Dynamics of cyanobacteria blooms are linked to the hydrology of shallow Florida lakes and provide insight into possible impacts of climate change

Havens, Karl E.; Ji, Gaohua; Beaver, John R.; Fulton, Rolland S.; Teacher, Catherine E.

doi:10.1007/s10750-017-3425-7

Cited by 67 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…The causes of observed drought effects were reviewed by Reichwald and Ghadouani [6], who identified a number of reasons why extreme shallow depth stimulates blooms of cyanobacteria, including warmer water, the concentration of nutrients in the reduced volume, stagnation, and greater nutrient transport from the lake sediments. We reached similar conclusions after studying the relationship between cyanobacteria blooms and water depth in seven central Florida lakes [7]. We recently found that in one of Florida's largest lakes, Lake Apopka, multi-year oscillations in depth were the major factor affecting TP, TN, Chl-a, and Secchi disk transparency (SD) in this lake over the period of time from 1999 to 2016 [8].…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 53%

“…As we discussed previously [8], it is likely that during shallow depth periods, the reduced lake volume concentrated nutrients, enhanced the relative effects nutrient mobilization by benthivorous fish, and resulted in a loss of cladoceran zooplankton due to intensified fish predation. Periods of extreme shallow depth also coincided with stagnation (little or no water movement into or out of the lake), and this further supports the development of cyanobacteria blooms that happened to coincide with the elevated TP and TN in the water column [7].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

“…Water exits the lake by evaporation and through a single man-made canal, which was constructed in the late 19th century. The canal connects Lake Apopka to a group of downstream lakes called the Harris Chain [7]. Typically, the water residence time of the lake is 2-6 years, but under extreme conditions can be as low as 1.6 or as high as 30 years [16].…”

Section: Description Of the Lakementioning

confidence: 99%

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Periods of Extreme Shallow Depth Hinder but Do Not Stop Long-Term Improvements of Water Quality in Lake Apopka, Florida (USA)

Havens

2019

Water

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We recently documented that during times of extreme shallow depth, there are severe effects on the water quality of one of the largest shallow lakes in the southeastern USA—Lake Apopka. During those times, total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN), chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) and toxic cyanobacteria blooms increase, and Secchi transparency (SD) declines. The lake recovers when water levels rise in subsequent years. In this paper, we determined whether extreme shallow depth events, particularly when they re-occur frequently, can stop the long-term recovery of a shallow eutrophic lake undergoing nutrient reduction programs. Apopka is an ideal location for this case study because the State of Florida has spent over 200 million USD in order to reduce the inputs of P to the lake, to build large filter marshes to treat the water, and to remove large quantities of benthivorous fish that contribute to internal P loading. We obtained data from 1985 to 2018, a period that had relatively stable water levels for nearly 15 years, and then three successive periods of extreme shallow depth, and we examined the long-term trends in TP, TN, Chl-a, and SD. There were significant decreasing trends in all of these water quality variables, and even though water quality deteriorated during periods of extreme shallow depth, and reduced the slope of the long-term trends, it did not stop the recovery. However, in the future, if climate change leads to more frequent shallow depth events, which in lakes such as Apopka, result in the concentration of water and nutrients, it is unclear whether the resilience we document here will continue, vs. the lake not responding to further nutrient input reductions.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 53%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

Section: Description Of the Lakementioning

confidence: 99%

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Periods of Extreme Shallow Depth Hinder but Do Not Stop Long-Term Improvements of Water Quality in Lake Apopka, Florida (USA)

Havens

2019

Water

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“…The peak biomass of cyanobacteria was much greater in years when the lakes were shallow and held a lower volume of water than in years with deeper water and greater volume. This phenomenon has been observed in many other shallow eutrophic lakes, and documented as a concentration of nutrients in the water column that subsequently stimulates algal growth in the warm water where depth does not present an issue for light limitation [6,11,12]. We could not discern any relationships between depth and the biomass of crustacean zooplankton; however, as predicted, there was an inverse relationship between cladoceran biomass and cyanobacteria biovolume, but no such relationships for cyclopoids and calanoids.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 41%

“…The lakes have residential development on their shorelines and water is periodically discharged from them to prevent flooding of lakeside property. Havens et al [12] showed that this management results in cutting off the top of hydrographs, with a plateau related to the maximal water level beyond which shoreline flooding would occur in each of the lakes. The watershed surrounding the lakes has many land uses.…”

Section: Description Of the Study Lakesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Response of Zooplankton to Climate Variability: Droughts Create a Perfect Storm for Cladocerans in Shallow Eutrophic Lakes

Havens

Beaver³

et al. 2017

Water

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Abstract:A major attribute of the Earth's climate that may be affected by global warming is the amplitude of variability in teleconnections. These global-scale processes involve links between oceanic conditions in one locale and weather in another, often distant, locale. An example is the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), which can affect rainfall and then the properties of lakes in Europe, Africa, North and South America. It affects rainfall, droughts and the depth of lakes in Florida, USA. It is predicted that the amplitude of variation in the ENSO will increase with global warming and, therefore, droughts will become more severe and periods of rain more intense. We investigated possible effects of climate on the zooplankton in shallow subtropical lakes by studying 16 years of monthly data from six shallow eutrophic lakes located north of Orlando, Florida. Results indicate that water depth and lake volume are tightly coupled with rainfall, as expected. During droughts, when lake depth and volume were greatly reduced, there were intensified cyanobacterial blooms, and the zooplankton shifted towards greater relative biomass of copepods compared to cladocerans. The change of zooplankton was likely due to the intensified selective fish predation in the reduced water volume, and/or selective adverse effects of cyanobacteria on cladocerans. The greatly reduced volume might lead to a 'perfect storm' of top-down and bottom-up factors that favor copepods over cladocerans. The mechanism needs further study. Regardless, this study documents a direct link between climate variability and zooplankton composition, and suggests how future changes in climate might affect plankton communities.

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A study of bioavailable phosphorus in the inflowing rivers of Lake Taihu, China

et al. 2019

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Phosphorus (P) is a vital nutrient for algal growth. Aside from soluble reactive P (SRP), organic P (OP) is used by algae via alkaline phosphatase (AP) hydrolysis, which can play an important role in supplying P. Enzymatically-hydrolysable OP (EHP) can potentially be used as an indicator of bioavailability of P other than SRP in natural waters. We investigated the ecological significance of alkaline phosphatase activity (APA), EHP concentration and P turnover time in the inflowing rivers of Lake Taihu (Taihu) during three hydrologic periods. Results indicated high SRP concentration and low SRP demand by algal suppressed APA in the inflowing rivers, the highest proportion of OP mineralization rate (v) to the maximum reaction velocity of AP (V max ) is only 14.7%. P turnover time of the inflowing rivers was generally from 3 to 7 days and in exceptional cases, it could exceed 10 days. The high EHP reserve and the sufficient AP for OP mineralization render the rivers a significant source of utilizable OP, further exacerbating eutrophication of Taihu.

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Dynamics of cyanobacteria blooms are linked to the hydrology of shallow Florida lakes and provide insight into possible impacts of climate change

Cited by 67 publications

References 38 publications

Periods of Extreme Shallow Depth Hinder but Do Not Stop Long-Term Improvements of Water Quality in Lake Apopka, Florida (USA)

Periods of Extreme Shallow Depth Hinder but Do Not Stop Long-Term Improvements of Water Quality in Lake Apopka, Florida (USA)

Response of Zooplankton to Climate Variability: Droughts Create a Perfect Storm for Cladocerans in Shallow Eutrophic Lakes

A study of bioavailable phosphorus in the inflowing rivers of Lake Taihu, China

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