The effects of dissolved organic carbon on pathways of energy flow, resource availability, and consumer biomass in nutrient-poor boreal lakes
Loading...
Date
2019-08-12
Authors
Tonin, Joseph
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Over the past few decades, terrestrially derived dissolved organic carbon (DOC) has been recognized as a fundamental driver of food web productivity in nutrient poor lakes. The mechanisms that underlie these effects remain poorly understood, particularly for higher trophic levels including zooplankton, benthic invertebrates, and fish. In a survey of eight lakes in northwestern Ontario, I determined consumer biomass and used stable isotopes of carbon, nitrogen, and hydrogen to investigate relationships between DOC and pathways of energy flow, resource and habitat availability, and consumer biomass. Using Bayesian stable isotope mixing models, I found that hypolimnetic phytoplankton were an important resource for zooplankton in low-DOC lakes. With increased DOC concentrations, light attenuation increased and chlorophyll a concentrations below the thermocline were reduced relative to epilimnetic concentrations. At higher DOC concentrations, zooplankton acquired proportionately more energy from low quality terrestrial sources. Zooplankton biomass also declined with increasing utilization of terrestrial sources (allochthony), suggesting that terrestrial organic matter suppresses zooplankton productivity through simultaneous limitations on habitat and resource availability and quality. Based on biomass, the dominant fish species across my study lakes was White Sucker (Catostomus commersonnii). Bayesian mixing models indicated that allochthony by White Suckers increased with DOC and that greater allochthony was related to lower White Sucker biomass measured as catch-per-unit-effort (bCPUE). Both White Sucker bCPUE and chironomid biomass were positively related to mean light irradiance, with the highest biomasses of fish and chironomids occurring in lakes with a higher proportion of their volume in the photic zone. White Sucker bCPUE was strongly and positively correlated with chironomid biomass, suggesting that DOC-mediated resource limitation may influence fish productivity via reduced prey availability.
Description
Keywords
DOC, Boreal lakes, Food webs, Stable isotopes, Fish, Zooplankton