Benthic algal production across lake size gradients: interactions among morphometry, nutrients, and light

Attached algae play a minor role in conceptual and empirical models of lake ecosystem function but paradoxically form the energetic base of food webs that support a wide variety of fishes. To explore the apparent mismatch between perceived limits on contributions of periphyton to whole-lake primary production and its importance to consumers, we modeled the contribution of periphyton to whole-ecosystem primary production across lake size, shape, and nutrient gradients. The distribution of available benthic habitat for periphyton is influenced by the ratio of mean depth to maximum depth (DR = z/ z(max)). We modeled total phytoplankton production from water-column nutrient availability, z, and light. Periphyton production was a function of light-saturated photosynthesis (BPmax) and light availability at depth. The model demonstrated that depth ratio (DR) and light attenuation strongly determined the maximum possible contribution of benthic algae to lake production, and the benthic proportion of whole-lake primary production (BPf) declined with increasing nutrients. Shallow lakes (z < or =5 m) were insensitive to DR and were dominated by either benthic or pelagic primary productivity depending on trophic status. Moderately deep oligotrophic lakes had substantial contributions by benthic primary productivity at low depth ratios and when maximum benthic photosynthesis was moderate or high. Extremely large, deep lakes always had low fractional contributions of benthic primary production. An analysis of the world's largest lakes showed that the shapes of natural lakes shift increasingly toward lower depth ratios with increasing depth, maximizing the potential importance of littoral primary production in large-lake food webs. The repeatedly demonstrated importance of periphyton to lake food webs may reflect the combination of low depth ratios and high light penetration characteristic of large, oligotrophic lakes that in turn lead to substantial contributions of periphyton to autochthonous production.     

A 200-year perspective on alternative stable state theory and lake management from a biomanipulated shallow lake

Multiple stressors to a shallow lake ecosystem have the ability to control the relative stability of alternative states (clear, macrophyte-dominated or turbid, algal-dominated). As a consequence, the use of remedial biomanipulations to induce trophic cascades and shift a turbid lake to a clear state is often only a temporary solution. Here we show the instability of short-term manipulations in the shallow Lake Christina (Minnesota, USA) is governed by the long-term state following a regime shift in the lake. During the modern, managed period of the lake, three top-down manipulations (fish kills) were undertaken inducing temporary (5-10 years) unstable clear-water states. Paleoecological remains of diatoms, along with proxies of primary production (total chlorophyll a and total organic carbon accumulation rate) and trophic state (total P) from sediment records clearly show a single regime shift in the lake during the early 1950s; following this shift, the functioning of the lake ecosystem is dominated by a persistent turbid state. We find that multiple stressors contributed to the regime shift. First, the lake began to eutrophy (from agricultural land use and/or increased waterfowl populations), leading to a dramatic increase in primary production. Soon after, the construction of a dam in 1936 effectively doubled the depth of the lake, compounded by increases in regional humidity; this resulted in an increase in planktivorous and benthivorous fish reducing phytoplankton grazers. These factors further conspired to increase the stability of a turbid regime during the modern managed period, such that switches to a clear-water state were inherently unstable and the lake consistently returned to a turbid state. We conclude that while top-down manipulations have had measurable impacts on the lake state, they have not been effective in providing a return to an ecosystem similar to the stable historical period. Our work offers an example of a well-studied ecosystem forced by multiple stressors into a new long-term managed period, where manipulated clear-water states are temporary, managed features.     

罗非鱼-附着藻-沉水植物相互关系研究进展

在浅水富营养化湖泊中,沉水植被是决定湖泊清水态或混水态的关键因子。而附着藻对沉水植物强烈的遮阴作用以及对碳源、营养盐等资源强烈的竞争,成为限制沉水植物群落生长和发展的关键因子。罗非鱼作为一种杂食性鱼类,具有牧食附着藻的能力,其下行效应（top-down effect）可以在一定程度上减轻附着藻对沉水植物生长的这种不利影响。因此,作为我国南方水体中的优势种类,适当种群密度的罗非鱼在富营养化浅水湖泊生态修复过程中是可加以利用,并在一定程度上抑制了附着藻的生长和发展,有利于浅水湖泊的生态修复和管理。同时,罗非鱼也具有通过摄食、排泄等活动加速水体氮、磷营养盐再生,牧食浮游动物、沉水植物等不利的一面。因此,在综合考虑多种因素条件下,需要对罗非鱼-附着藻-沉水植物三者之间的相互关系进行深入研究,探讨生态系统对罗非鱼的响应,这对我国南方浅水富营养化湖泊的生态恢复与管理,尤其是沉水植被的重建与保护具有重要的理论意义和实践价值。     

