Physical, chemical and biological characteristics of disturbed and undisturbed Arctic lakes, Northwest Territories

1. Global warming is predicted to cause changes in permafrost cover and stability in the Arctic. Zones of high ion concentration in regions of ice-rich permafrost are a reservoir of chemicals that can potentially be transferred to fresh waters during thawing. Consequently, input of enriched runoff from the thaw and sediment and vegetation from the landscape could alter lakes by affecting their geochemistry and biological production. 2. Three undisturbed lakes and five lakes disturbed by retrogressive permafrost thaw slumps were sampled during late summer of 2006 to assess the potential effects of thermokarst shoreline slumping on water and sediment chemistry, the underwater light regime, and benthic macrophyte biomass and community structure. 3. Undisturbed lakes had sediments rich in organic material and selected micronutrients, while disturbed lakes had sediments richer in calcium, magnesium and strontium, greater transparency of the water column, and a well-developed submerged macrophyte community. 4. It is postulated that enriched runoff chemistry may alter nutrient availability at the sediment-water interface and also the degradation of organic material, thus affecting lake transparency and submerged macrophytes. The results suggest that retrogressive permafrost slumping can significantly affect food webs in arctic tundra lakes through an increase in macrophyte biomass and development of a more complex benthic habitat.

Physical, biological and chemical characteristics of Canadian and Danish lakes during summer

1. Winter temperatures differ markedly on the Canadian prairies compared with Denmark. Between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002, average weekly and monthly temperatures did not drop below 0 °C in the vicinity of Silkeborg, Denmark. Over this same time, weekly average temperatures near Calgary, Alberta, Canada, often dropped below -10 °C for 3-5 weeks and the average monthly temperature was below 0 °C for 2-4 months. Accordingly, winter ice conditions in shallow lakes in Canada and Denmark differed considerably. 2. To assess the implications of winter climate for lake biotic structure and function we compared a number of variables that describe the chemistry and biology of shallow Canadian and Danish lakes that had been chosen to have similar morphometries. 3. The Danish lakes had a fourfold higher ratio of chlorophyll-a: total phosphorus (TP). Zooplankton : phytoplankton carbon was related to TP and fish abundance in Danish lakes but not in Canadian lakes. There was no significant difference in the ratio log total zooplankton biomass : log TP and the Canadian lakes had a significantly higher proportion of cladocerans that were Daphnia. These differences correspond well with the fact that the Danish lakes have more abundant and diverse fish communities than the Canadian lakes. 4. Our results suggest that severe Canadian winters lead to anoxia under ice and more depauperate fish communities, and stronger zooplankton control on phytoplankton in shallow prairie lakes compared with shallow Danish lakes. If climate change leads to warmer winters and a shorter duration of ice cover, we predict that shallow Canadian prairie lakes will experience increased survivorship of planktivores and stronger control of zooplankton. This, in turn, might decrease zooplankton control on phytoplankton, leading to 'greener' lakes on the Canadian prairies.

Tab. 3: Concentrations of selected chemical species at various depths in Ace Lake

This article reviews the history, chemical stratification, biology and biogeochemistry of Ace Lake, which is one of the many marine-derived meromictic (permanently stratified) lakes in the Vestfold Hills, Eastern Antarctica. The lake has an area of 18 ha, a maximum depth of 25 m, and a salinity range from 7 to 43 g l**-1. The lake mixes to a depth of 7 m in late winter as a result of brine freeze out during ice formation. Deeper mixing is precluded by a sharp halocline. The water beneath 12 m is permanently anoxic, The lake was formed approximately 10,800 yr BP as the polar ice cap melted. Sea level rise 7,800 yr BP resulted in invasion of seawater into the initially freshwater lake. Subsequently, sea level dropped, and the now saline lake became isolated from the ocean. The biota of the lake was derived from species trapped when the connection between the lake and the ocean was cut off. The oxic zone above 12 m supports a relatively simple community which includes microbial mats, four major species of phytoplankton (including a picocyanobacterium), two copepod species, and a variety of heterotrophic flagellates and ciliates. The anoxic zone contains populations of photosynthetic sulfur, sulfate reducing, fermentative and methanogenic bacteria, which combine to remineralise organic carbon which sediments from the upper waters. Research on the physics, biology and chemistry of Ace Lake has contributed significantly to knowledge of Antarctic meromictic lakes.

