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Green algal over cyanobacterial dominance promoted with nitrogen and phosphorus additions in a mesocosm study at Lake Taihu, China

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Abstract

Enrichment of waterways with nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) has accelerated eutrophication and promoted cyanobacterial blooms worldwide. An understanding of whether cyanobacteria maintain their dominance under accelerated eutrophication will help predict trends and provide rational control measures. A mesocosm experiment was conducted under natural light and temperature conditions in Lake Taihu, China. It revealed that only N added to lake water promoted growth of colonial and filamentous cyanobacteria (Microcystis, Pseudoanabaena and Planktothrix) and single-cell green algae (Cosmarium, Chlorella, and Scenedesmus). Adding P alone promoted neither cyanobacteria nor green algae significantly. N plus P additions promoted cyanobacteria and green algae growth greatly. The higher growth rates of green algae vs. cyanobacteria in N plus P additions resulted in the biomass of green algae exceeding that of cyanobacteria. This indicates that further enrichment with N plus P in eutrophic water will enhance green algae over cyanobacterial dominance. However, it does not mean that eutrophication problems will cease. On the contrary, the risk will increase due to increasing total phytoplankton biomass.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to all the staff in Taihu Laboratory for Lake Ecosystem Research (TLLER). This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (nos. 41230744 and 41271355), The Major Projects on Control and Rectification of Water Body Pollution (2014ZX07104-006), and USA National Science Foundation Grants No. ENG/CBET 0826819 and 1230543 and DEB 1240851 Dimensions in Biodiversity.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Reservoir Aquatic Environment, Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chongqing, 400714, People’s Republic of China

    Jianrong Ma, Jinsong Guo & Zhe Li

  2. State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, People’s Republic of China

    Jianrong Ma, Boqiang Qin, Pan Wu, Jian Zhou & Jianming Deng

  3. Institute of Marine Sciences, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Morehead City, NC, 28557, USA

    Hans W. Paerl

  4. School of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Adelaide, 5005, Adelaide, Australia

    Justin D. Brookes

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  1. Jianrong Ma
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  2. Boqiang Qin
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  3. Hans W. Paerl
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  4. Justin D. Brookes
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  5. Pan Wu
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  6. Jian Zhou
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  7. Jianming Deng
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  8. Jinsong Guo
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  9. Zhe Li
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Correspondence to Boqiang Qin.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Ma, J., Qin, B., Paerl, H.W. et al. Green algal over cyanobacterial dominance promoted with nitrogen and phosphorus additions in a mesocosm study at Lake Taihu, China. Environ Sci Pollut Res 22, 5041–5049 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-3930-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-3930-4

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