Estimating the critical phosphorus loading of shallow lakes with the ecosystem model PCLake: Sensitivity, calibration and uncertainty

There is a vast body of knowledge that eutrophication of lakes may cause algal blooms. Among lakes, shallow lakes are peculiar systems in that they typically can be in one of two contrasting (equilibrium) states that are self-stabilizing: a ‘clear’ state with submerged macrophytes or a ‘turbid’ state dominated by phytoplankton. Eutrophication may cause a switch from the clear to the turbid state, if the P loading exceeds a critical value. The ecological processes governing this switch are covered by the ecosystem model PCLake, a dynamic model of nutrient cycling and the biota in shallow lakes. Here we present an extensive analysis of the model, using a three-step procedure. (1) A sensitivity analysis revealed the key parameters for the model output. (2) These parameters were calibrated on the combined data on total phosphorus, chlorophyll-a, macrophytes cover and Secchi depth in over 40 lakes. This was done by a Bayesian procedure, giving a weight to each parameter setting based on its likelihood. (3) These weights were used for an uncertainty analysis, applied to the switchpoints (critical phosphorus loading levels) calculated by the model. The model was most sensitive to changes in water depth, P and N loading, retention time and lake size as external input factors, and to zooplankton growth rate, settling rates and maximum growth rates of phytoplankton and macrophytes as process parameters. The results for the ‘best run’ showed an acceptable agreement between model and data and classified nearly all lakes to which the model was applied correctly as either ‘clear’ (macrophyte-dominated) or ‘turbid’ (phytoplankton-dominated). The critical loading levels for a standard lake showed about a factor two uncertainty due to the variation in the posterior parameter distribution. This study calculates in one coherent analysis uncertainties in critical phosphorus loading, a parameter that is of great importance to water quality managers.     

青海尕海盐湖初级生产力特点

１９９７ 年夏季对青海尕海盐湖的生态系统进行了初步研究． 初级生产力研究结果表明：（１） 水域毛初级产氧量平均值为３ ．２７３ｇ ｍ －２ｄ－１ ,其中底栖藻类占７０．９９％ ,底栖藻类单位面积毛初级生产力是浮游植物的２．４５倍．（２） 水域初级生产力构成格局为：由沿岸到湖心区,随着水深的逐步增大,底栖藻类初级生产力逐步减少,浮游植物初级生产力逐渐占主导地位． 前者所占的比例在０．５５ ｍ 水深时为９７．７２ ％ ,在大于１３．０ ｍ 水深后即降至０．０ ％ ．（３）与国际有关文献相比,尕海盐湖初级生产力较低     

Macrozoobenthic assemblages in relation to environments of the Yangtze-isolated lakes

Eutrophication can shift lakes from a clear, macrophyte-dominated state to a turbid, algae-dominated state, and different habitat condition supports different fauna. Macrozoobenthos are good indicators of water environment, and studies on macrozoobenthic assemblage characteristics can help us to know which state a lake is in, thus provide the basis for its eutrophication control. In this study, a systematic investigation on macrozoobenthos was conducted in 17 Yangtze-isolated lakes to explore the macroecological laws of macrozoobenthic assemblages. Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) revealed that variance of benthic assemblage structure occurred in two types of lakes. In macrophytic lakes, altogether 51 taxa of macrozoobenthos were identified. The average density and biomass of total macrozoobenthos were 2231 individuals·m^?2 and 1.69 g dry weight·m^?2, respectively. Macrozoobenthic assemblage was characterized by dominance of scrapers (i.e. gastropods). In algal lakes, altogether 20 taxa of macrozoobenthos were identified. The average density and biomass of total macrozoobenthos were 2814 individuals·m^?2 and 1.38 g dry weight·m^?2, respectively. Macrozoobenthic assemblage was characterized by dominance of collector-gatherers (i.e. oligochaetes). Wet biomass of submersed macrophytes (B _Mac) and phytoplankton chlorophyll a concentration (Chl a) were demonstrated as the key factor structuring macrozoobenthic assemblages in macrophytic and algal lakes, respectively.     

