scholarly journals From Daphnia to very acidic lakes – Ecological and abiotic processes

Limnologica ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-85
Author(s):  
Kurt Friese ◽  
Christian W. Steinberg
Keyword(s):  
Acidic Lakes

scholarly journals Common Loon, Gavia immer, Breeding Success in Relation to Lake pH and Lake Size Over 25 Years

2009 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Alvo
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Success ◽  
Low Ph ◽  
Single Pair ◽  
Gavia Immer ◽  
Common Loon ◽  
Sulphur Deposition ◽  
Acidic Lakes ◽  
Ph Range ◽  
Lake Size ◽  
Critical Ph

I monitored Common Loon (Gavia immer) breeding success in relation to lake pH (range 4.0–8.5) between 1982 and 2007 on 38 single-pair lakes (5–88 ha) in the Sudbury, Ontario, area. No chicks fledged on lakes with pH < 4.4. Chicks fledged on lakes with slightly higher pH only if the lakes were relatively large. Acidic lakes became less acidic as sulphur dioxide emissions from the Sudbury smelters and sulphur deposition from other long-range sources decreased. Two lakes initially too acidic to support successful loon reproduction eventually had successful reproduction. One loon pair used two large acidic lakes (combined area 140 ha) connected by shallow rapids, and one of the adults made extremely long dives (average = 99 s) while foraging for the chicks. One chick died on that lake after apparently ingesting a very large food item; the lack of smaller items was attributed to the lake’s acidity. My results suggest that a shortage of food for chicks is the main reason why low pH reduces breeding success. I suggest that, for lakes without high levels of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), the critical pH for loon breeding success is approximately 4.3, and the suboptimal pH is approximately 4.4–6.0.

Reproduction of selected Mollusca in some low alkalinity lakes in south-central Ontario

1985 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 511-515 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. R. Servos ◽  
J. B. Rooke ◽  
G. L. Mackie
Keyword(s):  
Low Ph ◽  
Acidic Lakes ◽  
Recruitment Failure ◽  
South Central ◽  
Summer Growth ◽  
Growth And Reproduction

Growth and reproduction of several species of molluscs were examined in six low alkalinity lakes in south-central Ontario. Amnicola limosa (Gastropoda: Amnicolidae) held through the summer of 1982 in cages in acidic lakes (pH 5.78–5.89) grew slower (p < 0.01) than those held in less acidic lakes (pH 6.03–6.84). The development of eggs of A. limosa in the laboratory was impaired at and below pH 5.0 and delayed at pH 5.5 relative to pH 6.0. Hence the recruitment failure and elimination of A. limosa that has been reported in acidifying lakes may be caused by reduced summer growth and (or) impaired development of the eggs. In contrast, Pisidium spp. (Bivalvia: Pisidiidae) do not appear to be adversely affected by low pH in the lakes in this study (pH 5.78–6.84). Caged Pisidium equilaterale did not have reduced growth in the acidic lakes during the summer of 1982. Pisidium casertanum and Pisidium ferrugineum had only slightly reduced (p < 0.05) fecundity (number of extramarsupial larvae per adult) in acidic lakes relative to less acidic lakes sampled in 1980.

The breeding success of common loons (Gavia immer) in relation to alkalinity and other lake characteristics in Ontario

1988 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 746-752 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Alvo ◽  
David J. T. Hussell ◽  
Michael Berrill
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Success ◽  
Benthic Algae ◽  
Gavia Immer ◽  
Acidic Lake ◽  
Acidic Lakes ◽  
Common Loons ◽  
Breeding Attempt ◽  
High Alkalinity ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
High Level

We examined the breeding success of common loons (Gavia immer) and made observations of loons feeding their young on small lakes (5.3–75 ha) with different alkalinities (−73 to 1804 μequiv./L) near Sudbury, Ontario. Alkalinity, pH, and conductivity were highly correlated with each other. There was a significant positive relationship between successful breeding and alkalinity on 68 lakes surveyed in 1982. Discriminant analysis showed that alkalinity, area, and colour of the lake contributed significantly to discrimination among lakes with successful, unsuccessful, and no breeding attempts. Lack of a breeding attempt tended to be associated with small, brown, low-alkalinity lakes, and successful breeding with large, clear, high-alkalinity lakes. For lakes with breeding attempts in 1982–1984, alkalinity (all years), depth (1983), and area (1984) provided significant discrimination between unsuccessful lakes and those on which young were raised. Unsuccessful breeding resulted primarily from brood mortalities on acidic lakes. Adult loons were more successful at securing fish on high-alkalinity lakes than on low-alkalinity lakes, and this may reflect differences in fish densities. A pair of loons attempting to raise a chick on a fishless, acidic lake fed the chick benthic algae and possibly benthic invertebrates, but flew to other lakes to feed themselves. We suggest that the high level of brood mortalities on acidic lakes resulted from a shortage of suitable food for the young.

scholarly journals Phytoplankton assemblages in Lake Orta: has functional structure recovered in one of the largest acidic lakes in the world?

