Seasonal Variations of Temperature and Nutrients in the Surface Waters of Lakes Ontario and Erie

1974 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 275-290 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Gächter ◽  
R. A. Vollenweider ◽  
W. A. Glooschenko
Keyword(s):  
Primary Production ◽  
Surface Waters ◽  
Seasonal Variations ◽  
Early Onset ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Nutrient Concentration ◽  
Spring Bloom ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Nutrient Supply ◽  
Nutrient Patterns

During 1970, temperature and nutrient distributions were measured in surface waters of lakes Ontario (12 cruises) and Erie (10 cruises). Nutrient patterns are compared and discussed in relation to temperature, primary production, and nutrient sources.In Lake Erie, due to the early onset of the phytoplankton spring bloom, nutrient concentration started to decrease much earlier than in Lake Ontario. During spring, patterns of nutrients, chlorophyll a, and primary production were influenced by the thermal bar in Lake Ontario. In Lake Erie the nutrient supply controlled such patterns. In Lake Erie inorganic nutrients were depleted lake-wide in summer; in Lake Ontario, nutrients were highest in regions where upwelling occurred or inputs were high. Due to the earlier onset of fall overturn in Lake Erie, the nutrient concentration started to increase earlier in the fall than in Lake Ontario.

Primary Production in Lakes Ontario and Erie: A Comparative Study

1974 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 253-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter A. Glooschenko ◽  
James E. Moore ◽  
Mohiuddin Munawar ◽  
R. A. Vollenweider
Keyword(s):  
Primary Production ◽  
Chlorophyll A ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Early Summer ◽  
Central Basin ◽  
Western Basin ◽  
Eastern Basin ◽  
Production Values ◽  
Rate Of Increase

Primary production values in Lake Ontario were low in winter, reached a maximum in midspring, declined during summer, and slightly increased in fall. Rate of increase of production for inshore waters (< 20 m depth) was greater especially in spring and early summer with a greater maximum reached earlier than in offshore waters. Assimilation numbers, mgC fixed/mg chlorophyll a per hour, in Lake Ontario were fairly constant over the lake with a yearly range of 1.2–1.6. Primary production showed a linear relationship to chlorophyll a concentration, as also occurred in Lake Erie.Lake Erie primary production varied in its three basins. Seasonally, in the Eastern Basin, production was highest in spring with a midsummer decline, and small peaks in fall. The Western Basin had a maximum in midsummer whereas the Central Basin had peaks in late summer and early fall. Assimilation numbers were highest in the Western Basin (up to 3.5 mgC/mg chlorophyll a per hour) and lowest in the mid-Central Basin and Eastern Basin with values of approximately 1.4 mgC/mg chlorophyll a per hour. A definite westerly increase of assimilation number was observed.Up to early summer, the two lakes were fairly equal in surface production but integral photosynthesis, mgC/m2 per hour was higher in Lake Ontario than in Lake Erie. The same was valid in November and December. In summer, Lake Erie was higher in production on both a mgC/m3 per hour and mgC/m2 per hour basis. For the period, April–December, Lake Ontario's total estimated yield was 170 gC/m2, whereas for Lake Erie values of 160, 210, and 310 gC/m2 were found for the Eastern, Central, and Western basins, respectively.

ENERGY TRANSFER EFFICIENCIES ON LOWER TROPHIC LEVELS WITH INTENSIVE OYSTER FARMING IN HIROSHIMA BAY, JAPAN

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Akira Umehara ◽  
Akira Umehara ◽  
Satoshi Asaoka ◽  
Satoshi Asaoka ◽  
Naoki Fujii ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Transfer ◽  
Primary Production ◽  
Skeletonema Costatum ◽  
Warm Season ◽  
Nutrient Supply ◽  
Trophic Levels ◽  
Phytoplankton Primary Production ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Hiroshima Prefecture ◽  
Study Species