草、藻型湖泊水体生态及理化特性的实验对比

2006年9月,根据营养水平和种植水草的差异设计了6个浅水湖泊模拟系统,实验用水草为菹草(Potamogeton crispusLinn.)和马来眼子菜(Potamogeton malaianus-Miq).在15个月实验期间,通过多次监测各系统的景观外貌和水质,对草、藻型湖泊生态及理化特性的差异进行研究,得出以下结论:(1)草、藻型系统分别对应清水和浊水2种状态,景观外貌差异很大.(2)水草可使湖泊系统维持在清水状态,在一定条件下,甚至可使富营养化湖泊维持在清水状态;但是水草腐烂分解等也可使水质迅速恶化,甚至引起湖泊草、藻状态的转变;关键在于,对于不断变化的环境条件,系统内水草能否健康生长.(3)由于营养和生产力水平低,贫营养系统的水质指标随时间变化较小,草、藻型系统间的差异不明显,DO变化范围分别为8.1～14.4 mg·L~(-1)、7.5～11.6 mg·L~(-1),pH 8.71～9.89、8.25～9.22,TP 0.006～0.012 mg·L~(-1)、0.006～0.053 mg·L~(-1),TN 0.11～0.71 mg·L~(-1)、0.10～0.83 mg·L~(-1),NH_4~+-N 0.01～0.17 mg·L~(-1)、0.01～0.26 mg·L~(-1),PO_4~(3-)-P 0.002～0.012 mg·L~(-1)、0.000～0.008mg·L~(-1).(4)由于水草和藻类的大量生长等,中营养与富营养系统湖水的DO、pH、水温和NH_4~+-N的日变化明显,日变化曲线呈“⌒”形,且具有季节性变化规律;由于水草向底泥中输氧气等原因,与藻型湖泊相比,草型湖泊水中TP、TN和NH_4~+-N的浓度较低,PO_4~(3-)-P浓度较高,草、藻型系统的TP均值分别为0.16、0.51 mg·L~(-1),TN 1.30、8.32 mg·L~(-1),NH_4~+-N 0.19、0.43mg·L~(-1),PO_4~(3-)-P 0.07、0.01 mg·L~(-1).     

罗非鱼对富营养型水体中沉水植物苦草的影响

通过室外模拟实验,分别设置罗非鱼组和无鱼对照组的两组处理,研究了尼罗罗非鱼（Oreochromis niloticus）对富营养型水体中沉水植物苦草（Vallisneria spiralis）的影响。结果表明：罗非鱼显著地增加了水中总氮和总磷的质量浓度,同时浮游植物的生物量（叶绿素a）也明显增加;罗非鱼组中的附着藻类的生物量却显著低于无鱼的对照组;罗非鱼组中苦草的相对生长率为-10mg·g-1·d-1,显著低于对照组中苦草的相对生长率7mg·g-1·d-1。罗非鱼的直接牧食可能是苦草生物量降低的主要原因。研究说明,过高的罗非鱼密度会导致沉水植被退化,要保持沉水植被为优势的湖泊清水态,必须控制罗非鱼密度。     

Linking species- and ecosystem-level impacts of climate change in lakes with a complex and a minimal model

To study the interaction between species- and ecosystem-level impacts of climate change, we focus on the question of how climate-induced shifts in key species affect the positive feedback loops that lock shallow lakes either in a transparent, macrophyte-dominated state or, alternatively, in a turbid, phytoplankton-dominated state. We hypothesize that climate warming will weaken the resilience of the macrophyte-dominated clear state. For the turbid state, we hypothesize that climate warming and climate-induced eutrophication will increase the dominance of cyanobacteria. Climate change will also affect shallow lakes through a changing hydrology and through climate change-induced eutrophication. We study these phenomena using two models, the full ecosystem model PCLake and a minimal dynamic model of lake phosphorus dynamics. Quantitative predictions with the complex model show that changes in nutrient loading, hydraulic loading and climate warming can all lead to shifts in ecosystem state. The minimal model helped in interpreting the non-linear behaviour of the complex model. The main output parameters of interest for water quality managers are the critical nutrient loading at which the system will switch from clear to turbid and the much lower critical nutrient loading – due to hysteresis – at which the system switches back. Another important output parameter is the chlorophyll-a level in the turbid state. For each of these three output parameters we performed a sensitivity analysis to further understand the dynamics of the complex model PCLake. This analysis showed that our model results are most sensitive to changes in temperature-dependence of cyanobacteria, planktivorous fish and zooplankton. We argue that by combining models at various levels of complexity and looking at multiple aspects of climate changes simultaneously we can develop an integrated view of the potential impact of climate change on freshwater ecosystems.     

