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Autotrophic and heterotrophic plankton under ice in a eutrophic temperate lake

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Abstract

Ice cover can considerably influence the food web structure and dynamics of lake ecosystems during winter. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that, due to unfavourable conditions, abundances of planktonic organisms are low under ice. The components of the microbial loop (nanoflagellates, ciliates) and the classical food web (algae, rotifers, crustaceans) were investigated in a eutrophic lake from January to April, at 7-day intervals. The phytoplankton was dominated by the mixotrophic chrysophyte Synura uvella, which formed an intense phytoplankton bloom. Nanoflagellates (mostly heterotrophic forms) and ciliates (oligotrichs, prostomatids) were present in relatively high numbers. Rotifers were represented by the algivorous taxa (Notholca squamula, Polyarthra dolichoptera) and reached surprisingly high abundances. There were no significant correlations between physical parameters and protists, but correlations were apparent between the thickness of the ice and the numbers of cyanobacteria, diatoms (negative) and chrysophytes (positive). The absence of crustaceans and relationships between rotifers and both algae and nanoflagellates indicate that these groups were probably a crucial factor determining the abundance and composition of the rotifer community. These results suggest that the microbial loop had a central role in the functioning of the ecosystem under ice in this eutrophic lake.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Jolanta Ejsmont-Karabin for helping with the taxonomic determinations of the rotifers. This research was funded in part by the Inland Fisheries Institute in Olsztyn within its statutory research activity. We thank our editor Luigi Naselli-Flores and two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments, which have helped us greatly improve the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Lake Fisheries, Inland Fisheries Institute in Olsztyn, Rajska 2, 11-500, Giżycko, Poland

    Krystyna Kalinowska

  2. Department of Hydrobiology, University of Białystok, Ciołkowskiego 1j, 15-245, Białystok, Poland

    Magdalena Grabowska

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  1. Krystyna Kalinowska
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  2. Magdalena Grabowska
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Correspondence to Krystyna Kalinowska.

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Handling editor: Luigi Naselli-Flores

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Kalinowska, K., Grabowska, M. Autotrophic and heterotrophic plankton under ice in a eutrophic temperate lake. Hydrobiologia 777, 111–118 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2769-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2769-8

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