Abstract
Impacts of the muskrat, Ondatra zibethica (L.), upon aquatic vegetation in a small shallow meso-eutrophic lake was studied by comparing recent vegetation to earlier data obtained from aerial photographs from 1941 onwards. Stands of Phragmites australis, Schoenoplectus lacustris and Equisetum fluviatile have diminished, whereas stands of Typha latifolia and transitory mixed communities of herbaceous helophytes have increased. Open water areas created by muskrats in depleted reed communities showed various short term successions, being first colonized by submerged and floating-leaved plants, and later by helophytes. Marked changes were also observed in some communities of floating-leaved plants.
Marked changes in aquatic vegetation due to the effects of muskrats were also observed when the recent evidence on dominant macrophytes was compared with data from the late 1940s in 38 small lakes located in another region of Southern Finland. Stands of some earlier dominants, especially Schoenoplectus, Equisetum and Nymphaea have considerably decreased or even become extinct, and have been replaced by transitory vegetation of other helophytes and floating-leaved species.
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© 1980 Dr. W. Junk bv Publishers, The Hague
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Toivonen, H., Meriläinen, J. (1980). Impact of the Muskrat (Ondatra Zibethica L.) on Aquatic Vegetation in Small Finnish Lakes. In: Dokulil, M., Metz, H., Jewson, D. (eds) Shallow Lakes Contributions to their Limnology. Developments in Hydrobiology, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-9206-1_20
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-9206-1_20
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