The addition of FeOOH binds phosphate in organic matter-rich sediments

Due to climate change and anthropogenic nutrients’ runoff into freshwater or shallow lakes, eutrophication caused by phosphorus (P) can be seen in the frequent occurrence of cyanobacterial blooms and excessive growth of macrophytes. Subsequently, decomposition of cyanobacterial bloom biomass (CBB) and macrophytes leads to massive autochthonous organic matter (OM) and creates hypoxia in bodies of water. In this study, we investigated the effects of OM and iron on phosphorus release from lake sediments under anaerobic conditions. As with CBB, the addition of cellulose also enhanced P release from sediments during microcosm experiments, while total phosphorus (TP) concentration in the overlying water displayed an inverse relationship to cellulose amendment, with high TP concentration (0.41?±?0.07?mg?L^?1) observed in the treatment of less cellulose amendment (1?g of cellulose). In addition, P release from OM-rich sediments was effectively inhibited when amorphous FeOOH was added to the microcosms. P release was inhibited by 66–92% when the weight ratio between total Fe and total P in sediments varied from 18 to 60. Thus, iron treatment was useful to inhibit P release from OM-rich sediments, and could alleviate eutrophication problems.     

沉水植物黑藻对沉积物氨氮吸附/释放特征的影响

氮素是主要的湖泊营养盐,而沉水植物作为湖泊生态系统主要的组成部分,对系统中氮素的跨界面迁移有着重要的影响。在实验室模拟条件下,通过沉积物氨氮释放动力学、吸附热力学和吸附动力学实验,研究了沉水植物黑藻(Hydrilla verticilla)对沉积物氨氮吸附/释放特征的影响,得到如下结论:(1)一级动力学反应模型能较好地拟合沉积物氨氮释放的动力学过程,种植沉水植物没有影响氨氮释放的趋势,但增强了沉积物释放氨氮的能力;(2)分别用多个模型对沉积物氨氮吸附热力学和动力学过程进行拟合,结果均表明种植沉水植物以后,沉积物对氨氮吸附的趋势没有影响,但吸附强度有所下降。     

A reevaluation of the cultural eutrophication of Lake Okeechobee using multiproxy sediment records.

Lake Okeechobee, the hydrological lynchpin of the Everglades ecosystem, is the subject of an ambitious, multiagency restoration effort aimed at reducing phosphorus inputs and resulting algal blooms and impaired water clarity. This restoration is predicated on returning the lake to something closer to its predisturbance condition, but that goal has been challenged on the premise that the lake has always been eutrophic. The resolution of this debate and the appropriateness of the nutrient reduction goals thus depend on obtaining a reliable sediment record of past limnological conditions--the aim of this study. Because of the potential for severe sediment mixing from tropical storms, this investigation used multiple dating tools to examine the integrity of the sediment record and then analyzed proxies for nutrient enrichment, phytoplankton composition, and paleoproductivity. Sediment profiles for atmospheric pollutants, fertilizer contaminants, and radiocesium from three widely spaced cores showed good preservation of stratigraphic detail and coherence with the 210Pb chronologies. These results demonstrated that sediment stratigraphy is largely intact and retains a reliable record of limnological change. Geochemical proxies provide strong evidence of increased nutrient loading beginning ca. 1950. Concentrations of sediment P double, and N:P and C:N ratios drop, while those for N isotopes (delta15N) increase. At the same time, tracers of phosphate fertilizers (uranium, vanadium, and arsenic) rise. These changes are synchronous among cores and constitute a robust, internally consistent record of increasing water-column P. Biotic responses are manifested in higher concentrations and in changing composition of fossil algal pigments, including (1) large increases in the concentrations of chemically robust carotenoids, (2) corresponding decreases in the ratios of pigments from diatoms to chlorophyte and cyanobacterial algae, and (3) increases in UVR-photo-protective compounds indicating greater prevalence of surface algal blooms. This study provides strong evidence that Lake Okeechobee has experienced accelerated eutrophication linked with post-1950s land use changes in its watershed, a conclusion consistent with the nutrient reduction goals of the Lake Okeechobee Protection Program. The results contradict recent claims that the lake's trophic state has not changed over time, as well as the assertion that sediments of large shallow lakes cannot support a reliable chronology of past events.     

