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Primary Producers (primary + producers)
Selected AbstractsFood Industrialisation and Food Power: Implications for Food GovernanceDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 5-6 2003Tim Lang Food supply chains of developed countries industrialised in the second half of the twentieth century, with significant implications for developing countries over policy priorities, the ensuing external costs and the accompanying concentration of market power. Very powerful corporations dominate many sectors. Primary producers are locked into tight specifications and contracts. Consumers may benefit from cheaper food but there are quality implications and health externalities. As consumer confidence has been shaken, new quality agencies have been created. Tensions have emerged about the state's role as facilitator of industrial efficiencies. Food policy is thus torn between the pursuit of productivity and reduced prices and the demand for higher quality, with implications for both producers and consumers in the developing world. [source] Allometric scaling of maximum population density: a common rule for marine phytoplankton and terrestrial plantsECOLOGY LETTERS, Issue 5 2002Andrea Belgrano A primary goal of macroecology is to identify principles that apply across varied ecosystems and taxonomic groups. Here we show that the allometric relationship observed between maximum abundance and body size for terrestrial plants can be extended to predict maximum population densities of marine phytoplankton. These results imply that the abundance of primary producers is similarly constrained in terrestrial and marine systems by rates of energy supply as dictated by a common allometric scaling law. They also highlight the existence of general mechanisms linking rates of individual metabolism to emergent properties of ecosystems. [source] Basin geochemistry and isotopic ratios of fishes and basal production sources in four neotropical riversECOLOGY OF FRESHWATER FISH, Issue 3 2007David B. Jepsen Abstract,,, We analysed stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic ratios of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), plants, detritus and fishes to estimate the relative importance of dominant production sources supporting food webs of four Venezuelan rivers with divergent geochemical and watershed characteristics. Based on samples taken during the dry season at each site, fishes from two nutrient-poor, blackwater rivers had significantly lower ,13C values (mean = ,31.4, and ,32.9,) than fishes from more productive clearwater and whitewater rivers (mean = ,25.2, and ,25.6, respectively). Low carbon isotopic ratios of fishes from blackwaters were likely influenced by low ,13C of DIC assimilated by aquatic primary producers. Although floodplains of three savanna rivers supported high biomass of C4 grasses, relatively little carbon from this source appeared to be assimilated by fishes. Most fishes in each system assimilated carbon derived mostly from a combination of microalgae and C3 macrophytes, two sources with broadly overlapping carbon isotopic signatures. Even with this broad overlap, several benthivorous grazers from blackwater and whitewater rivers had isotopic values that aligned more closely with algae. We conclude that comparative stable isotopic studies of river biota need to account for watershed geochemistry that influences the isotopic composition of basal production sources. Moreover, isotopic differences between river basins can provide a basis for discriminating spatial and temporal variation in the trophic ecology of fishes that migrate between watersheds having distinct geochemical characteristics. [source] Use of stable isotope-labelled cells to identify active grazers of picocyanobacteria in ocean surface watersENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 2 2009Jorge Frias-Lopez Summary Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus are the two most abundant marine cyanobacteria. They represent a significant fraction of the total primary production of the world oceans and comprise a major fraction of the prey biomass available to phagotrophic protists. Despite relatively rapid growth rates, picocyanobacterial cell densities in open-ocean surface waters remain fairly constant, implying steady mortality due to viral infection and consumption by predators. There have been several studies on grazing by specific protists on Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus in culture, and of cell loss rates due to overall grazing in the field. However, the specific sources of mortality of these primary producers in the wild remain unknown. Here, we use a modification of the RNA stable isotope probing technique (RNA-SIP), which involves adding labelled cells to natural seawater, to identify active predators that are specifically consuming Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus in the surface waters of the Pacific Ocean. Four major groups were identified as having their 18S rRNA highly labelled: Prymnesiophyceae (Haptophyta), Dictyochophyceae (Stramenopiles), Bolidomonas (Stramenopiles) and Dinoflagellata (Alveolata). For the first three of these, the closest relative of the sequences identified was a photosynthetic organism, indicating the presence of mixotrophs among picocyanobacterial predators. We conclude that the use of RNA-SIP is a useful method to identity specific predators for picocyanobacteria in situ, and that the method could possibly be used to identify other bacterial predators important in the microbial