Restoration of a Danish headwater stream: short‐term changes in plant species abundance and composition

1. This paper describes the short‐term effects (2 years) of stream restoration on vascular plant communities in a 1.4 km upper reach of the River Gudenå, Denmark. The effects of restoration were assessed in terms of the abundance and composition of plant species in the stream, on the banks and in the stream valley. 2. Total species richness was similar before and after restoration, and comprised approximately 150 species representing 12% of the entire Danish vascular plant flora. 3. In the stream, total plant cover had not recovered to pre‐restoration levels 2 years after restoration. Cover by submerged, amphibious and terrestrial species growing submerged decreased, as did the number of amphibious and terrestrial species growing submerged. 4. On the banks, total plant cover almost attained pre‐restoration levels the second year after restoration. The plant communities changed from dominance by non‐riparian species to more diverse communities with a greater number and increased cover of riparian gramineous species requiring a higher soil moisture content. 5. In the valley, the plant communities only changed slightly after restoration, although growth of riparian species was enhanced on the southern side of the stream. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The current status of a sample of english sites of special scientific interest subject to eutrophication

• 1 Records for 102 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) in England were examined for eutrophic status and for symptoms of eutrophication using criteria established by the Department of the Environment (DoE). Seventy-eight were found to be eutrophic or hyper-eutrophic using total phosphorus criteria. Of the 102 sites, 85 cases (84%) showed symptoms of eutrophication. This had changed overtly the nature conservation interest in 69 cases.
• 2 The 102 sites were contracted to 96 by listing together eight adjacent SSSIs in the Somerset Levels and treating another split-site SSSI with separate catchments within it as two sites. Within these 96, 17 did not show symptoms of eutrophication and 79 (84%) did. Of the 79 cases, a major cause of the eutrophication in 35 (44%) was sewage effluent with a further five possible cases of effluent problems. The second most important cause (15 sites (19%) and potentially a further six, of the 79 sites) was attributed to the effects of common carp (Cyprinus carpio), and to a lesser extent common bream (Abramis brama), in mobilizing nutrients and increasing turbidity within the water body.
• 3 Symptoms of deterioration were most frequently recorded in the aquatic plant communities, probably because these are most readily observed. Comparable changes should be expected in animal communities but these are infrequently monitored. There may have been unrecorded changes in some sites that had nonetheless suffered damage. It is likely that detailed studies of sites where there is clear evidence of eutrophication will reveal some deterioration in conservation interest.
• 4 The primary management required to help restore the conservation interest in the 79 sites involves phosphorus removal from, or diversion of, sewage effluent in at least 30 cases. Of these two-thirds (20) will fall outside the current arrangements being made by the DoE for the application of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive. Removal of carp and additional biomanipulative measures are suggested for at least 18 cases (23%) and fishery modifications in a further six, giving a total of 30% of sites where fish are a part of the problem. Further investigation is needed in nearly half of all cases where the situation is not entirely clear.
• 5 The data available from statutory bodies to assess the trophic states of the sites examined were generally inadequate. Total phosphorus, a key variable in the currently recommended DoE scheme, and widely recognized as very important by the limnological community, is not routinely monitored by the National Rivers Authority (NRA), and methods used for soluble reactive phosphorus are not generally used with a sufficiently low detection limit.

     

Recent land‐use change in the catchment of Llangorse Lake,Brecon Beacons National Park,Wales

1. The deterioration in biodiversity of Llangorse Lake has been attributed to eutrophication, power‐boating or a combination of the two. 2. Nutrient input responsible for the eutrophication of Llangorse Lake has been attributed to sewage effluent. This study examines potential contributions from agricultural activity. 3. The current view that increased power‐boating and water skiing have had an adverse impact on the flora and fauna of Llangorse Lake is examined. 4. Land‐use changes in the catchment of the lake are described, analysed using a Geographical Information System (GIS), and related to change in numbers of livestock. 5. Analysis of data since the lake was first used for power‐boating in the 1950s does not indicate a significant increase in activity since the 1970s. The literature on the environmental effects of power‐boating indicates the complexity of the impact, but no conclusions can be drawn. 6. It is concluded that, whilst the land‐use distribution has not changed significantly for many decades, there has been an increase and intensification in the use of improved pasture, resulting in a significant rise in cattle and sheep numbers. This could have increased nitrogen and phosphorus inputs to the lake. The study indicates the importance of considering land‐use when assessing causes of eutrophication. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Constructed shallow zones along navigation canals: vegetation establishment and change in relation to environmental characteristics