In enclosed water areas, organic matters are actively produced by phytoplankton due to abundant nutrient supply from the rivers. In our study area of the semi-enclosed Hiroshima Bay, oyster farming consuming high primary production has been developed since the 1950s, and the oyster production of Hiroshima prefecture have had the largest market share (ca. 60%) in Japan. In this study, species composition of phytoplankton, primary production, and secondary production of net zooplanktons and oysters were determined seasonally at seven stations in the bay between November 2014 and August 2015. In the bay, diatoms including Skeletonema costatum dominated during the period of the study. The primary productions markedly increased during summer (August), and its mean values in the northern part of the bay (NB) and the southern part (SB) were 530 and 313 mgC/m2/d, respectively. The productions of net zooplankton and oyster increased during the warm season, and its mean values in the NB were 14 and 1.2 mgC/m2/d, and in SB were 28 and 0.9 mgC/m2/d, respectively. The energy transfer efficiencies from the primary producers to the secondary producers in the NB and SB were 2.8% and 9.1%, respectively. However, the transfer efficiency to the oysters was approximately 0.3% in the bay. This study clearly showed the spatial difference of the productions and transfer efficiencies, and the low contribution of the production of oysters in secondary productions in Hiroshima Bay.

Zebra Mussels as Biomonitors for Organic Contaminants in the Lower Great Lakes

1996 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 411-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael E. Comba ◽  
Janice L. Metcalfe-Smith ◽  
Klaus L.E. Kaiser
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Organic Contaminants ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Soft Tissues ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Zebra Mussels ◽  
Organic Contamination ◽  
Contamination Levels ◽  
St Lawrence River

Abstract Zebra mussels were collected from 24 sites in Lake Erie, Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River between 1990 and 1992. Composite samples of whole mussels (15 sites) or soft tissues (9 sites) were analyzed for residues of organochlo-rine pesticides and PCBs to evaluate zebra mussels as biomonitors for organic contaminants. Mussels from most sites contained measurable quantities of most of the analytes. Mean concentrations were (in ng/g, whole mussel dry weight basis) 154 ΣPCB, 8.4 ΣDDT, 3.5 Σchlordane, 3.4 Σaldrin, 1.4 ΣBHC, 1.0 Σendosulfan, 0.80 mirex and 0.40 Σchlorobenzene. Concentrations varied greatly between sites, i.e., from 22 to 497 ng/g for ΣPCB and from 0.08 to 11.6 ng/g for ΣBHC, an indication that mussels are sensitive to different levels of contamination. Levels of ΣPCB and Σendosulfan were highest in mussels from the St. Lawrence River, whereas mirex was highest in those from Lake Ontario. Overall, mussels from Lake Erie were the least contaminated. These observations agree well with the spatial contaminant trends shown by other biomoni-toring programs. PCB congener class profiles in zebra mussels are also typical for nearby industrial sources, e.g., mussels below an aluminum casting plant contained 55% di-, tri- and tetrachlorobiphenyls versus 31% in those upstream. We propose the use of zebra mussels as biomonitors of organic contamination in the Great Lakes.

Infection of American smelt in Lake Ontario and Lake Erie with the microsporidian parasite Glugea hertwigi (Weissenberg)

1972 ◽  
Vol 50 (9) ◽  
pp. 1183-1188 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Chen ◽  
G. Power
Keyword(s):  
Digestive Tract ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Ovarian Tissue ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Parasite Load ◽  
Sexual Differences ◽  
Striking Difference ◽  
Female Fish ◽  
Microsporidian Parasite ◽  
Male Fish

In samples taken monthly throughout the year the percentage of American smelt in Lake Ontario and Lake Erie containing cysts of Glugea hertwigi was 5.2% and 62.7% respectively. Sexual differences in incidence were observed, the significance of which was uncertain as results from the two lakes were contradictory.In male fish infection was almost entirely restricted to the digestive tract with few cysts in the liver, skin, and testes. In female fish the digestive tract and ovaries were similarly infected.Seasonal fluctuations in Glugea infection were obvious and seemed correlated with the gonadal cycle. In both sexes the highest parasite load corresponded with the onset of maturation.A striking difference in fecundity between the two smelt populations was attributed to the Glugea infection. In females parasite cysts replaced ovarian tissue, causing a reduction in the number of maturing eggs.