2016 ◽  
Vol 75 (s2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Morabito
Keyword(s):  
Functional Groups ◽  
Diversity Indices ◽  
Taxonomic Composition ◽  
Ecological Niches ◽  
Phytoplankton Species ◽  
Phytoplankton Assemblages ◽  
Lake Maggiore ◽  
Acidic Lakes ◽  
Physical Features ◽  
She Analysis

Lake Orta (Northern Italy) became one of the world’s largest acidic lakes, following industrial pollution, beginning in the late 1920s. Prior to pollution, Lake Orta supported a rich and diversified phytoplankton community dominated by diatoms, cyanobacteria and dinoflagellates. Their taxonomic composition was comparable to that of the nearby Lake Maggiore, which provides a useful reference comparison. After pollution, Lake Orta was so acidic and contaminated with trace metals that only a few tolerant phytoplankton species persisted, supplemented by sudden and short living outbursts of occasional colonists. The lake was limed in 1989-1990. This has permitted the gradual recovery of its chemistry and biology, and many phytoplankton species that inhabit Lake Maggiore are now re-appearing in Lake Orta. I tested the two hypotheses that Lakes Orta and Maggiore would now have a similar phytoplankton taxonomic assemblages, and similar diversity of functional groups given their similar morphometry, physical features and trophic states. The two hypotheses were tested by comparing the phytoplankton assemblages of lakes Maggiore and Orta for the first 10 years after liming, i.e. 1990 to 2001. Phytoplankton was classified according the Reynolds' Morpho Functional Groups and five diversity indices were calculated (<em>S</em>, number of units; <em>H</em>, Shannon-Wiener; <em>E</em>, evenness; <em>D</em>, dominance; <em>J</em>, equitability). SHE analysis (an analysis of diversity changes based on the relationship among species richness (S), H Index (H) and evenness (E)) was also carried out, in order to compare the long term trend of both functional groups and taxa biodiversity. Both taxonomic and the functional composition differed in the two lakes, likely because chemical quality have played a role in <em>taxa</em>selection. Moreover, it was quite clear that, during the first post-liming decade, Lake Orta’s phytoplankton was characterized by low diversity and evenness and by marked year-to-year fluctuations. However, SHE analysis showed that the colonization rate was higher in Lake Orta than in Lake Maggiore, and that the environmental modifications caused by the liming were opening new ecological niches, allowing some colonists to thrive in the changing, albeit still unusual chemical environment of the lake.<p> </p>

Trophic response to phosphorus in acidic and non-acidic lakes in Nova Scotia, Canada

1990 ◽  
pp. 105-110
Author(s):  
Joseph J. Kerekes ◽  
Anthony C. Blouin ◽  
Stephen T. Beauchamp
Keyword(s):  
Nova Scotia ◽  
Acidic Lakes

Phytoplankton responses to nutrient and grazer manipulations among northeastern lakes of varying pH

1998 ◽  
Vol 55 (4) ◽  
pp. 958-966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Bukaveckas ◽  
William Shaw
Keyword(s):  
Phosphatase Activity ◽  
Nonlinear Model ◽  
Nutrient Enrichment ◽  
Grazing Intensity ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Good Correspondence ◽  
Acidic Lakes ◽  
P Limitation ◽  
Community Grazing ◽  
Enrichment Experiments

Short-term nutrient enrichment and zooplankton exclosure experiments were conducted at 14 lakes representing various stages of acidification (pH 4.6-6.8). We measured changes in chlorophyll as an indicator of the severity of nutrient limitation and grazing intensity and compared these with independent measures of P limitation (cell P quotas and phosphatase activity) and grazing (zooplankton densities and inferred community grazing rates). Results from nutrient enrichment experiments showed good correspondence to measured phosphatase activity but not cell P quotas. Phytoplankton in acidic lakes (pH < 5.0) responded more strongly to nutrient enrichment and exhibited fourfold higher biomass-specific phosphatase activity compared with nonacidic lakes. Phytoplankton responses to the removal of macrozooplankton did not exhibit any consistent pattern among lakes of varying acidity. Although the largest herbivores (Daphnia) were more abundant in nonacidic lakes, their absence in acidic lakes was compensated for by increased abundance of smaller species (principally Diaptomus minutus and Bosmina longirostris). The magnitude of the response to grazer removal was positively correlated with lake zooplankton densities at the time of the experiment, and the use of a nonlinear model enabled us to explain 84% of the variation in this response among the 14 sites.

Trophic response to phosphorus in acidic and non-acidic lakes in Nova Scotia, Canada

Hydrobiologia ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 191 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph J. Kerekes ◽  
Anthony C. Blouin ◽  
Stephen T. Beauchamp
Keyword(s):  
Nova Scotia ◽  
Acidic Lakes

Short-Term Changes in the Acid/Base Chemistry of Two Acidic Lakes Following Calcium Carbonate Treatment

1989 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 306-314 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. F. Fordham ◽  
C. T. Driscoll
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Initial Perturbation ◽  
Acid Neutralizing Capacity ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Acidic Lakes ◽  
Neutralizing Capacity ◽  
Rapid Dissolution ◽  
Additional Release ◽  
Woods Lake

Woods Lake and Cranberry Pond, two chronically acidic lakes located in the Adirondack region of New York, USA, were intensively monitored following CaCO3 treatment in May 1985 to evaluate the mechanisms controlling short-term changes in water column chemistry. Immediately following base application (24 h), both lakes responded like systems closed to atmospheric CO2, because the dissolution of very small CaCO3 particles (median diameter 2 μm) exceeded the rate of atmospheric CO2 intrusion. Rapid dissolution of CaCO3 coupled with very low concentrations of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) prior to treatment, resulted in pH increases in the upper mixed waters from 4.9 to 9.4 in Woods Lake and from 4.6 to 9.1 in Cranberry Pond, as waters readily became saturated with CaCO3. pH increases were accompanied by stoichiometric increases in dissolved Ca2+, acid neutralizing capacity (ANC), and DIC. Following this initial perturbation, the upper mixed waters equilibrated with atmospheric CO2 over a 4 wk period, facilitating additional release of dissolved Ca2+ and ANC due to dissolution of suspended CaCO3. The amount of CaCO3 that dissolved during the 4 wk immediately following treatment, calculated from Ca2+ budgets, was very high; 86% in Woods Lake and 79% in Cranberry Pond.

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