An Erratum has been published for this article in Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 12(2), 2002, 251

• 1. In recent decades shallow zones have been constructed along navigation canals in the Netherlands which form a potential new habitat for aquatic macrophytes and helophytes absent from traditional canals.
• 2. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between the aquatic plant vegetation that becomes established and the physical and chemical characteristics of water and sediment, in order to find the determinants of species composition and the changes therein. Data were collected in 1998 and 1999 from 80 plots in bank zones at varying stages of development since construction along two navigation canals.
• 3. Plots 3–5 years old were partly dominated by rooting submerged macrophytes such as Potamogeton pectinatus, Elodea nuttallii and Potamogeton pusillus; locally non‐rooting species occurred such as Ceratophyllum demersum, Lemna minor and Spirodela polyrhiza. Older plots contained Phragmites australis, locally mixed with free‐floating species. Hydrological isolation from the eutrophic canals was indicated by the presence of Chara vulgaris.
• 4. Characteristics of both water layer and sediment could explain the variation in vegetation composition. Rooting submerged macrophytes predominantly occurred in sites with a thin (<2 cm) layer of sediment with relatively low concentrations of organic matter; moreover, ammonium concentrations in the water layer and sediment pore water were relatively low. Stands of non‐rooting macrophytes and of Phragmites australis were characterized by a relatively thick sediment layer and high ammonium levels in the pore water. Light limitation in turbid water, associated with navigation and eutrophication, may also play a role.
• 5. Although submerged aquatic macrophytes persist for a relatively short time, shallow zones nevertheless function as a habitat for helophyte communities and contribute to a higher aquatic biodiversity than is associated with traditional banks along navigation canals.

Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ornamental lakes — an overlooked conservation resource?

• 1. Shallow lakes excavated for ornamental purposes during the 18th and 19th centuries are abundant in lowland Europe. However, relative to older man‐made and/or natural lakes, these lakes may have been undervalued from the perspective of nature conservation.
• 2. To evaluate this idea a comparison was made between the aquatic macrophyte communities (submerged and floating‐leaved vegetation) of 66 shallow, English lakes including 34 ornamental lakes and 32 flooded medieval peat workings (the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads system), the latter being widely protected by conservation legislation.
• 3. Some 47%, 38% and 15% of the lakes studied were phytoplankton‐dominated, macrophyte‐dominated or deemed too shallow (<50 cm water depth), respectively, to support a macrophyte vegetation. A higher proportion of the ornamental lakes were macrophyte‐dominated (51%) by comparison with the broads (34%). In addition, many of the ornamental lakes contained diverse plant communities including abundant populations of Characeae, a common feature of lakes in the region before the major onset of eutrophication.
• 4. From the perspectives of macrophyte species richness, charophyte communities and indeed ‘reference condition macrophyte assemblages’, many of the studied ornamental lakes can be considered to be of high conservation value. Yet, in contrast to the broads, the vast majority of ornamental lakes have little conservation protection and are rarely subject to biological monitoring and/or surveying, thus leaving them vulnerable to eutrophication and inappropriate management. This study suggests that ornamental lakes are worthy of much greater attention from conservation organizations.

Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

洱海流域湿地水生被子植物区系研究

2009年开展了洱海流域水生被子植物区系研究,共发现38科、76属、100种。从科、属、种3个层面看,热带类群占显著优势,这与洱海流域所处的气候带相一致。世界分布种多为建群种和优势种。对比以前的调查结果,洱海流域水生植物资源显著退化,物种多样性显著下降,特别是特有种和珍稀濒危物种匮乏,仅有1种;外来入侵种呈进一步扩大趋势。针对以上特点,预测洱海流域水生被子植物未来从数量和种类上将进一步减少,入侵种危害程度将进一步扩大,对流域的生态保护迫在眉睫。     

三种高原常见沉水植物对不同浓度铵氮的生理响应机制研究

选取在高原湖泊中广泛分布([NH_4⁺] < 3mg/L)但在高浓度铵氮水体([NH_4⁺] > 15mg/L)中无法存活的苦草(Vallisneria natans)、大茨藻(Najas marina)和穿叶眼子菜(Potamogeton perfoliatus)3种沉水植物为研究对象。在实验室模拟条件下,比较研究了不同浓度铵氮(0、0.1、3、15和50mg/L)对3种沉水植物的影响,初步探讨了其在湖泊铵氮浓度升高和铵氮浓度更高的黑臭河道中退化的原因。结果表明,当水体铵氮浓度超过15mg/L时,植物体内叶绿素和蛋白含量呈下降趋势,而游离氨基酸的含量呈上升趋势,碳氮平衡被打破;植物叶绿素荧光显著降低,说明植物在浓度达到15mg/L时,无法正常进行光合作用。以上研究说明,当水体浓度达到15mg/L时,在湖泊中广泛分布的沉水植物物种无法存活,而碳氮平衡的破坏导致植物光合能力下降是影响其存活的主要因素。本研究从机理层面初步揭示了以上湖泊广布物种在高铵氮水体中消失的原因,为利用沉水植物修复高浓度铵氮污染水体提供理论指导。     

The Anglesey lakes,Wales, UK—A palaeolimnological study of the eutrophication and nature conservation status

1. Palaeolimnological techniques were used to investigate recent environmental change in three shallow, coastal lakes (Coron, Dinam and Penrhyn) within biological SSSIs on Anglesey, Wales, U.K., where agriculture has influenced two sites while a third received sewage effluent. 2. The Penrhyn core was dated radiometrically and the timescale of the other two sites estimated by correlation. A range of palaeopigment, geochemical, diatom and chironomid analyses were made on the samples. 3. Results suggest that eutrophication has increased at all three sites in the last 50 years. Palaeopigment analyses indicate that Coron has had abundant blue–green algal populations, the Dinam sediments were highly organic and Penrhyn has been the most eutrophic. Trace metal profiles suggested significant sediment mixing. Although concentrations were sometimes low, diatom profiles from the sites include marked recent increases in Stephanodiscus, Cyclostephanos and Thalassiosira spp. 4. While there was a period of rapid eutrophication in Coron in the late-1960s, there are recent signs of reduced nutrient loading. Penrhyn appears the most enriched (and eutrophic from earlier time) and Dinam the least. Chironomid analyses suggest Coron has been the most enriched and two alternative explanations are put forward for the Chironomus loss in the recent sediments. Dinam has changed little, remaining mesotrophic and retaining the eutrophication-intolerant Pseudochironomus. In Penrhyn there has been a slow but progressive development of eutrophication, becoming mildly eutrophic at an early stage, with the loss of Pseudochironomus. 5. Environmental histories derived from sediment data of the three lakes have been related to specific catchment events and the significance of the relationship with lake ecosystem stability is discussed. The study shows the contribution of palaeolimnology to freshwater conservation.     

