Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Nutrient limitation of autotrophic and mixotrophic phytoplankton in a temperate and tropical humic lake gradient

Pålsson, Carina LU and Granéli, Wilhelm LU (2004) In Journal of Plankton Research 26(9). p.1005-1014
Abstract
Nutrient enrichment experiments were carried out in three tropical (once) and three temperate (twice) lakes differing in humic content in order to examine whether there was a relationship between the limiting nutrient for algal growth [nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P)] and humic content, and whether the prevailing limitation was connected to the relative abundance of autotrophic and phagotrophic phytoplankton (mixotrophs). In both climatic regions, there was a stronger tendency for total phytoplankton biomass accumulation to be N limited in lakes with a high humic content. However, in contrast to what we expected, there was no tendency for the mixotrophs to be more favored by the addition of N than of P. In the temperate lakes, the relative... (More)
Nutrient enrichment experiments were carried out in three tropical (once) and three temperate (twice) lakes differing in humic content in order to examine whether there was a relationship between the limiting nutrient for algal growth [nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P)] and humic content, and whether the prevailing limitation was connected to the relative abundance of autotrophic and phagotrophic phytoplankton (mixotrophs). In both climatic regions, there was a stronger tendency for total phytoplankton biomass accumulation to be N limited in lakes with a high humic content. However, in contrast to what we expected, there was no tendency for the mixotrophs to be more favored by the addition of N than of P. In the temperate lakes, the relative abundance of mixotrophs increased in the treatments receiving N or P separately or no nutrients (control) when exposed to a high light availability. In the following year, when the light availability was low, the mixotrophs increased relative to the obligate autotrophs in all treatments, irrespective of nutrient addition. Possibly, this was a result of their ability to supplement photosynthesis with the ingestion of prey. The results indicate that mixotrophy is an advantageous strategy when the availability of light and/or nutrients is low. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Journal of Plankton Research
volume
26
issue
9
pages
1005 - 1014
publisher
Oxford University Press
external identifiers
  • wos:000223948300003
  • scopus:4644363513
ISSN
0142-7873
DOI
10.1093/plankt/fbh089
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
e4caa140-575a-44d6-ab30-165f8100b848 (old id 136625)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 17:00:52
date last changed
2022-01-28 23:44:47
@article{e4caa140-575a-44d6-ab30-165f8100b848,
  abstract     = {{Nutrient enrichment experiments were carried out in three tropical (once) and three temperate (twice) lakes differing in humic content in order to examine whether there was a relationship between the limiting nutrient for algal growth [nitrogen (N) or phosphorus (P)] and humic content, and whether the prevailing limitation was connected to the relative abundance of autotrophic and phagotrophic phytoplankton (mixotrophs). In both climatic regions, there was a stronger tendency for total phytoplankton biomass accumulation to be N limited in lakes with a high humic content. However, in contrast to what we expected, there was no tendency for the mixotrophs to be more favored by the addition of N than of P. In the temperate lakes, the relative abundance of mixotrophs increased in the treatments receiving N or P separately or no nutrients (control) when exposed to a high light availability. In the following year, when the light availability was low, the mixotrophs increased relative to the obligate autotrophs in all treatments, irrespective of nutrient addition. Possibly, this was a result of their ability to supplement photosynthesis with the ingestion of prey. The results indicate that mixotrophy is an advantageous strategy when the availability of light and/or nutrients is low.}},
  author       = {{Pålsson, Carina and Granéli, Wilhelm}},
  issn         = {{0142-7873}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{9}},
  pages        = {{1005--1014}},
  publisher    = {{Oxford University Press}},
  series       = {{Journal of Plankton Research}},
  title        = {{Nutrient limitation of autotrophic and mixotrophic phytoplankton in a temperate and tropical humic lake gradient}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/plankt/fbh089}},
  doi          = {{10.1093/plankt/fbh089}},
  volume       = {{26}},
  year         = {{2004}},
}