In situ Measurement of Daphnia longispina Grazing on Algae and Bacteria in a High Mountain Lake (Lake Paione Superiore,Northern Italy) using Fluorescently Labeled Cells

Grazing impact of Daphnia longispina on phytoplankton and bacteria in Lake Paione Superiore (Northern Italy) was evaluated using fluorescently labeled cells in short-term in situ experiments. Structure and size distribution of Daphnia were studied weekly from its appearance in July to its decline in September. Relative importance of algae and bacteria in the diet varied over time, as did consequently the relative impact of Daphnia on the phytoplankton and bacteria populations. Biomass of bacteria in the diet of Daphnia varied from 1 to 42%, and was highest at the beginning of population development when young individuals dominated. The percent biomass of algae in the diet increased with population development, ranging from 58 to 99%. Daphnia population consumed per hour 0.04–1.8% of bacteria and 0.3–17.6% of phytoplankton abundances.     

Reconstruction of Long-Term Changes in Lake water Chemistry,Zooplankton and Benthos of a Small,Acidified High-Mountain Lake: Magic Modelling and Palaeolimnogical Analysis

Starolesnianske pleso is a small and shallow acid lake in the High Tatra Mountains, situated at 2000 m above sea level, on granitic bedrock, with sparse and thin soil cover. When detailed measurements began in the 1980s Starolesnianske pleso had pH below 5 and only one species of cladoceran zooplankton, the ubiquitous Chydorus sphaericusPalaeolimnological investigations show changes in cladoceran zooplankton and chironomid zoobenthic assemblages since about 1920 and a major change in 1970–1980. The dynamic acidification model MAGIC was used to reconstruct changes in water chemistry over the past 150 years. The results from MAGIC agree well with the sediment record; pH levels gradually decreased from 6.5 in the mid-1800s to about 5.6 in 1920 (first response in biota) to below 5.0 by 1970, and concentrations of inorganic aluminium rose dramatically beginning about 1960. In the 1990s the lake water chemistry showed clear signs of reversal in acidification brought about by a major decline in S deposition.     

The Input and Transmission of Fallout Radionuclides Through Redó, a High Mountain Lake in the Spanish Pyrenees

Fallout radionuclides have increasing value as tracers of pathways for pollutant transport through catchment/lake systems, in addition to their more traditional role in dating sediment records. The objectivesof this study, carried out within the EU MOLAR project, were tomeasure atmospheric fluxes of fallout ²¹⁰Pb, ¹³⁷Cs and ⁷Be at Redó, to establish mass balances for theseradionuclides, and test and validate models of pollutant transport through the lake and its catchment. This was achieved by comparing measured fluxes and concentrations in the water column with theoretical estimates using simple compartment models. Several interesting points emerged. Differences betweensoil core and rainwater measurements suggest that Saharan dust may be an important source of fallout ²¹⁰Pb. Fluxes throughthe water column had a clear seasonal trend reflecting winter icecover. Significant concentrations of ¹³⁷Cs are still presentin the water column, due to continued inputs from the catchment and/or remobilisation from the bottom sediments.