Abiotic factors driving cyanobacterial biomass and composition under perennial bloom conditions in tropical latitudes

While warming and eutrophication have increased the frequency and magnitude of harmful cyanobacterial blooms globally, the scenario for many eutrophic tropical freshwaters is a perennial year-round bloom. Yet, the drivers of persistent blooms are less understood when conditions such as light, temper...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Hydrobiologia 2021-02, Vol.848 (4), p.943-960
Main Authors: Vanderley, Rayane F., Ger, Kemal A., Becker, Vanessa, Bezerra, Maria Gabriela T. A., Panosso, Renata
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abiotic factors
Artificial lakes
Biomass
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Blooms
Composition
Cyanobacteria
Dominance
Drought
Droughts
Ecology
Ecosystem components
Eutrophication
Fresh water
Freshwater & Marine Ecology
Lakes
Life Sciences
Microcystis
Nutrients
Phosphorus
Phytoplankton
Primary Research Paper
Raphidiopsis
Temperature
Tropical climate
Water levels
Water transparency
Zoology
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Summary:While warming and eutrophication have increased the frequency and magnitude of harmful cyanobacterial blooms globally, the scenario for many eutrophic tropical freshwaters is a perennial year-round bloom. Yet, the drivers of persistent blooms are less understood when conditions such as light, temperature, and nutrients favor cyanobacteria growth year-round, and especially in regions facing recurrent periods of drought. In order to understand the drivers of cyanobacteria dominance, we assessed the abiotic conditions related to the abundance and dominance of the two dominant bloom-forming genera Raphidiopsis and Microcystis , in six shallow, man-made lakes located in the semiarid Northeastern region of Brazil during a prolonged regional drought. Lower water level corresponded to increased phosphorous and nitrogen concentration and, consequently, phytoplankton biomass. Cyanobacterial biomass was also proportional to phosphorus concentrations during year-round blooms. Yet, the two dominant cyanobacterial genera, Raphidiopsis and Microcystis, seldom co-occurred temporally and the switch between them was driven by water transparency. Our results illustrate the effects of drought induced water level reductions on the biomass and composition of cyanobacterial blooms in tropical shallow man-made lakes. Given the ideal year-round conditions (i.e., high light and temperature), droughts may be expected to intensify the risk and multitude of problems associated with eutrophication.
ISSN:0018-8158
1573-5117
DOI:10.1007/s10750-020-04504-7