Phytoplankton primary productivity seasonality and changes in a small African lake, Lake Hora-Kilole, Ethiopia

The seasonality of primary productivity by phytoplankton in relation to physico-chemical and biological variables was studied in Lake Hora-Kilole from August 2007 to May 2008. In 1989, the Mojo River was temporarily diverted to flow into the lake, which substantially changed its physico-chemical con...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:African journal of aquatic science 2017-10, Vol.42 (3), p.259-269
Main Authors: Abate, R, Kifle, D, Gao, YH
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Ammonia
Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll a
Composition
Diversion
environmental variables
Lakes
Phosphorus
Photosynthesis
Phytoplankton
phytoplankton abundance
Plankton
Primary production
Productivity
River water
Rivers
seasonal dynamics
Seasonal variations
Seasonality
zooplankton
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The seasonality of primary productivity by phytoplankton in relation to physico-chemical and biological variables was studied in Lake Hora-Kilole from August 2007 to May 2008. In 1989, the Mojo River was temporarily diverted to flow into the lake, which substantially changed its physico-chemical conditions and the composition of the phytoplankton. Primary productivity was controlled primarily by soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), ammonia (NH 3 ), temperature and euphotic depth (Z eu ). The light-saturated rate of photosynthesis (A max ) varied from 370 to 3 843 mg O 2 m −3 h −1 with the maximum value corresponding to the seasonal maximum of phytoplankton biomass. Compared to the period before the diversion of the river, A max was reduced by more than ninety-fold in early 1990s and by less than five-fold in 2007 and 2008. Similarly, average phytoplankton chlorophyll a was reduced by more than 2.5 × in the early 1990s and to less than 50% in 2007 and 2008. This highlights the importance of the diversion river water on the physico-chemical and biological environment of the lake.
ISSN:1608-5914
1727-9364
DOI:10.2989/16085914.2017.1361712