental monitoring due to its diffuse and accumulative nature. Delineating the effects of multiple anthropogenic drivers requires long-term records of both impacts and lake ecosystem change across multiple trophic levels.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Chris Moy
- University of Otago, Dunedin 9016, New Zealand
| | - Xun Li
- GNS Science, Lower Hutt 5040, New Zealand
| | | | | | - Kevin S Simon
- The University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
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3
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Barouillet C, Vasselon V, Keck F, Millet L, Etienne D, Galop D, Rius D, Domaizon I. Paleoreconstructions of ciliate communities reveal long-term ecological changes in temperate lakes. Sci Rep 2022; 12:7899. [PMID: 35551223 PMCID: PMC9098483 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-12041-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 05/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Ciliates are unicellular heterotrophic organisms that play a key role in aquatic planktonic and benthic food webs. Advances in sedimentary DNA (sed-DNA) analysis offer the possibility to integrate these bioindicators in paleoenvironmental reconstructions. In this study, we used the top–bottom paleolimnological approach and metabarcoding techniques applied to sed-DNA to compare the recent and past (i.e. prior to major anthropogenic impacts) ciliate communities of 48 lakes located along an elevation gradient. Our results show an overall decline in the β-diversity in recent time, especially in lowland lakes, which are more strongly exposed to local human pressures. Analyses of the functional groups indicate important restructuration of the food web, including the recent increase in mixotrophs. Moreover, changes in the benthic ciliates were consistent with the widespread increase in deep water anoxia. Our results provided evidence that sed-DNA can uncover information about past ciliate communities on a wide variety of lakes. Overall, our study demonstrates the potential of using ciliates as new paleoindicators, integrating information from the pelagic to the benthic zones, and providing valuable insights into ecosystem functioning through a trait-based functional community approach. As paleoindicator, they thus offer a more holistic view on the long-term changes of aquatic ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cécilia Barouillet
- INRAE, Université Savoie Mont Blanc, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France. .,Pole R&D ECLA, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France.
| | - Valentin Vasselon
- INRAE, Université Savoie Mont Blanc, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France.,Pole R&D ECLA, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France.,OFB, Site INRAE UMR CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France
| | - François Keck
- INRAE, Université Savoie Mont Blanc, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France.,Pole R&D ECLA, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France
| | | | - David Etienne
- Pole R&D ECLA, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France.,Université Savoie Mont Blanc, INRAE, CARRTEL, 73370, Le Bourget du Lac, France
| | - Didier Galop
- GEODE UMR 5602 CNRS, Université de Toulouse, 31058, Toulouse, France.,Labex DRIIHM, OHM Pyrénées, CNRS/INEE, Toulouse, France
| | - Damien Rius
- CNRS, Chrono Environnement, 25000, Besançon, France
| | - Isabelle Domaizon
- INRAE, Université Savoie Mont Blanc, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France. .,Pole R&D ECLA, CARRTEL, 74200, Thonon-les-Bains, France.
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4
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Gebremariam SY, McCormick P, Rochelle P. Evidence of a rapid phosphorus-induced regime shift in a large deep reservoir. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 782:146755. [PMID: 33839665 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2020] [Revised: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/22/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Ecological regime shift studies in freshwater systems are mainly limited to shallow lakes and reservoirs, while abrupt changes in deeper lakes are often attributed to climate change. Here, we demonstrate the application of regime shift theory to one of California's newest and deepest reservoirs, Diamond Valley Lake (DVL), which in recent years showed an unexpected rapid departure from its water quality conditions of the previous decade. The reservoir shifted from a well oxygenated condition with low phytoplankton growth to a hypoxic, phytoplankton-dominated turbid system. We statistically identified the critical stressor (phosphorus (P)), switch points, and its load threshold and characterized its transition to an alternative stable state and the stabilizing mechanisms contributing to hysteresis. We analyzed long-term environmental, chemical and flow data, conducted a hydrographic survey, and developed a hydrodynamic model to characterize the factors that contributed to regime shift and to evaluate different management strategies that might reverse this shift. Our findings indicate that large deep systems exhibit different transition dynamics in the presence of an acute stressor compared to regime shifts in shallow systems. A cumulative external TP load threshold of 4.6 mg m-2 d-1 added to the reservoir over nearly 11 months was identified as the critical stressor. For large deep systems, inherent morphometric features such as large relative depth combine with external stressors to drive regime shifts. Light winds, morphometric conditions impeding deep mixing, and a stable stratification that lasts up to 9 months makes DVL more susceptible to hypolimnetic hypoxia, an intrinsic factor accelerating regime shift. Results also suggest regime shift occurred in 2013, when new limnological processes were established to reinforce the new alternative stable state and existing ecosystem services were impaired. Interactions between hypoxia, internal P loading (~2.1 mg m-2 d-1), and seasonal cyanobacterial blooms were identified as mechanisms perpetuating the new alternative state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seyoum Yami Gebremariam
- Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, 700 Moreno Avenue, La Verne, CA 91750, USA.