food-web. [source] Bentazon triggers the promotion of oxidative damage in the Portuguese ricefield cyanobacterium Anabaena cylindrica: Response of the antioxidant systemENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY, Issue 5 2010Victor Galhano Abstract Rice fields are frequently exposed to environmental contamination by herbicides and cyanobacteria, as primary producers of these aquatic ecosystems, are adversely affected. Anabaena cylindrica is a cyanobacterium with a significantly widespread occurrence in Portuguese rice fields. This strain was studied throughout 72 h in laboratory conditions for its stress responses to sublethal concentrations (0.75,2 mM) of bentazon, a selective postemergence herbicide recommended for integrated weed management in rice, with special reference to oxidative stress, role of proline and intracellular antioxidant enzymes in herbicide-induced free radicals detoxification. Activities of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and glutathione S -transferase (GST) increased in a time- and herbicide dose-response manner and were higher than those in the control samples after 72 h. A time- and concentration-dependent increase of malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and the enhanced cell membrane leakage following bentazon exposure are indicative of lipid peroxidation, free radicals formation, and oxidative damage, while increased amounts of SOD, CAT, APX, GST, and proline indicated their involvement in free radical scavenging mechanisms. The appreciable decline in the reduced glutathione (GSH) pool after 72 h at higher bentazon concentrations could be explained by the reduction of the NADPH-dependent glutathione reductase (GR) activity. The obtained results suggested that the alterations of antioxidant systems in A. cylindrica might be useful biomarkers of bentazon exposure. As the toxic mechanism of bentazon is a complex phenomenon, this study also adds relevant findings to explain the oxidative stress pathways of bentazon promoting oxidative stress in cyanobacteria. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol, 2010. [source] QSARs for aromatic hydrocarbons at several trophic levelsENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY, Issue 2 2006Walter Di Marzio Abstract Quantitative structure,activity relationships (QSARs) with aromatic hydrocarbons were obtained. Biological response was measured by acute toxicity of several aquatic trophic levels. The chemicals assayed were benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, o -xylene, m -xylene, p -xylene, isopropylbenzene, n -propylbenzene, and butylbenzene. Acute toxicity tests were carried out with Scenedesmus quadricauda, as representative of primary producers; Daphnia spinulata, a zooplanctonic cladoceran; Hyalella curvispina, a benthic macroinvertebrate; and Bryconamericus iheringii, an omnivorous native fish. The EC50 or LC50 was calculated from analytical determinations of aromatic hydrocarbons. Nonlinear regression analysis between the logarithm of the octanol,water partition coefficient (log Kow) of each compounds and the toxicity end points was performed. QSARs were positively related to increases in log Kow at all trophic levels. Intertaxonomic differences were found in comparisons of algae with animals and of invertebrates with vertebrates. We observed that these differences were not significant with a log Kow higher than 3 for all organisms. Aromatic hydrocarbons with log Kow values of less than 3 showed different toxicity responses, with algae more resistant than fish and invertebrates. We concluded that this was a result of the narcotic mode of action related to liposolubility and the ability of the compound to reach its target site in the cell. The bioconcentration factor (BCF) achieved to start nonpolar narcosis fell almost 1 order of magnitude below the BCF expected from the log Kow. Predicted critical body residues for nonpolar narcosis ranged between 2 and 1 mM. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 21: 118,124, 2006. [source] Field assessments in conjunction with whole effluent toxicity testingENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY & CHEMISTRY, Issue 1 2000Thomas W. La Point Abstract Whole effluent toxicity (WET) tests are widely used to assess potential effects of wastewater discharges on aquatic life. This paper represents a summary of chapters in a 1996 Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry,sponsored workshop and a literature review concerning linkages between WET testing and associated field biomonitoring. Most published studies thus far focus primarily on benthic macroinvertebrates and on effluent-dominated stream systems in which effluents demonstrate little or no significant acute toxicity. Fewer studies examine WET test predictability in other aquatic ecosystems (e.g., wetlands, estuaries, large rivers) or deal with instream biota such as fish and primary producers. Published results indicate that standards for the usual WET freshwater test species, Ceriodaphnia dubia and Pimephales promelas, may not always protect most of the species inhabiting a receiving stream. Although WET tests are useful in predicting aquatic individual responses, they are not meant to directly measure natural population or community responses. Further, they do not address bioconcentration or bioaccumulation of hydrophobic compounds; do not assess eutrophication effects in receiving systems; and lastly, do not reflect genotoxic effects or function to test for endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Consequently, a more