Algal blooms in Ontario, Canada: Increases in reports since 1994

Winter, Jennifer G.; DeSellas, Anna M.; Fletcher, Rachael; Heintsch, Lucja; Morley, Andrew D.; Nakamoto, Lynda; Utsumi, Kaoru

doi:10.1080/07438141.2011.557765

Cited by 143 publications

(114 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…The appearance of a surface cyanobacterial scum in TML in September 2005 was an unusual event for this lake, as it is generally for softwater lakes in the Muskoka region of southcentral Ontario (Winter et al 2011). Our evaluation suggests that while moderate to high phosphorus concentrations and nitrogen limitation predispose TML to cyanobacterial dominance of nitrogen-fixing taxa, meteorological and hydrological conditions play an instrumental role in the transition of a bloom to a surface scum.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 55%

“…Reports of excessive cyanobacteria growth in freshwater lakes are on the rise regionally in Ontario and across the globe (Winter et al 2011, O'Neil et al 2012. In lakes, cyanobacterial blooms are characterized by a rapid accumulation of a single or a small number of species in the water column and typically occur when cyanobacteria biomass accounts for >50% of the phytoplankton community (Downing et al 2001).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Potential factors leading to the formation of cyanobacterial scums in a mesotrophic softwater lake in Ontario, Canada

Persaud¹,

Paterson²,

Ingram³

et al. 2014

Lake and Reservoir Management

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 55%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential factors leading to the formation of cyanobacterial scums in a mesotrophic softwater lake in Ontario, Canada

Persaud¹,

Paterson²,

Ingram³

et al. 2014

Lake and Reservoir Management

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“…There is indication that these smaller inland lakes are also seeing an increase in the incidence of blooms although how much is due to better public awareness and reporting is still not entirely clear. Winter et al (2011) provided an analysis of reporting records for Ontario; blooms of cyanobacteria (and green algae) apparently increased significantly from 1994 to 2010. But perhaps the most interesting observation was that reports were coming in much later than the usual summer months associated with cyanobacterial blooms, as late as early December.…”

Section: Big and Small Blooms In Canadamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is mounting evidence that the frequency and magnitude of algal blooms in aquatic systems is increasing around the world (Hallegraeff 1993), and parts of Canada could be experiencing analogous trends (Winter et al 2011). A similar observation, however, was articulated in the mid-1970s: "During the last two or three decades, both the incidence and intensity of surface blooms seem to have been increasing, apparently as a consequence of nutrient enrichment, through sewage disposal, agricultural runoff and other forms of pollution" (Reynolds and Walsby 1975), suggesting that this increase may not be so new.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Blooming algae: a Canadian perspective on the rise of toxic cyanobacteria

Pick

2016

Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci.