| | - Paul McCormick
- Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, 700 Moreno Avenue, La Verne, CA 91750, USA
| | - Paul Rochelle
- Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, 700 Moreno Avenue, La Verne, CA 91750, USA
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5
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Szabó Z, Buczkó K, Haliuc A, Pál I, L Korponai J, Begy RC, Veres D, Luoto TP, Zsigmond AR, Magyari EK. Ecosystem shift of a mountain lake under climate and human pressure: A move out from the safe operating space. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 743:140584. [PMID: 32758817 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140584] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2020] [Revised: 06/25/2020] [Accepted: 06/26/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
A multiproxy approach including chironomid, diatom, pollen and geochemical analyses was applied on short gravitational cores retrieved from an alpine lake (Lacul Bâlea) in the Southern Carpathians (Romania) to unveil how this lake responded to natural and anthropogenic forcing over the past 500 years. On the basis of chironomid and diatom assemblage changes, and supported by sediment chemical data and historical information, we distinguished two main phases in lake evolution. Before 1926 the lake was dominated by chironomids belonging to Micropsectra insignilobus-type and benthic diatoms suggesting well-oxygenated oligotrophic environment with only small-scale disturbance. We considered this state as the lake's safe operational space. After 1926 significant changes occurred: Tanytarsus lugens-type and T. mendax-type chironomids took over dominance and collector filterers increased until 1970 pointing to an increase in available nutrients. The diatom community showed the most pronounced change between 1950 and 1992 when planktonic diatoms increased. The highest trophic level was reconstructed between 1970 and 1992, while the indicator species of increasing nutrient availability, Asterionella formosa spread from 1982 and decreased rapidly at 1992. Statistical analyses evidenced that the main driver of the diatom community change was atmospheric reactive nitrogen (Nr) fertilization that drastically moved the community towards planktonic diatom dominance from 1950. The transformation of the chironomid community was primarily driven by summer mean temperature increase that also changed the dominant feeding guild from collector gatherers to collector filterers. Our results overall suggest that the speed of ecosystem reorganisation showed an unprecedented increase over the last 100 years; biological systems in many cases underwent threshold type changes, while several system components displayed non-hysteretic change between alternating community composition. We conclude that Lake Bâlea is outside of its safe operating space today. The main trigger of changes since 1926 was climate change and human impact acting synergically.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zoltán Szabó
- Department of Environmental and Landscape Geography, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány Péter str. 1/C, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; Centre for Ecological Research, GINOP Sustainable Ecosystems Group, Klebelsberg Kuno str. 3, H-8237 Tihany, Hungary.
| | - Krisztina Buczkó
- Centre for Ecological Research, GINOP Sustainable Ecosystems Group, Klebelsberg Kuno str. 3, H-8237 Tihany, Hungary; Hungarian Natural History Museum, Department of Botany, 1088 Budapest, Baross str.13, Hungary; Centre for Ecological Research, Danube Research Institute, Karolina str. 29, H-1113 Budapest, Hungary
| | - Aritina Haliuc
- Centre for Ecological Research, GINOP Sustainable Ecosystems Group, Klebelsberg Kuno str. 3, H-8237 Tihany, Hungary
| | - Ilona Pál
- Department of Environmental and Landscape Geography, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány Péter str. 1/C, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; Department of Biology, ELTE Savaria University Centre, 9700 Szombathely, Károlyi Gáspár square 4, Hungary
| | - János L Korponai
- Department of Water Supply and Sewerage, Faculty of Water Science, National University of Public Service, 6500 Baja, Bajcsy-Zs. str.12-14. Hungary; Department of Environmental Science, Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, Calea Turzii 4, 400193 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Róbert-Csaba Begy
- Interdisciplinary Research Institute on Bio-Nano-Science, Babes-Bolyai University, Treboniu Laurian 42, 400271, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Daniel Veres
- Romanian Academy, Institute of Speleology, Clinicilor 5, 400006, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Tomi P Luoto
- Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, University of Helsinki, Niemenkatu 73, FI-15140 Lahti, Finland
| | - Andreea R Zsigmond
- Department of Environmental Science, Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, Calea Turzii 4, 400193 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Enikő K Magyari
- Department of Environmental and Landscape Geography, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány Péter str. 1/C, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary; Centre for Ecological Research, GINOP Sustainable Ecosystems Group, Klebelsberg Kuno str. 3, H-8237 Tihany, Hungary; MTA-MTM-ELTE Research group for Paleontology, Pázmány Péter str. 1/C, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary.
