Copepods as environmental indicator in lakes: special focus on changes in the proportion of calanoids along nutrient and pH gradients

Copepods are important contributors to the zooplankton community in lakes. Being “sandwiched” between predators and resources, they are sensitive to changes in the environment. It has been proposed that the proportion of calanoids of total copepod abundance or biomass could be a valuable indicator o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Aquatic ecology 2021-12, Vol.55 (4), p.1241-1252
Main Authors: Min, Cai, Johansson, Liselotte Sander, Søndergaard, Martin, Lauridsen, Torben L., Chen, Feizhou, Sh, Tserenpil, Jeppesen, Erik
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abundance
Aquatic crustaceans
Biomass
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll a
Depth
Depth indicators
Ecosystems
Environmental changes
Environmental factors
Environmental indicators
Eutrophication
Fresh water
Freshwater
Freshwater & Marine Ecology
Freshwater lakes
Hydrogen-ion concentration
Inland water environment
Lakes
Life Sciences
Mineral nutrients
Nutrients
pH effects
Phosphorus
Plankton
Predators
Trophic state
Water depth
Zooplankton
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Summary:Copepods are important contributors to the zooplankton community in lakes. Being “sandwiched” between predators and resources, they are sensitive to changes in the environment. It has been proposed that the proportion of calanoids of total copepod abundance or biomass could be a valuable indicator of eutrophication. We investigated relationships between environmental factors and the abundance, biomass and size of calanoid and cyclopoid copepods as well as their proportions in summer in 68 Danish freshwater lakes (587 lake years) with contrasting nutrient levels and pH. When lake pH was  2.5 m depth irrespective of nutrient level. Time series of the lakes, recovering from eutrophication, confirmed this multi-lake pattern although the trajectory varied from lake to lake. We conclude that the proportion of calanoids in terms of biomass might be a valuable indicator of trophic state in shallow but not deep lakes and only when pH > 6.
ISSN:1386-2588
1573-5125
DOI:10.1007/s10452-021-09877-y