Use of thermodynamic indices as ecological indicators of the development state of lake ecosystems: 2. Exergy and specific exergy indices

The effectiveness of exergy and specific exergy indices as ecological indicators of the trophic state of lake ecosystems is here tested on a small homogeneous set of shallow lakes which, in spite of their similar nutrient concentrations, morphology and hydrology, show a different trophic state and structure, species composition and abundance. The findings reveal that exergy and specific exergy indices have good negative correlation with phytoplankton biomass and Carlson's trophic state index (TSI) and strong positive correlation to water transparency (the relationship between exergy and eutrophication is clearer if the exergy refers to surface units, rather than volume units) and, hence, that they may be used as ecological indicators of the trophic state of lake ecosystems. The relationship between the responses of the thermodynamic approach and other conventional trophic classification methods (Vollenweider's eutrophication model based on phosphorus loading, the Hillbrich-Ilkowska method and the Vollenweider–OECD classification criterion) previously applied to Lake Trasimeno, was also investigated. The decreasing trend of exergy and specific exergy indices with eutrophication increase appears to be essentially due to the change in species composition and trophic structure, rather than to a different trophic potentiality of the ecosystems investigated. Concerning the identification of the environmental factors responsible for exergy and specific exergy trends, the coherence of the correlation structure between water depth, TSI, exergy and specific exergy indices, suggests that the lake's mean water depth plays a significant role in determining the changes in trophic structure and state (and consequently in exergetic indices) within the set of lakes examined and emphasises the importance of lake morphology in the development and ageing of lake ecosystems.     

不同底质和透明度下马来眼子菜的表型可塑性研究

马来眼子菜(Potamogeton malaianusMiq.)是目前太湖沉水植物优势种之一。文章比较分析了3种不同底质和透明度情况下马来眼子菜的生长特征,探索其在太湖不断扩展的原因及其适应性。分别选取粘土质粉砂、粉砂和下蜀黄土底质上生长的马来眼子菜进行观察试验。结果表明,这3种底质在粒度组成、营养盐和分布特征上具有显著差异。在太湖粘土质粉砂和粉砂底质上马来眼子菜的生物量比下蜀黄土底质上的马来眼子菜高,其生物量随着底质营养盐的增加而增加。马来眼子菜与觅光相关的形态指标,如高度、节间距、节数、叶数、叶长及叶面积均随着底质营养盐的增加而显著增加。马来眼子菜的冠层高度与水体的透明度呈显著负相关,表明其对剧烈变化的湖泊光环境具有很强的适应能力。马来眼子菜在不同底质上的形态可塑性是其优先占据湖泊资源成为优势种的重要原因。     

Phosphorus transformation under the influence of aluminum,organic carbon,and dissolved oxygen at the water-sediment interface: A simulative study

• The three simulation factors caused various changes in both water and sediment. • Responses to simulations differed with the reported natural lakes and wetlands. • Al has dominant effects on sediment P release control among the three factors. • Adding sediment Al can be effective and safe under the simulated conditions. • Polyphosphates were not generated, while added phytate was rather stable. The effects of sediment aluminum (Al), organic carbon (OC), and dissolved oxygen (DO) on phosphorus (P) transformation, at the water-sediment interface of a eutrophic constructed lake, were investigated via a series of simulative experiments. The above three factors had various influences on dissolved P concentration, water pH, water and surface sediment appearance, and P fractions. Additions of Al had the greatest effect on suppressing P release, and the water pH remained alkaline in the water-sediment system under various OC and DO conditions. No dissolution of the added Al was detected. ³¹P-NMR characterization suggested that OC addition did not promote biological P uptake to polyphosphates under oxic conditions. The simulation result on the added phytate indicated the absence of phytate in the original lake sediment. As compared to the reported natural lakes and wetland, the water-sediment system of the constructed lake responded differently to some simulative conditions. Since Al, OC, and DO can be controlled with engineering methods, the results of this study provide insights for the practical site restorations.     