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Bottom-Up Forces Drive Increases in the Abundance of Large Daphnids in Four Small Lakes Stocked with Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), Interior British Columbia, Canada. Ecosystems 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s10021-019-00443-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
The introduction of salmonids into lakes of western North America for sport fishing is a widespread phenomenon. While numerous investigations have documented cascading trophic interactions upon the introduction of fish into naturally fishless systems, little research has been done to investigate the importance of natural fish status (fishless vs. fish bearing) in modulating historical food web response to dual forcing by bottom-up (resource regulation from nutrients) and top-down (planktivory from stocked fish) processes. We used the paleolimnological record to reconstruct food web changes in four lakes in interior British Columbia that have been stocked with rainbow trout since the early to mid-1900s. Analysis of pigments, diatoms, and Cladocera was undertaken in cores from all lakes. We predicted that if fish were important in structuring cladoceran abundance and composition, we would document a decline in the abundance of large daphnids post-stocking in our two naturally fishless lakes, and little change in the two fish-bearing lakes. Instead, we documented increased abundance of large daphnids after stocking in all lakes in the early to mid-1900s, a finding inconsistent with size-selective predation from planktivorous fish. Further, our data suggest that deep, low-oxygen refugia may be important in sustaining populations of large Daphnia, a process which was enhanced by increased nutrients and lake production according to sub-fossil diatom and pigment analyses. This study shows that fish stocking does not invariably result in a decrease in large-bodied Cladocera and that nutrients and lake type can modulate the response of invertebrate planktivores.
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Rippe JP, Baumann JH, De Leener DN, Aichelman HE, Friedlander EB, Davies SW, Castillo KD. Corals sustain growth but not skeletal density across the Florida Keys Reef Tract despite ongoing warming. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2018; 24:5205-5217. [PMID: 30102827 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.14422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2018] [Revised: 07/11/2018] [Accepted: 08/06/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Through the continuous growth of their carbonate skeletons, corals record information about past environmental conditions and their effect on colony fitness. Here, we characterize century-scale growth records of inner and outer reef corals across ~200 km of the Florida Keys Reef Tract (FKRT) using skeletal cores extracted from two ubiquitous reef-building species, Siderastrea siderea and Pseudodiploria strigosa. We find that corals across the FKRT have sustained extension and calcification rates over the past century but have experienced a long-term reduction in skeletal density, regardless of reef zone. Notably, P. strigosa colonies exhibit temporary reef zone-dependent reductions in extension rate corresponding to two known extreme temperature events in 1969-1970 and 1997-1998. We propose that the subtropical climate of the FKRT may buffer corals from chronic growth declines associated with climate warming, though the significant reduction in skeletal density may indicate underlying vulnerability to present and future trends in ocean acidification.
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Affiliation(s)
- John P Rippe
- Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Justin H Baumann
- Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Daphne N De Leener
- Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Hannah E Aichelman
- Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Eric B Friedlander
- Department of Statistics and Operations Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Sarah W Davies
- Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Karl D Castillo
- Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Curriculum for Environment and Ecology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
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8
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Simpson GL. Modelling Palaeoecological Time Series Using Generalised Additive Models. Front Ecol Evol 2018. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2018.00149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 159] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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9
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Liu B, McLean CE, Long DT, Steinman AD, Stevenson RJ. Eutrophication and recovery of a Lake inferred from sedimentary diatoms originating from different habitats. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2018; 628-629:1352-1361. [PMID: 30045556 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.02.174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2017] [Revised: 02/12/2018] [Accepted: 02/14/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Eutrophication and recovery of Muskegon Lake resulted from a complex set of interacting factors according to diatom-inferred total phosphorus (TP), geochemical proxies, detailed modeling of land use land cover change in the watershed, and accounts of past point source management and non-native species invasions. Benthic and planktonic diatoms responded to phosphorus environments differently in this lake that receives 95% of its input from one river and has only a 23days average retention time. Planktonic diatoms reflected river conditions more than benthic diatoms, and benthos reflected lake conditions more than plankton. Inferred TP from planktonic diatoms indicated the Muskegon River was relatively nutrient rich compared to inferred TP for Muskegon Lake based on benthic diatoms before Europeans settled the watershed. Early European settlement and logging caused no changes in phosphorus condition in the Muskegon River, but modest increases in phosphorus were indicated in Muskegon Lake during the middle and late thirds of the 19th century. Extensive watershed-scale agricultural activity in the early 20th century apparently had little effect on trophic status of the lake, perhaps because it preceded high fertilizer use on farms. During the industrial and population boom in the watershed during the early half of the 20th century, river conditions changed little, but eutrophication of Muskegon Lake increased greatly. Reduction in river phosphorus by dams occurred during the first half of the 20th century. Phosphorus reduction in the lake was indicated after advanced wastewater treatment for Muskegon Township was implemented in 1973. Current diatom inferred phosphorus concentration in the lake is the same as before European settlement, however many attributes of the lake still differ because other stressors persist.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Liu
- Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
| | - Colleen E McLean
- Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Youngstown State University, Youngstown, OH 44555, USA; Department of Geological Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - David T Long
- Department of Geological Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - Alan D Steinman
- Annis Water Resources Institute, Grand Valley State University, 740 West Shoreline Drive, Muskegon, MI 49441, USA
| | - R Jan Stevenson
- Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA; Center for Water Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
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