direct evaluation of ecosystem health, using bioassessment techniques, may be needed to properly evaluate aquatic systems affected by wastewater discharges. [source] Ecological effects of regime shifts in the Bering Sea and eastern North Pacific OceanFISH AND FISHERIES, Issue 2 2002Ashleen J Benson Abstract Large-scale shifts occurred in climatic and oceanic conditions in 1925, 1947, 1977, 1989 and possibly 1998. These shifts affected the mix and abundance of suites of coexisting species during each period of relative environmental stability,from primary producers to apex predators. However, the 1989 regime shift was not a simple reversal of the 1977 shift. The regime shifts occurred abruptly and were neither random variations nor simple reversals to the previous conditions. Timing of these anomalous environmental events in the North Pacific Ocean appears to be linked to physical and biological responses in other oceanic regions of the world. Changes in the atmospheric pressure can alter wind patterns that affect oceanic circulation and physical properties such as salinity and depth of the thermocline. This, in turn, affects primary and secondary production. Data from the North Pacific indicate that regime shifts can have opposite effects on species living in different domains, or can affect similar species living within a single domain in opposite ways. Climatic forcing appears to indirectly affect fish and marine mammal populations through changes in the distribution and abundance of their predators and prey. Effects of regime shifts on marine ecosystems are also manifested faster at lower trophic levels. Natural variability in the productivity of fish stocks in association with regime shifts indicates that new approaches to managing fisheries should incorporate climatic as well as fisheries effects. [source] The implications of solar UV radiation exposure for fish and fisheriesFISH AND FISHERIES, Issue 3 2001Horacio E Zagarese Abstract Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) possesses three important properties that combine to make it a potent environmental force. These include the potential to induce damage: UVR carries more energy per photon than any other wavelength reaching the Earth's surface. Such highly energetic photons are known to damage many biological molecules, such as DNA and proteins. In addition, they can initiate a series of redox reactions to form reactive oxygen species (ROS), which cause oxidative stress to cells and tissues. The second property is ubiquity: owing to their dependence on light, primary producers and most visual predators, such as fish, are also necessarily exposed to damaging levels of UVR. Thirdly, the combined effect of UVR and additional environmental factors may result in synergistic effects, such as the photoactivation of organic pollutants and photosensitisation. In natural environments, the concentration of dissolved organic matter (DOM) and habitat depth are the two main factors controlling the degree of UVR exposure experienced by fish. Additional factors include vegetation coverage, particulate materials in suspension, pH and hydrological characteristics, and site location (latitude, elevation). The range of potential effects on fish includes direct DNA damage resulting in embryo and larval mortality, and adult and juvenile sunburn, as well as indirect oxidative stress, phototoxicity and photosensitisation. [source] Stoichiometric relationships in vernal pond plankton communitiesFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 7 2008CARLA E. CÁCERES Summary 1. The light-nutrient hypothesis (LNH) predicts that changes in light supply can alter the balance of nutrient and energy limitation in primary producers. We tested this prediction by examining temporal changes in vernal forest ponds, which are highly dynamic systems with respect to seasonal change in light and nutrient supply. In three vernal ponds that differ in productivity, we measured changes in light, total and seston nitrogen and phosphorus, and seston carbon and chlorophyll during the spring, before and after tree leaf-out. We also quantified changes in the population dynamics of the major zooplankton grazers in these systems. 2. In each pond, nutrient levels increased and light levels declined, creating a temporal shift in light-nutrient supply to the plankton. Results generally supported predictions of stoichiometric theory and the LNH, but there were notable exceptions. 3. Seston C : N : P ratios rapidly changed in response to dramatic increases in N and P supply rates. However, seston N : P was typically lower than values for total N : P in the water. Furthermore, as predicted, we observed a decline in seston C : P as the light : nutrient ratio declined, but seston C : N simultaneously increased. These results suggest an unexpected shift towards potential nitrogen limitation. Alternatively, this change in nutrient ratios may be driven by a seasonal change in phytoplankton composition or nutritional mode. 4. Seston carbon concentrations remained stable despite seasonal changes in grazing intensity associated with the phenology of large-bodied Daphnia grazers. However, chlorophyll concentrations declined dramatically as the season progressed, resulting in a simultaneous decline in the C : Chlorophyll ratio of seston. Both pond shading and increased grazing probably contributed to the decline in chlorophyll. [source] Effects of increased temperature and nutrient enrichment on the stoichiometry of primary producers and consumers in temperate shallow lakesFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 7 2008M. VENTURA Summary 1. We studied the effects of increased water temperatures (0,4.5 °C) and nutrient enrichment on the stoichiometric composition of different primary producers (macrophytes, epiphytes, seston and sediment biofilm) and invertebrate consumers in 24 mesocosm ecosystems created to mimic shallow pond environments. The nutrient ratios of primary producers were used as indicative of relative nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P) limitation. We further used carbon stable isotopic composition (,13C) of the different primary producers to elucidate differences in the degree of CO2 limitation. 