Nitrogen Transformations in Lake Ontario

1987 ◽  
Vol 44 (12) ◽  
pp. 2133-2143 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. R. S. Lean ◽  
R. Knowles
Keyword(s):  
Surface Waters ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Ammonium Uptake ◽  
Small Cells ◽  
Nitrogen Transformations ◽  
Size Fractionation ◽  
Nitrate Losses ◽  
Zooplankton Excretion ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
Chemoautotrophic Bacteria

Concentrations of ammonium plus nitrite in Lake Ontario were highly correlated with ammonium regeneration from zooplankton excretion (r = 0.966), inferring that elevated nitrite concentrations result from nitrification. Nitrapyrin-sensitive dark 14C-labeled bicarbonate assays confirmed high rates of nitrification by chemoautotrophic bacteria. 15N-labeled nitrate experiments showed that nitrate, not ammonium, was the principal form of N used for total microbial protein synthesis. Size fractionation experiments also suggested that small cells were responsible for most of the ammonium uptake, while large cells used mostly nitrate. Nitrate depletion in the surface waters during summer stratification resulted from movement to particulate N, nitrite, and ammonium as well as losses in particulate N due to sedimentation. At least one third, however, was unaccounted for (i.e. 30 mg N∙m−2∙d−1) and may have been converted to protein which would move up the food chain to larger organisms (e.g. fish) not sampled during conventional water chemistry. Nitrous oxide profiles showed that nitrate losses through denitrification are unlikely to occur. Consequently, unless nitrate loading to Lake Ontario is reduced, nitrate concentrations should be expected to continue to increase.

scholarly journals Evaluation of primary production in Lake Erie by multiple proxies

Oecologia ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 145 (4) ◽  
pp. 669-669 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathaniel E. Ostrom ◽  
Hunter J. Carrick ◽  
Michael R. Twiss ◽  
Leah Piwinski
Keyword(s):  
Primary Production ◽  
Lake Erie

Spatial variability in rates of Net Primary Production (NPP) and onset of the spring bloom in Greenland shelf waters

2021 ◽  
pp. 102655
Author(s):  
Maria Vernet ◽  
Ingrid Ellingsen ◽  
Christian Marchese ◽  
Simon Bélanger ◽  
Mattias Cape ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Variability ◽  
Primary Production ◽  
Spring Bloom ◽  
Net Primary Production

Iron plays a role in nitrate drawdown by phytoplankton in Lake Erie surface waters as observed in lake-wide assessments

2012 ◽  
Vol 69 (2) ◽  
pp. 369-381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonya M. Havens ◽  
Christel S. Hassler ◽  
Rebecca L. North ◽  
Stephanie J. Guildford ◽  
Greg Silsbe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Waters ◽  
Thermal Stratification ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Phytoplankton Community ◽  
Sampling Depth ◽  
Phytoplankton Pigment ◽  
Chl A ◽  
Dissolved Iron ◽  
Continuous Surface

Phytoplankton interactions with iron (Fe) were examined in surface waters of Lake Erie during summer thermal stratification. Lake-wide sampling in June and September 2005 was conducted using a continuous surface water sampler (1 m sampling depth) and in July at 18 hydrographic stations (5 m sampling depth). In situ measurements of photosynthetic efficiency (maximum quantum yield of photosystem II) and phytoplankton community composition were measured using fast repetition rate fluorometry and a phytoplankton pigment-specific fluorometer, respectively, during June and September. High ratios (73%–85%) of intracellular Fe to particulate Fe coincident with increases in chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentrations in the western and central basins in June and July imply that the majority of Fe in these regions was associated with intracellular pools. Correlations between intracellular Fe and Chl a were frequently observed when Heterokontophyta and Pyrrophyta dominated the phytoplankton community. Assimilation of Fe by the phytoplankton strongly influenced its partitioning between the dissolved and particulate phase. Dissolved iron (<0.45 µm) concentrations were proportional to Chl a concentrations and both dissolved iron and Chl a were inversely proportional to nitrate concentrations in July and September, suggesting that dissolved iron influenced both nitrate drawdown and Chl a concentrations in Lake Erie surface waters in summer.

Carbon dioxide exchange and productivity in Lake Erie and Lake Ontario

1975 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 694-704
Author(s):  
R. R. Weiler
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Exchange
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