Nutrient Dynamics

1) What are limiting nutrients? 2) Why is the study of phosphorus so important in limnology?

3) Which species of algae are capable of nitrogen fixation?

Resourcesconsumable environmental factors needed for growth and survival

A shortage of one or more resources results in a reduction in growth rate

A shortage of one or more resources leads to competition for that resource

What resources do algae need to grow??

Lightfor photosynthesis
Carbonfor photosynthesis

PhosphorusATP etc.
Nitrogenamino acids

Silicaonly for diatoms and some chrysophytes

Other elementsK, Mg, Ca, Na, Cl, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, B, Mo, etc.

Leibigs Law of the Minimum

The yield of any organism will be determined by the abundance of the substance that is least abundant in the environment

This concept has to consider the needs of the organism

What nutrient is most limiting?

Depends on the species e.g., silica is never most limiting for green algae but can be for diatoms Depends on the time of year... Physical limnology influences nutrient availability Depends on the community composition... Species vary in the ability to consume resources

Depends on the input from the watershed

The phytoplankton of many lakes are P limited (will talk about evidence for this in cultural eutrophication) P is vital to life (ATP, phospholipid membranes, etc.)

Has no gaseous form (no exchange with atmosphere) Enters lake in dissolved or particulate form

The amount of P in phytoplankton influences the food quality for zooplankton

Several forms of P Main form of inorganic P is orthophosphate PO4 Most P in freshwater (> 98%) is organic phosphates (particulate P) Regression coefficients as high as 0.9 have been reported

Log Chla

Log TP Limnologists separate P into several forms, based mainly on analytical protocol instead of the metabolism of P

Lake Water Whole water acid digestion (TP)

Filter onto 0.45 mm or smaller membrane

What is left on the filter goes through an acid digestion (PP)

TPTotal phosphorus PP + DP all forms, inorganic and organic

Filtrate (DP)

PPParticulate phosphorus Phosphorus in an organism Mineral phases of rock and soil to which P is adsorbed clay, carbonates, ferric hydroxides--Fe(OH)3 DPDissolved phosphorus Orthophosphate the form that algae need Polyphosphatefrom synthetic detergents Organic colloids Other labile phosphorus compounds (e.g., HPO42-, H2PO4)

What are the sources of P in the epilimnion?

The watershed weathering of rocks human additions

Excretion by fish and zooplankton

What happens to P once it enters a lake? Hutchinson and Bowen 1950

32P0 4

Linsley Pond (12 m deep)

What happens to P once it enters a lake?

Linsley Pond (12 m deep)

Within hours, some 32P appeared in the hypolimnion

32P0

uptake

eaten

Loss due to sinking

Fecal pellets

Phosphorus cycling in the epilimnion: PO4 0.21% PP 98.5% 0.13% 1.16% Colloids of large organic molecules

Loss by sinking

Small dissolved organic molecules

Loss by sinking

Once the P is in the hypolimnion, it is there until the lake circulates again in the fall

During stratification, there is a net movement of P from the epilimnion to the hypolimnion by sedimentation of PP

P can also be stored in the sediments, bound to iron

Dissolved iron (Fe3+) in the water and sediments can bind to P and create an insoluble precipitate
PP >95% P O <
4

<

< 3 %

Fe+++ PO43Fe(OH)3 PO43PO43-

Called the iron trap, and happens only when the hypolimnion contains oxygen

As the hypolimnion becomes anoxic, Fe+++ gains an electron and is reduced to Fe++

Fe+++ Fe+++ PO43Fe++ Fe(OH)3 PO43-

Fe(OH)2

Fe++ forms soluble salts with PO4

Under anoxic conditions get net flux of P out of the sediments

This is called internal loading and increases P concentrations in the water column at turnover

Nitrogen can also limit the growth of phytoplankton Most common inorganic forms of N NH4+- ammonium (harmless, useful) (Do not confuse with NH3ammoniatoxic) NO2- - nitrite

NO3 nitrate
N2 elemental Nitrogen (gas or dissolved) ORGANIC FORMS PONparticulate organic nitrogen (N in organisms) DONdissolved organic nitrogen

The nitrogen cycle is controlled largely by chemical transformations mediated by organisms.

Not all forms of N can be used by algae

NH4+ is preferred NO2- NO3- are also used, but have to be reduced, which is energetically expensive. N2 can only be used by some cyanobacteria and bacteria

Nitrogen Fixation
Requires enzyme nitrogenaseonly in cyanobacteria and bacteria N2 NH4+

Anaerobic process
Since blue-greens are often only abundant in summer, contribution of nitrogen fixation to N cycle is seasonal Requires a lot of energy

N2 fixation is an anaerobic procedure, but see it in the aerobic epilimnionhow does this happen??

Specialized cells call heterocysts Prevent diffusion of oxygen, but allow diffusion of nitrogen

Growth of some algae can be limited by Silica

Taken up mainly by diatoms, and sinks out of epilimnion when they die or are eaten because the Si is excreted in particulate form

Si cycle strongly tied to mixing patterns

Concepts to Know
What nutrients most often limit phytoplankton growth?

Why is Chla often used as a surrogate for TP?

How will productivity and mixing pattern of a lake influence P cycling? What is internal loading? What is nitrogen fixation?

Below are the mid-summer oxygen profiles for two lakes of similar surface area in southern Michigan. Which lake is likely to have will have more P in the water column during fall turnover? Why (give at least 2 reasons for your answer)?
Oxygen (m g/L)
0 0 1 2 3 2 4 6 8 10 12

Depth (m)

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Little Long Little M ill