Nutrient cycling by fish supports relatively more primary production as lake productivity increases

Animals can be important in nutrient cycling in particular ecosystems, but few studies have examined how this importance varies along environmental gradients. In this study we quantified the nutrient cycling role of an abundant detritivorous fish species, the gizzard shad (Dorosoma cepedianum), in reservoir ecosystems along a gradient of ecosystem productivity. Gizzard shad feed mostly on sediment detritus and excrete sediment-derived nutrients into the water column, thereby mediating a cross-habitat translocation of nutrients to phytoplankton. We quantified nitrogen and phosphorus cycling (excretion) rates of gizzard shad, as well as nutrient demand by phytoplankton, in seven lakes over a four-year period (16 lake-years). The lakes span a gradient of watershed land use (the relative amounts of land used for agriculture vs. forest) and productivity. As the watersheds of these lakes became increasingly dominated by agricultural land, primary production rates, lake trophic state indicators (total phosphorus and chlorophyll concentrations), and nutrient flux through gizzard shad populations all increased. Nutrient cycling by gizzard shad supported a substantial proportion of primary production in these ecosystems, and this proportion increased as watershed agriculture (and ecosystem productivity) increased. In the four productive lakes with agricultural watersheds (>78% agricultural land), gizzard shad supported on average 51% of phytoplankton primary production (range 27-67%). In contrast, in the three relatively unproductive lakes in forested or mixed-land-use watersheds (>47% forest, <52% agricultural land), gizzard shad supported 18% of primary production (range 14-23%). Thus, along a gradient of forested to agricultural landscapes, both watershed nutrient inputs and nutrient translocation by gizzard shad increase, but our data indicate that the importance of nutrient translocation by gizzard shad increases more rapidly. Our results therefore support the hypothesis that watersheds and gizzard shad jointly regulate primary production in reservoir ecosystems.     

Regime shift in a coastal marine ecosystem

We demonstrate changes in ecosystem stable states in a coastal lagoon that are consistent with what a regime shift would hypothesize. In the nutrient-stressed Ringk?bing Fjord, Denmark, a small change in one variable (salinity) facilitated by a change in sluice management, caused a sudden regime shift from a bottom-up controlled turbid state, into a top-down controlled clear-water state. The change in dominating pathway of organic matter production from pelagic turnover to benthic-pelagic coupling was facilitated by new recruitment and growth of existing suspension-feeding clams, Mya arenaria. With the invasion of clams, benthic grazing became the key feature of the biological structure. Phytoplankton composition and zooplankton abundance were also affected by the change in biological structure. The small, but sudden, increase in salinity caused by the change in sluice management led to a dramatic reduction in biomass and coverage of benthic vegetation and thus affected herbivorous waterbird populations. In recent years, plant coverage has been increasing, as can be expected with increased water transparency. The regime shift has some major implications for coastal water management and revealed some conflicts between different types of nature and environmental protection legislation.     

浮叶植物重建对富营养化湖泊氮磷营养水平的影响

利用太湖五里湖污染底泥，在不破坏表层沉积物形态和结构的情况下，利用大口径的采样器采集沉积物柱状样，研究浮叶植物荇菜（Limnanthemun nymphoides）在此底泥上适应性生长情况及其对水体以及沉积物中氮磷的影响。结果表明，在培养实验过程中，荇菜生长使上覆水体中的氮、磷营养水平逐渐降低，藻类的生长明显受到克制，水体透明度增加，水质逐渐改善。通过植物根系对沉积物和问隙水中营养盐的直接吸收，使表层（0～5cm）沉积物与问隙水中氮磷营养盐的水平在实验结束后有明皿下降，对于控制沉积物内源营养盐释放有重要的作用。因此，恢复以水生植物为丰的水生生态系统足重建富营养湖泊生态系统和控制湖泊内源负荷的重要措施。     

Development of Lake Ladoga ecosystem models: modeling of the phytoplankton succession in the eutrophication process. I

New models of Lake Ladoga ecosystem and the results of modeling are presented. In the first part the model of phytoplankton succession in the process of anthropogenic eutrophication of the lake is considered under the evolution of the phosphorus loading. The still continued anthropogenic eutrophication of the lake started in 1962 when the phosphorus load began to increase. Since 1962 during the evolution of the lake’s state from oligotrophic to developed mezotrophic one, the structure of phytoplankton community dominating species was significantly changed as well as its total productivity. The system state in the model is described by 14 parameters: nine phytoplankton complexes, zooplankton, dissolved organic matter, detritus, dissolved mineral phosphorus and dissolved oxygen. The number of parameters of this model is noticeably larger than that of previous models created by the authors. The relative dynamics of phytoplankton complexes in the lake’s ecosystem evolution was simulated by the new model. It is shown that the modeling results are adequately corresponding to the observation data. The results of phytoplankton structure modeling allow to estimate the impact of phytoplankton on the water quality as well as give the prediction of the lake’s ecosystem evolution with the changes of the phosphorus loading.