164

111

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Algal bloom reports are on the rise across Canada. While eutrophication is the main driver, other stressors of aquatic ecosystems, specifically climate change and food web alterations from the spread of invasive species and overfishing, are compounding factors acting in concert or independently. Current models can predict the average algal and cyanobacterial biomass concentrations across temperate lakes as a function of nutrients, but models to specifically predict harmful algal composition and toxicity are lacking. At the within-lake scale, where management occurs, strong year to year variations in cyanobacterial blooms remain challenging to explain, let alone predict. The most common cyanotoxins, the hepatotoxic microcystins, are chemically diverse with some variants more toxic than others and with greater propensity for persistence and bioaccumulation. These differences have been largely overlooked, as current guidelines have been based on microcystin-LR, considered the most common variant. Microcystin-LA is also encountered in Canadian waters and appears to exhibit greater persistence and bioaccumulation. With cyanobacterial blooms most likely to increase across the country, including the north, guidelines and policies for cyanotoxins in drinking and recreational waters as well as fish will need to be developed for the protection of ecosystem and human health. Ultimately, control of eutrophication is the most important option for managing toxic cyanobacterial blooms; nitrogen and phosphorus need to be considered as environmental contaminants, as both play a role in controlling the dominance of toxigenic cyanobacteria.Résumé : Les signalements de fleurs d'eau sont en hausse au Canada. Si l'eutrophisation en est la principale cause, d'autres facteurs de stress pour les écosystèmes aquatiques, plus précisément les changements climatiques et les modifications des réseaux trophiques découlant de la propagation d'espèces envahissantes et de la surpêche, agissent de concert avec cette dernière ou de manière indépendante. Les modèles actuels peuvent prédire les concentrations moyennes de biomasse d'algues et de cyanobactéries dans les lacs tempérés en fonction des nutriments, mais des modèles permettant de prédire la composition et la toxicité des algues nuisibles en particulier manquent toujours. À l'échelle d'un lac faisant l'objet d'une gestion, il est difficile d'expliquer et encore plus difficile de prédire les fortes variations interannuelles des proliférations de cyanobactéries observées. Les cyanotoxines les plus répandues, les microcystines hépatotoxiques, sont variées sur le plan chimique, certaines variantes étant plus toxiques que d'autres et plus susceptibles de persister et de se bioaccumuler. Ces différences ont été largement négligées, les directives actuelles étant basées sur la microcystine-LR, considérée comme la variante la plus répandue. La microcystine-LA est également présente dans les eaux canadiennes et semble caractérisée par une persistance et une bioaccumulation plus grandes. Co...

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“…Anthropogenic activities have led to increased nutrient discharges, which in turn result in higher nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) concentrations in lakes and reservoirs. Numerous studies have reported increases in algal bloom frequency in lakes and reservoirs because of increasing nutrient availability (Duan et al 2009;Winter et al 2011;Bridgeman et al 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differences in phytoplankton dynamics and community structure between a wet year and dry year in the Zhoucun Reservoir

Qiu

Zeng

2016

Journal of Freshwater Ecology

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Rainfall-induced nutrient fluctuations in surface water affect phytoplankton communities and cause algal blooms. To examine this influence in the Zhoucun Reservoir, China, field surveys were performed weekly or biweekly from February 2013 (a wet year) to December 2014 (a dry year). Physical conditions, nutrient levels, and phytoplankton functional groups were investigated during monitoring. Nutrient levels increased in the summer of 2013 (TN: 0.85À2.66 mg/L; TP: 0.037À0.138 mg/L), while nitrogen deficiency occurred in the summer of 2014 (TN: 0.38À0.73 mg/L, TP: 0.044À0.079 mg/L). A cyanobacteria bloom that appeared in the summer of 2013 had the dominant phytoplankton functional groups M and Tc. In the summer of 2014, algal cell density and biomass were much lower than those during the corresponding period in 2013, and the co-dominant phytoplankton groups were F, L 0 , Tc, and S2. Non-N-fixing cyanobacteria were not abundant in summer 2013 probably because of the low ratio of NO 3 ¡ to NH 4 C , although nitrogen was also deficient. In contrast to these summer trends, little difference was noted between phytoplankton dynamics and community structure in the two winters and two springs, regardless of nutrient conditions. Redundancy analysis indicated that rainfall-induced nitrogen fluctuations were the primary factor causing phytoplankton dynamics to differ between the wet and dry year. The effects of water temperature, stratification, and light on the phytoplankton community were independent of nutrient fluctuations. This study shows that rainfall fluctuations change summer nutrient conditions and that cyanobacteria blooms are likely to occur in wet years in the Zhoucun Reservoir.

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Algal blooms in Ontario, Canada: Increases in reports since 1994

Cited by 143 publications

References 32 publications

Potential factors leading to the formation of cyanobacterial scums in a mesotrophic softwater lake in Ontario, Canada

Potential factors leading to the formation of cyanobacterial scums in a mesotrophic softwater lake in Ontario, Canada

Blooming algae: a Canadian perspective on the rise of toxic cyanobacteria

Differences in phytoplankton dynamics and community structure between a wet year and dry year in the Zhoucun Reservoir

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