(Supplemental Table 2) Plant characteristics, GHG fluxes, and soil chemical and microbial properties in experimental treatments in Alexandra Fiord

We evaluated above- and belowground ecosystem changes in a 16 year, combined fertilization and warming experiment in a High Arctic tundra deciduous shrub heath (Alexandra Fiord, Ellesmere Island, NU, Canada). Soil emissions of the three key greenhouse gases (GHGs) (carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide) were measured in mid-July 2009 using soil respiration chambers attached to a FTIR system. Soil chemical and biochemical properties including Q10 values for CO2, CH4, and N2O, Bacteria and Archaea assemblage composition, and the diversity and prevalence of key nitrogen cycling genes including bacterial amoA, crenarchaeal amoA, and nosZ were measured. Warming and fertilization caused strong increases in plant community cover and height but had limited effects on GHG fluxes and no substantial effect on soil chemistry or biochemistry. Similarly, there was a surprising lack of directional shifts in the soil microbial community as a whole or any change at all in microbial functional groups associated with CH4 consumption or N2O cycling in any treatment. Thus, it appears that while warming and increased nutrient availability have strongly affected the plant community over the last 16 years, the belowground ecosystem has not yet responded. This resistance of the soil ecosystem has resulted in limited changes in GHG fluxes in response to the experimental treatments.

Chemical versus structural defense against fish predation in two dominant soft coral species (Xeniidae) in the Red Sea

Soft corals of the family Xeniidae are particularly abundant in Red Sea coral reefs. Their success may be partly due to a strong defense mechanism against fish predation. To test this, we conducted field and aquarium experiments in which we assessed the antifeeding effect of secondary metabolites of 2 common xeniid species, Ovabunda crenata and Heteroxenia ghardaqensis. In the field experiment, the metabolites of both investigated species reduced feeding on experimental food pellets in the natural population of Red Sea reef fishes by 86 and 92% for O. crenata and H. ghardaqensis, respectively. In the aquarium experiment, natural concentration of crude extract reduced feeding on experimental food pellets in the common reef fish Thalassoma lunare (moon wrasse) by 83 and 85%, respectively. Moon wrasse feeding was even reduced at extract concentrations as low as 12.5% of the natural concentration in living soft coral tissues. To assess the potential of a structural anti-feeding defence, sclerites of O. crenata were extracted and mixed into food pellets at natural, doubled and reduced concentration without and in combination with crude extract at 25% of natural concentration, and tested in an aquarium experiment. The sclerites did not show any effect on the feeding behavior of the moon wrasse indicating that sclerites provide structural support rather than antifeeding defense. H. ghardaqensis lacks sclerites. We conclude that the conspicuous abundance of xeniid soft coral species in the Red Sea is likely a consequence of a strong chemical defence, rather than physical defences, against potential predators.

(Table 2, Page 252) Average chemical composition of 11 manganese nodules and crust from the Pacific Ocean

The ability of the hydrated oxides of manganese and iron to adsorb ions from solution (scavenging) is considered in relation to some problems in marine geology, chemistry, and biology. In the ferruginous sediments of the Pacific Ocean, iron oxides are accompanied by titanium, cobalt, and zirconium in amounts proportional to the iron content. Similarly, copper and nickel are linearly related to the manganese content. These observations are explained on the basis of scavenging. An electrochemical theory for the formation of manganese nodules is presented. Marine sediments are classified on the basis of the geosphere in which the solid phases originate. The distribution of certain ionic species in sea water between the solid and aqueous phases is considered on the basis of scavenging and co-ordination compound theory. The concentration of minor elements by members of the marine biosphere is explained either by the direct uptake of the element or by the uptake of iron or manganese oxides with the accompanying scavenged element.

Seawater carbonate chemistry, structural and chemical characteristics of the seagrass Thalassia testudinum in an situ CO2 enrichment experiment

Seagrasses commonly display carbon-limited photosynthetic rates. Thus, increases in atmospheric pCO2, and consequentially oceanic CO2(aq) concentrations, may prove beneficial. While addressed in mesocosms, these hypotheses have not been tested in the field with manipulative experimentation. This study examines the effects of in situ CO2(aq) enrichment on the structural and chemical characteristics of the tropical seagrass, Thalassia testudinum. CO2(aq) availability was manipulated for 6 months in clear, open-top chambers within a shallow seagrass meadow in the Florida Keys (USA), reproducing forecasts for the year 2100. Structural characteristics (leaf area, leaf growth, shoot mass, and shoot density) were unresponsive to CO2(aq) enrichment. However, leaf nitrogen and phosphorus content declined on average by 11 and 21 %, respectively. Belowground, non-structural carbohydrates increased by 29 %. These results indicate that increased CO2(aq) availability may primarily alter the chemical composition of seagrasses, influencing both the nutrient status and resilience of these systems.