2. Epiphytes were the only primary producer with significantly higher ,13C in the enriched mesocosms. No temperature effects were observed in ,13C composition of any primary producer. Independently of the treatment effects, the four primary producers had different ,13C signatures indicative of differences in CO2 limitation. Seston had signatures indicating negligible or low CO2 limitation, followed by epiphytes and sediment biofilm, with moderate CO2 limitation, while macrophytes showed the strongest CO2 limitation. CO2 together with biomass of epiphytes were the key variables explaining between 50 and 70% of the variability in ,13C of the different primary producers, suggesting that epiphytes play an important role in carbon flow of temperate shallow lakes. 3. The ratio of carbon to chlorophyll a decreased with increasing temperature and enrichment in both epiphytes and seston. The effects of temperature were mainly attributed to changes in algal Chl a content, while the decrease with enrichment was probably a result of a higher proportion of algae in the seston and epiphytes. 4. Macrophytes, epiphytes and seston decreased their C : N with enrichment, probably as an adaptation to the different N availability levels. The C : N of epiphytes and Elodea canadensis decreased with increasing temperature in the control mesocosms. Sediment biofilm was the only primary producer with lower C : P and N : P with enrichment, probably as a result of higher P accumulation in the sediment. 5. Independently of nutrient level and increased temperature effects the four primary producers had significantly different stoichiometric compositions. Macrophytes had higher C : N and C : P and, together with epiphytes, also the highest N : P. Seston had no N or P limitation, while macrophytes and epiphytes may have been P limited in a few mesocosms. Sediment biofilm indicated strong N deficiency. 6. Consumers had strongly homeostatic stoichiometric compositions in comparison to primary producers, with weak or no significant treatment effects in any of the groups (insects, leeches, molluscs and crustaceans). Among consumers, predators had significantly higher N content and lower C : N than grazers. [source] Top-down control of phytoplankton: the role of time scale, lake depth and trophic stateFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 12 2002JÜrgen Benndorf SUMMARY 1.,One of the most controversial issues in biomanipulation research relates to the conditions required for top-down control to cascade down from piscivorous fish to phytoplankton. Numerous experiments have demonstrated that Phytoplankton biomass Top-Down Control (PTDC) occurs under the following conditions: (i) in short-term experiments, (ii) shallow lakes with macrophytes, and (iii) deep lakes of slightly eutrophic or mesotrophic state. Other experiments indicate that PTDC is unlikely in (iv) eutrophic or hypertrophic deep lakes unless severe light limitation occurs, and (v) all lakes characterised by extreme nutrient limitation (oligo to ultraoligotrophic lakes). 2.,Key factors responsible for PTDC under conditions (i) to (iii) are time scales preventing the development of slow-growing inedible phytoplankton (i), shallow depth allowing macrophytes to become dominant primary producers (ii), and biomanipulation-induced reduction of phosphorus (P) availability for phytoplankton (iii). 3.,Under conditions (iv) and (v), biomanipulation-induced reduction of P-availability might also occur but is insufficient to alter the epilimnetic P-content enough to initiate effective bottom-up control (P-limitation) of phytoplankton. In these cases, P-loading is much too high (iv) or P-content in the lake much too low (v) to initiate or enhance P-limitation of phytoplankton by a biomanipulation-induced reduction of P-availability. However, PTDC may exceptionally result under condition (iv) if high mixing depth and/or light attenuation cause severe light limitation of phytoplankton. 4.,Recognition of the five different conditions reconciles previous seemingly contradictory results from biomanipulation experiments and provides a sound basis for successful application of biomanipulation as a tool for water management. [source] Coevolution of metal availability and nitrogen assimilation in cyanobacteria and algaeGEOBIOLOGY, Issue 2 2009J. B. GLASS Marine primary producers adapted over eons to the changing chemistry of the oceans. Because a number of metalloenzymes are necessary for N assimilation, changes in the availability of transition metals posed a particular challenge to the supply of this critical nutrient that regulates marine biomass and productivity. Integrating recently developed geochemical, biochemical, and genetic evidence, we infer that the use of metals in N assimilation , particularly Fe and Mo , can be understood in terms of the history of metal availability through time. Anoxic, Fe-rich Archean oceans were conducive to the evolution of Fe-using enzymes that