The efficiency of free‐floating and emergent aquatic macrophytes in constructed wetlands for the treatment of a fishpond effluent

Many studies have evaluated the efficiency of constructed wetlands (CWs) for the treatment of fishpond effluents, but only a few have compared between CWs with emergent and free‐floating macrophytes and assessed the amount of nutrients removed only by the macrophytes. For this purpose, we performed an experiment during 113 days in which we treated a fishpond effluent using four different CWs: (i) with the free‐floating macrophyte Eichhornia crassipes (Ec); (ii) without E. crassipes (WEc); (iii) with a substrate and the emergent macrophyte Typha domingensis (Td); (iv) with a substrate and without T. domingensis (WTd). To verify the efficiency of CWs, the removal rates of total suspended solids (TSS), dissolved (DKN) and total (TKN) Kjeldahl nitrogen, total inorganic nitrogen (TIN), total phosphorus (TP) and P‐orthophosphate (P‐ORT) were analysed using ANOVA‐rm. The removal of TP and TKN was higher in CWs with substrate than without substrate. The removal of P‐ORT, TIN and DKN was higher in Ec compared to others CWs. The average removal of TSS in Ec (78.9%), WTd (77.4%) and Td (75.0%) was higher than in WEc (68.3%). The contribution of E. crassipes towards the removal of all forms of N and P was higher than of T. domingensis. This greater contribution of E. crassipes can be due to the higher biomass that this species gained in comparison with T. domingensis.     

Chlorinated secondary domestic sewage effluent as a fertilizer for marine aquaculture: I. Tilapia culture

The suitability of chlorinated secondary domestic sewage effluent as a fertilizer for culturing tilapia in seawater ponds was investigated. The only food source was the increased in situ algal production and the associated fauna and flora that were derived from the added sewage nutrients. The effluent quality was monitored, i.e., pH, NH₄N, NO₃N, ortho-P, chemical oxygen demand, suspended solids and residual chlorine. Each monitored parameter and its possible effect on the culture system is discussed.The added effluent was found to provide a suitable and inexpensive fertilizer source with projected fish yields of between 3.9 and 8.1 t ha⁻¹ per growth season of 210–226 days, depending on conditions.     

茅洲河流域水环境治理工程的生态效应研究

评价水环境治理工程对流域水生态环境的影响,可为茅洲河流域进一步的生态修复工作提出建议。对水环境治理初期(2016年5月)和治理期间(2018年8月)茅洲河流域水生态状况进行调查,选取44个采样点,覆盖茅洲河流域的干流以及主要支流,以获取的样本和水质理化数据,对比分析水质、底栖动物群落、浮游藻类及大型水生植物群落变化。结果显示,治理期间茅洲河流域水体化学需氧量(COD)、氨氮(NH_3-N)和总磷(TP)平均浓度分别降低了41.2%、50.6%和66.7%,溶解氧(DO)平均浓度升高了130.8%;底栖动物群落物种多样性增加了53.6%,耐污种类的密度和优势度降低,并在部分样点新增敏感性较高的蜉蝣目、鞘翅目、毛翅目和半翅目水生昆虫类群。大型水生植物种类和分布范围明显增加,流域内分布有挺水植物24种、沉水植物4种、漂浮植物2种、浮叶植物1种。Palmer藻类污染指数指示为重污染的样点减少了56.3%,中污染样点增加了16.3%,轻污染的样点增加了40.0%。BMWP指数评价结果也有好转,最高得分为49。研究表明,治理后的茅洲河流域水污染程度降低,生态环境状况总体有所好转,但流域生态健康状况仍然较差,需进一步开展系统的流域生态修复工作。     

