AN ECOLOGICAL REVIEW OFCLADOPHORA GLOMERATA(CHLOROPHYTA) IN THE LAURENTIAN GREAT LAKES¹

Abstract

Cladophora glomerata (L.) Kütz. is, potentially, the most widely distributed macroalga throughout the world's freshwater ecosystems. C. glomerata has been described throughout North America, Europe, the Atlantic Islands, the Caribbean Islands, Asia, Africa, Australia and New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. Cladophora blooms were a common feature of the lower North American Great Lakes (Erie, Michigan, Ontario) from the 1950s through the early 1980s and were largely eradicated through the implementation of a multibillion-dollar phosphorus (P) abatement program. The return of widespread blooms in these lakes since the mid-1990s, however, was not associated with increases in P loading. Instead, current evidence indicates that the resurgence in blooms was directly related to ecosystem level changes in substratum availability, water clarity, and P recycling associated with the establishment of dense colonies of invasive dreissenid mussels. These results support the hypothesis that dreissenid mussel invasions may induce dramatic shifts in energy and nutrient flow from pelagic zones to the benthic zone.

Advanced nutrient removal from surface water by a consortium of attached microalgae and bacteria: A review

“…(1)) (Cai et al, 2013). In addition to the assimilation of essential phosphorus for microbial growth, some species of microalgae and bacteria such as Cladophora and Polyphosphate (polyP) accumulating bacteria (e.g., Acinetobacter) can take up large amounts of phosphorus and store it as intracellular polyphosphate (Oehmen et al, 2007;Higgins et al, 2008;Schmidt et al, 2016). Moreover, phosphate can be removed from wastewater through precipitation with calcium and magnesium ions at high pH via hydroxyapatite formation (Lu et al, 2016b), and surface adsorption via formation of hydrogen bonds with the extracellular polysaccharides secreted by microalgae or bacteria .…”

Biomass of freshwater Cladophora as a raw material for agriculture and the cosmetic industry

“…Extensive development of macroscopic algae in freshwater ecosystems more and more often form spatially large mats [1][2][3] and quickly create environmental and recreation problems in a reservoir. Therefore, there is an urgent need to exploit such biomass [4] due to the growing problem closely related to the development of the agricultural economy (intensification of fertilization increases the concentration of N and P in the water which efficiently accelerates algae growth) and tourism (preference for clean water without biomass of macroalgae).…”

TheCladophoraresurgence in Lake Ontario: characterization and implications for management

“…Higgins et al (2008) noted that few incidents of beach fouling by Cladophora were reported during this interval and that, to those authors' knowledge, no quantitative in situ surveys of the alga's presence, abundance, or nutritional status were performed. Auer et al (2010) concurred with the position of Higgins et al (2008), pointing out that there is little information available for the Post-P Management Period, making it difficult to compare the magnitude of past Cladophora problems with contemporary conditions (see also Young and Berges 2004). It was clear, however, that P concentrations declined in Lake Ontario in the Post-P Management Period, leading to recognition of two intervals ( Fig.…”

“…Samples were taken at depths of 0.5, 1.5, 3.0, and 5.0 m at times of peak Cladophora biomass (June-August) along the shores of Oakville, Whitby, Cobourg, Presqu'ile, Point Petre, Bath, and Emeric Point (all on Lake Ontario). Additional Lake Ontario biomass values used in this study were reported by Malkin et al (2008;biomass in 2004 and at Oakville, Ontario), Higgins et al (2008; …”

“…Yet, while a recently published Great Lakes submerged aquatic vegetation map (SAV: Cladophora and vascular plants; Brooks et al 2015;Shuchman et al 2013aShuchman et al , 2013b confirms the widespread occurrence of the alga, characteristics of the Cladophora dynamic meriting the term resurgence remain poorly defined and largely unquantified. With the Cladophora problem in Lake Ontario again taking center stage in stakeholder awareness (Higgins et al 2008) and again becoming prominent in the scientific literature, water quality managers are being called to address the mandate of the Great Lakes Water Quality Protocol of 2012 (hereinafter referred to as the 2012 Protocol) to maintain levels of algal biomass below those levels constituting a nuisance condition.…”