assimilate abiogenic and The N demands of an expanding biosphere were satisfied by the evolution of biological N2 fixation, possibly utilizing only Fe. Trace O2 in late Archean environments, and the eventual ,Great Oxidation Event'c. 2.3 Ga, mobilized metals such as Mo, enabling the evolution of Mo (or V)-based N2 fixation and the Mo-dependent enzymes for assimilation and denitrification by prokaryotes. However, the subsequent onset of deep-sea euxinia, an increasingly-accepted idea, may have kept ocean Mo inventories low and depressed Fe, limiting the rate of N2 fixation and the supply of fixed N. Eukaryotic ecosystems may have been particularly disadvantaged by N scarcity and the high Mo requirement of eukaryotic assimilation. Thorough ocean oxygenation in the Neoproterozoic led to Mo-rich oceans, possibly contributing to the proliferation of eukaryotes and thus the Cambrian explosion of metazoan life. These ideas can be tested by more intensive study of the metal requirements in N assimilation and the biological strategies for metal uptake, regulation, and storage. [source] Niches of the pre-photosynthetic biosphere and geologic preservation of Earth's earliest ecologyGEOBIOLOGY, Issue 2 2007NORMAN H. SLEEP ABSTRACT The tree of terrestrial life probably roots in non-photosynthetic microbes. Chemoautotrophs were the first primary producers, and the globally dominant niches in terms of primary productivity were determined by availability of carbon dioxide and hydrogen for methanogenesis and sulfite reduction. Methanogen niches were most abundant where CO2 -rich ocean water flowed through serpentinite. Black smoker vents from basalt supplied comparable amount of H2. Hydrogen from arc volcanoes supported a significant methanogenic niche at the Earth's surface. SO2 from arc volcanoes reacted with organic matter and hydrogen, providing a significant surface niche. Methane ascended to the upper atmosphere where photolysis produced C-rich haze and CO, and H escaped into space. The CO and C-rich haze supported secondary surface niches. None of these ecologies were bountiful; less than 1% of the CO2 vented by ridge axes, arcs, and metamorphism became organic matter before it was buried in carbonate. In contrast, a photosynthetic biosphere leaves copious amounts of organic carbon, locally concentrated in sediments. Black shales are a classic geologic biosignature for photosynthesis that can survive subduction and high-grade metamorphism. [source] A likely role for anoxygenic photosynthetic microbes in the formation of ancient stromatolitesGEOBIOLOGY, Issue 2 2007T. BOSAK ABSTRACT Although cyanobacteria are the dominant primary producers in modern stromatolites and other microbialites, the oldest stromatolites pre-date geochemical evidence for oxygenic photosynthesis and cyanobacteria in the rock record. As a step towards the development of laboratory models of stromatolite growth, we tested the potential of a metabolically ancient anoxygenic photosynthetic bacterium to build stromatolites. This organism, Rhodopseudomonas palustris, stimulates the precipitation of calcite in solutions already highly saturated with respect to calcium carbonate, and greatly facilitates the incorporation of carbonate grains into proto-lamina (i.e. crusts). The appreciable stimulation of the growth of proto-lamina by a nonfilamentous anoxygenic microbe suggests that similar microbes may have played a greater role in the formation of Archean stromatolites than previously assumed. [source] Benthic Invertebrates and Metabolism of West Carpathian (Slovakia) RiversINTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF HYDROBIOLOGY, Issue 3-4 2003Ferdinand, porka Abstract We examined benthic invertebrates and metabolism on the basis of the annual sampling of 9 types of running waters in the West Carpathians. Headwaters in general represent typical heterotrophic systems, except where they are high mountain streams, which are autotrophic. Lower down, the upper reaches of brooks are transition zones between heterotrophic and autotrophic systems. After the transition to an autotrophic system (which depends mainly on the primary producers) there is a considerable decrease in secondary production. Production is higher in the rivers of the Carpathian basin, as well as lower down the valley (submontane rivers and lower tributaries of submontane streams) where, within the autotrophic systems, there is a shift of metabolism from the bottom to the water column. The temperature days, altitude and slope of the stream and concentration of calcium influence production of macrozoobenthos. [source] Susceptibility of zoospores to UV radiation determines upper depth distribution limit of Arctic kelps: evidence through field experimentsJOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2006CHRISTIAN WIENCKE Summary 1The UV susceptibility of zoospores of the brown seaweeds Saccorhiza dermatodea, Alaria esculenta and Laminaria digitata (Laminariales) was determined in field experiments in June 2004 on Spitsbergen (78°55, N, 11°56, E). 2Freshly released zoospores were exposed for 1 or 2 days at various water depths to ambient solar radiation, ambient solar radiation depleted of UVB radiation (UVBR) and ambient solar radiation depleted of both UVBR and UVAR. Subsequently, germination rates were determined after exposure to favourable light and temperature conditions in the laboratory. 3The radiation regime was monitored at the water surface and in the water column using data loggers attached adjacent to each experimental platform for the duration of the field exposure. 