杭州西湖浮游植物群落对沉水植物恢复的响应

为评价杭州西湖沉水植物恢复对浮游植物群落的影响,以西湖湖西水域(茅家埠、乌龟潭、浴鹄湾)为代表,通过5年连续采样监测数据,研究了该区域沉水植物恢复前后浮游植物物种组成、生物量、多样性指数及其与水质理化参数的动态变化关系。结果表明,2009-2013年共检出浮游植物156种,隶属8门、78属,其群落结构在3个湖区间不存在显著差异(P0.05),藻类优势种的年际变化呈现由绿藻门(Chlorophyta)的球衣藻(Chlamydomonas globosa)、小球衣藻(Chlamydomonas microsphaera)和蓝藻门(Cyanophyta)的铜绿微囊藻(Microcystis aeruginosa)、不定微囊藻(Microcystis incerta)逐渐向绿藻门的蛋白核小球藻(Chlorella pyrenoidosa)、细丝藻(Ulothrix teneriima)、多形丝藻(Ulothrix variabilis)和硅藻门(Bacillariophyta)的颗粒直链藻(Melosira granulata)、具星小环藻(Cyclotella stelligera)转变。浮游植物群落的Margalef和Shannon-Weiner多样性指数分别在0.632~3.396和0.581~4.438之间变化,指示水体处于中度富营养状态且有转好趋势。调查期间水体总氮和总磷浓度分别在0.92~5.26 mg/L和0.005~0.108 mg/L。水质理化参数分析表明,茅家埠和乌龟潭浮游植物生物量与水体总氮的变化呈显著正相关(P0.05)。研究表明,相比工程实施前,西湖湖西水质有明显好转,沉水植被恢复是富营养化水体治理的有效措施之一。     

The microdistribution of three uncommon freshwater gastropods in the drainage ditches of British grazing marshes

• 1. The gastropods Segmentina nitida, Anisus vorticulus and Valvata macrostoma occur in drainage ditches on grazing marshes that are now among the most threatened wetland systems in western Europe. Although each of these species is listed in the UK Red Data Book (RDB) and Biodiversity Action Plan, influences on their distribution are poorly understood.
• 2. 2. To improve management information, the within‐channel distributions of the three snails were examined in 20 ditches in southeast England. Abundance, vegetation cover and other environmental factors were recorded across the ditch profile near the surface (<0.2m) and at depth (<0.15m from the benthos).
• 2. 3. All three species were significantly more abundant near the surface than at depth. Below 0.6m, ditches had significantly reduced concentrations of dissolved oxygen (<0.6 mg L^?1, <5% saturation), possibly sufficient to limit the occurrence of gastropods dependent wholly or partly on aqueous gas exchange.
• 2. 4. There were no other systematic variations in abundance between the ditch margins and centre channel. However, across all ditches and samples in the survey, each species' abundance varied significantly with vegetation structure. S. nitida was most numerous where there was least open water and hence most vegetation, V. macrostoma among emergent stands and A. vorticulus in ditches with floating vegetation but few submerged plants.
• 2. 5. These microdistributional data support large‐scale surveys in illustrating the potential importance of vegetation management for these snails; providing that other requirements are satisfied, ditch management could favour each RDB species by optimizing particular vegetation features. Apparent preferences for vegetation structure rather than particular channel locations suggest that refuges left during ditch clearance could be located anywhere in the ditch. Factors that reduce oxygen concentrations below 1mg L ^?1, such as eutrophication, might be detrimental.

Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bioindicator role of aquatic Ranunculus in Mediterranean freshwater habitats

相似文献   

Declines in the tuber‐feeding waterbird guild at Shengjin Lake National Nature Reserve,China – a barometer of submerged macrophyte collapse

• 1. The Yangtze floodplain is globally unique for its extensive ephemeral wetlands, recharged by summer monsoon precipitation. The annual cycle of inundation and water table recession favours submerged macrophytes, including Vallisneria that overwinters in desiccated substrates as tubers, which provide high‐energy winter food for tuber‐feeding waterbirds that were formerly abundant in the region.
• 2. Large declines among the tuber‐feeding waterbirds swan goose Anser cygnoides (L.), tundra swan Cygnus columbianus (Ord) and hooded crane Grus monacha Temminck between 2004/2005 and 2009/2010 at Shengjin Lake, Anhui Province, suggest that major changes in food availability have occurred there.
• 3. Based on observations of feeding behaviour and energy budgets of these species, it was calculated that at least 5.0 and 8.9 km² of Vallisneria beds in 2004 and 2005, respectively, would be needed to support observed numbers of these species, compared with less than 1.5 km² found in 2009 and 2010.
• 4. An incomplete macrophyte survey in summer 2000 located at least 7.7 km² of Vallisneria beds in the Upper Lake, where none was present during resurveys in 2008 and 2009. Declines in tuber‐feeding waterbirds at Shengjin Lake coincide with the disappearance of their submerged macrophyte food plants, possibly as a result of eutrophication since the mid‐2000s.
• 5. Widespread declines and concentration of tuber‐eating wintering waterbirds at other sites elsewhere in the Yangtze floodplain may also reflect the local collapse of submerged macrophytes and of ecosystem services that these wetlands provide to the human communities. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

     

汉阳地区五个湖泊沉水植物分布及富营养化现状

2011年7月—2012年4月对武汉市汉阳地区五个湖泊(后官湖,三角湖,南太子湖,墨水湖和龙阳湖)的水质及沉水植物进行了季节性调查,以了解湖泊富营养化现状及其对沉水植物的影响。结果显示:后官湖为中营养,而三角湖、南太子湖、墨水湖和龙阳湖为重度富营养,其中龙阳湖污染最重。共采集沉水植物7种,隶属于5科5属,主要种类为金鱼藻(Ceratophyllum demersum)、苦草(Vallisneria spiralis)和菹草(Potamogeton crispus)。沉水植物主要分布在后官湖沿岸带,其它四个湖泊中沉水植物已严重退化,仅在部分水域偶见。后官湖沉水植物盖度和生物量最大值出现在10月,分别为67.5%和5.58 kg/m~2,1月份较低,分别为29.3%和1.88 kg/m~2,优势种存在明显的季节更替。结果表明,汉阳地区湖泊沉水植物退化与富营养化引起的水下光照下降和高密度的水产养殖有关。     

Management and restoration of fish communities in Lake Taihu, China

The economic development of the cities around Lake Taihu, China, has caused both environmental changes and ecological succession. The biodiversity of Lake Taihu has declined since 1970. Migratory fish, including anadromous, catadromous and semi-migratory fish, are either extinct or on the verge of extinction in Lake Taihu. Only lake dwellers persist. Several measures have been taken, such as restocking, closed seasons, sanctuaries for enhancement and even introductions to restore some original fish communities. Although these measures have achieved a certain degree of success, increased fishing activities or over-fishing have offset the benefits obtained. Moreover, cultural eutrophication of the lake and the pollution of the waterways connected with the lake are getting worse. This jeopardizes the remaining economically valuable species in the lake. Measures are required not only to control eutrophication and pollution, and to reduce the intensity of fishing, but also to address the wider biodiversity issues.     

Using stable isotope data to quantify niche overlap and diets of muskellunge,northern pike and walleye in a deep Minnesota lake

Muskellunge (Esox masquinongy Mitchill), northern pike (Esox lucius L.) and walleye (Sander vitreus Mitchill) often coexist in lake communities, yet uncertainty exists about the potential for interspecific competition among these top predators. Stable isotope data were used to assess niche overlap and diets of these predators in Elk Lake (Minnesota, U.S.A). δ¹³C indicated primary production sources (e.g. pelagic v. littoral) and δ¹⁵N indicated trophic position; the bivariate distribution of these isotopes defined the species’ isotopic niche. Niche overlap probabilities were calculated and stable isotope mixing models were used to quantify diet proportions. Muskellunge and northern pike niches overlapped little (<10%), while walleye overlapped muskellunge (15%–60%) and northern pike (33%–53%) more extensively. Muskellunge diets focused (50%) on cisco (Coregonus artedi Lesueur), walleye primarily assimilated non-cisco prey fish (80%), and northern pike diets were dominated by non-cisco prey fish (45%) and invertebrates (40%). The presence of a cisco population and the flexibility of northern pike to use invertebrate resources may decrease potential competition among these predators. However, cisco are threatened by climate change and eutrophication, and our results suggest that extirpation of cisco may cause major changes in potential competitive interactions among these top predators. Moreover, cisco were unique among prey species in their ability to exploit pelagic energy, such that loss of cisco will likely alter energy flow in lake food webs where they currently exist.