4Under ambient solar radiation, the tolerance of zoospores to UVR was highest in the shallow water species S. dermatodea, intermediate in the upper to mid sublittoral A. esculenta and lowest in the upper to mid sublittoral L. digitata. There was, however, no difference in the susceptibility of the zoospores to ambient solar radiation or to solar radiation depleted of UVBR. 5The water column was relatively UV transparent, especially in the upper water layers. The 1% UVB depth ranged between 5.35 and 6.87 m, although on one stormy day the 1% UVB depth was only 3.57 m, indicating resuspension of sediments. 6Early developmental stages are most susceptible to environmental stress. Tolerance of zoospores to UVR is a major if not one of the most important factors determining the upper distribution limit of different Laminariales on the shore. 7Kelps are very important primary producers in inshore coastal ecosystems, serving as food for herbivores and as habitat for many organisms. Enhanced UVBR due to stratospheric ozone depletion may lead to changes in the depth distribution of kelps and may cause significant ecological domino effects. [source] Variability in the carbon isotope signature of Prochilodus lineatus (Prochilodontidae, Characiformes) a bottom-feeding fish of the Neotropical regionJOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY, Issue 6 2007C. A. Lopes The spatial and seasonal variability of stable carbon isotopes in detritivorous Prochilodus lineatus, primary producers and particulate organic carbon (POC) were examined to promote a better understanding of the trophic dynamics of food webs in Neotropical ecosystems. Spatial variability in carbon isotope composition in the species showed a decreasing gradient in the Upper Paraná River system, from the Paraná River and Itaipu Reservoir subsystems to the Baía and Ivinheima subsystems. Fish ,13C followed the isotopic trend of POC along the Paraná River and Baía subsystem. Seasonal differences were not observed in fish. The analysis of percentile contribution of C3 and C4 sources in the species diet revealed the predominance of C3 plants (phytoplanktonic and periphytic algae and riparian vegetation) in most of the analysed subsystems and seasons. Nevertheless, the considerable participation of riparian vegetation was verified, especially in the Ivinheima subsystem in the dry season. C4 macrophytes presented a maximum contribution along the Upper Paraná River. These results demonstrate the existence of specific variability for the consumer and their food sources in different environments of the same ecosystem. [source] UPTAKE AND RELEASE OF NITROGEN BY THE MACROALGAE GRACILARIA VERMICULOPHYLLA (RHODOPHYTA),JOURNAL OF PHYCOLOGY, Issue 3 2006Anna Christina Tyler Macroalgae, often the dominant primary producers in shallow estuaries, can be important regulators of nitrogen (N) cycling. Like phytoplankton, actively growing macroalgae release N to the water column; yet little is known about the quantity or nature of this release. Using 15N labeling in laboratory and field experiments, we estimated the quantity of N released relative to assimilation and gross uptake by Gracilaria vermiculophylla (Ohmi) Papenfuss (Rhodophyta, Gracilariales), a non-native macroalgae. Field experiments were carried out in Hog Island Bay, a shallow back-barrier lagoon on the Virginia coast where G. vermiculophylla makes up 85%,90% of the biomass. There was good agreement between laboratory and field measurements of N uptake and release. Daily N assimilation in field experiments (32.3±7.2 ,mol N·g dw,1·d,1) was correlated with seasonal and local N availability. The average rate of N release across all sites and dates (65.8±11.6 ,mol N·g dw,1·d,1) was 67% of gross daily uptake, and also varied among sites and seasons (range=33%,99%). Release was highest when growth rates and nutrient availability were low, possibly due to senescence during these periods. During summer biomass peaks, estimated N release from macroalgal mats was as high as 17 mmol N·m,2·d,1. Our results suggest that most estimates of macroalgal N uptake severely underestimate gross N uptake and that N is taken up, transformed, and released to the water column on short time scales (minutes,hours). [source] Carbon source accounting for fish using combined DNA and stable isotope analyses in a regulated lowland river weir poolMOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2010CHRISTOPHER M. HARDY Abstract Determining the source and flow of carbon, energy and nutrients through food webs is essential for understanding ecological connectivity and thus determining the impact of management practices on biodiversity. We combined DNA sequencing, microarrays and stable isotope analyses to test whether this approach would allow us to resolve the carbon flows through food webs in a weir pool on the lower Murray River, a highly impacted, complex and regulated ecosystem in southern Australia. We demonstrate that small fish in the Murray River consume a wide range of food items, but that a significant component of carbon and nitrogen entering the food web during dry periods in summer, but not spring, is derived from nonconventional sources other than in-channel primary producers. This study also showed that isotopic analyses alone cannot distinguish food sources and that a combined approach is better able to elucidate food-consumer dynamics. Our results highlight that a major river ecosystem, stressed by reduced environmental flows, can rapidly undergo significant and previously undetected changes that impact on the ecology of the system as a whole. [source] Top-down and bottom-up control in an eelgrass,epiphyte systemOIKOS, Issue 5 2008Sybill Jaschinski Nutrient supply and the presence of grazers can control primary producers in aquatic ecosystems, but the relative importance of bottom-up and top-down effects remains inconclusive. We conducted a mesocosm experiment and a field study to investigate the independent and interactive effects of nutrient enrichment and grazing on primary producers in an eelgrass bed Zostera marina. Nutrient treatments consisted of ambient or enriched (2× and 4× ambient) concentrations of inorganic nitrogen and phosphate. Grazer treatments consisted of presence or absence of field densities of the common isopod Idotea baltica. We found strong and interacting effects of nutrients and grazing on epiphytes. Epiphyte biomass and productivity were enhanced by nutrient enrichment and decreased in the presence of grazers. The absolute amount of epiphyte biomass consumed by grazers increased under high nutrient supply, and thus, nutrient effects were stronger in the absence of grazing. The effects of grazers and fertilisation on epiphyte composition were antagonistic: chain-forming diatoms and filamentous algae profited from nutrient enrichment, but their proportions were reduced by grazing. Eelgrass growth was positively affected by grazing and by nutrient enrichment at moderate nutrient concentrations. High nutrient supply reduced eelgrass productivity compared to moderate nutrient conditions. The monthly measured field data showed a nitrogen limitation for epiphytes and eelgrass in summer, which may explain the positive effect of nutrient enrichment on both primary producers. Generally, the field data suggested the possibility of seasonally varying importance of bottom-up and top-down control on primary producers in this eelgrass system. [source] Allochtonous input and trophic level heterogeneity: impact on an aquatic food webOIKOS, Issue 1 2006J. Lövgren The impact of food web complexity in open and closed food webs was explored experimentally under controlled laboratory conditions. We used an aquatic model community consisting of two forms of primary producers, phytoplankton (Scenedesmus obtusiuscusculus) and periphyton (Nitzschia perminuta) and two types of consumers, Daphnia pulex feeding on phytoplankton and Chydorous sphaericus feeding on both periphyton and phytoplankton. Three different food webs all having the phytoplankton and periphyton, but having either one of the consumers or both were set up. These food webs were studied in an open and closed treatment. In the open treatment, phytoplankton was continuously flowing through the aquaria whereas in the closed system all the phytoplankton was delivered at the start of the experiment. D. pulex had a positive effect on the density of C. sphaericus in both the open and closed treatments. In the open treatment C. sphaericus increased to very high numbers and was able to depress phytoplankton and thereby negatively affect D. pulex. Our study shows that the explicit handling of the population dynamics of both grazers allowed us to show how a compensatory increase in one primary producer due to increased grazing on another primary producer creates a negative feedback between consumers: C. sphaericus increased and negatively affected D. pulex. [source] An ecosystem modelling approach to deriving viable harvest strategies for multispecies management of the Northern Gulf of CaliforniaAQUATIC CONSERVATION: MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS, Issue 4 2009Diego Lercari Abstract 1.An ecosystem analysis was developed focusing on resource exploitation and biodiversity conservation for the Northern Gulf of California. The main tools employed were a trophic ecosystem model and time dynamic simulations. 2.The ecosystem was represented by an Ecopath model that included 34 functional groups, from primary producers to top predators. It included relevant species in the area such as commercially important shrimp (e.g. Litopenaeus stylirostris) and highly endangered species (Phocoena sinus and Totoaba macdonaldi). 3.Temporal simulations of changing fishing effort allowed the evaluation of fishing impact on the ecosystem components and, particularly, on protected species. Formal optimization methods were applied with the purpose of searching viable temporal patterns of fishing effort that might minimize social, economic and conservationist conflicts in the area. 4.The results of those simulations showed the capability of the model to represent reference temporal series of relative biomass. The search for viable fishing strategies resulted in effort allocation consistent with those proposed by other studies; that is, a decrease in the industrial shrimp fleet (35,65%), a decrease in the gillnet fishing fleet (52,57%), and an increase of the artisanal shrimp fishery (63,222%). 5.The main conflicts in the Northern Gulf of California seem to take place between social and conservation interests, while the economic and ecological benefits seem to be relatively independent. The next steps towards conflict resolution and ecosystem management should consider the design and operation of MPAs already established in the region. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Use of a ,13C,,15N relationship to determine animal trophic positions in a tropical Australian estuarine wetlandAUSTRAL ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2010KÁTYA ABRANTES Abstract Stable isotope composition of organisms from different trophic groups collected from a semi-isolated wetland pool in the Ross River estuary, northern Australia, was analysed to determine if there was a consistent relationship between ,13C, ,15N and trophic level that could be used to assign trophic positions. A strong linear negative relationship between ,13C and ,15N was detected for the three trophic levels considered (primary producers, primary consumers and secondary consumers). This relationship was consistent among trophic levels, differing only in height, that is, on ,15N values, which indicate trophic positions. A difference of 3.6,3.8, between trophic levels was present, suggesting a ,15N fractionation of approximately 3.7,, a value slightly higher than the commonly assumed ,15N fractionation of approximately 3.4,. The relationship between ,13C and ,15N was similar for invertebrate and fish primary consumers, indicating similar ,15N trophic fractionation for both groups, meaning trophic positions and trophic length could be reliably calculated based on either invertebrates or fish. [source] Sources and bioavailability of phosphorus fractions in freshwaters: a British perspectiveBIOLOGICAL REVIEWS, Issue 1 2001C. S. REYNOLDS ABSTRACT This paper seeks a perspective on the forms of phosphorus which promote aquatic eutrophication, with the particular quest of establishing their sources. A short background traces the development of understanding of nutrient enrichment and the suppositions about the relative contributions of agriculture, sewage and detergent residues. Most aquatic systems, and their primary producers, are naturally deficient in biologically-available phosphorus. Aquatic plants have evolved very efficient phosphorus uptake mechanisms. The biomass responses to an increase in the supply of phosphorus are stoichiometrically predictable. The most bioavailable forms of phosphorus are in solution, as orthophosphate ions, or are readily soluble or elutable from loose combinations. Ready bioavailability coincides well with what is measurable as molybdate-reactive (MRP) or soluble-reactive phosphorus (SRP). Most other forms, including phosphates of the alkaline earth metals, aluminium and iron are scarcely available at all. Orthophosphate ions sorbed to metal oxides and hydroxides are normally not biologically available either, except through weak dissociation (,desorption'). The production of alkaline phosphatase provides organisms with an additional mechanism for accelerating the sequestration of phosphate from organic compounds. Bioavailable phosphate is liberated when redox- or alkali-sensitive metal hydroxides dissolve but these processes are minor contributors to the biological responses to nutrient enrichment. Most of the familiar eutrophication is attributable to the widespread application of secondary sewage treatment methods to the wastes emanating from a burgeoning and increasingly urbanised human population. The use of polyphosphate-based detergents, now in decline, has contributed to the problem. In aquatic systems, the additional phosphorus raises the biological supportive capacity, sometimes to the capacity of the next limiting factor (carbon, light, hydraulic retention or of another nutrient). At high orthophosphate loadings, the straight stoichiometric yield relationship between biomass yield and phosphorus availability is lost. Movements of phosphorus and its recycling within aquatic systems do not prevent the slow gravitation of phosphorus to the bottom substrata. The phosphorus retentivity of sediments depends upon their chemical composition. While oxide-hydroxide binding capacity in the surface sediments persists, they act as a sink for phosphorus and a control on further cycling. Iron-rich and clay-rich sediments perform best in these conditions; calcareous sediments least so. Eutrophication may lead to the exhaustion of sediment P-binding capacity. Non-sorbed phosphate is readily recyclable if primary producers have access to it. Recycling is most rapid in shallow waters (where sediment disturbance, by flow, by wind action and through bioturbation, is frequent) and least in deep ventilated sediments. The contributions of phosphorus from catchments are assessed. The slow rate of weathering of (mostly apatitic) minerals, the role of chemical binding in soils and the incorporation and retentivity by forested terrestrial ecosystems each contribute to the minimisation of phosphorus leakage to drainage waters. Palaeolimnological and experimental evidence confirms that clearance of land and ploughing its surface weakens the phosphorus retentivity of catchments. The phosphorus transferred from arable land to drainage remains dominated by sorbed fractions which are scarcely bioavailable. Some forms of intensive market gardening or concentrated stock rearing may mobilise phosphates to drainage but it is deduced that drainage from agricultural land is not commonly a major source of readily bioavailable phosphorus in water. Careful budgeting of the phosphates in run-off from over-fertilised soils may nevertheless show that a proportionately small loss of bioavailable phosphorus can still be highly significant in promoting aquatic plant production. The bioavailable-phosphorus (BAP) load achieving the OECD threshold of lake eutrophy (35 mg P m,3) is calculated to be equivalent to a terrestrial loss rate of approximately 17.5 kg BAP km,2 year,1), or only 1,2% of a typical fertiliser application. The output is shown to be comparable with the P yield from secondary treatment of the sewage produced by a resident population of 30,44 persons km,2. With tertiary treatment, the equivalence is with approximately 200 persons km,2. [source] | |||||||||||||