Effects of landcover, soil property, and temperature on covariations of DOC and CDOM in inland waters

Title
Effects of landcover, soil property, and temperature on covariations of DOC and CDOM in inland waters

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2018

Authors

Li, J., Yu, Q., Tian, Y. Q., & Boutt, D. F.

Journal
Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences

Volume
123(4)

Pagination
1352-1365

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Abstract

Significant uncertainty exists in the estimation of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration via remote sensing from colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) absorption in inland waters pointing to a need for more process-based understanding of the relationship between CDOM and DOC. In this study, we examine the factors affecting the covariations of DOC and CDOM using controlled experiments combined with field measurements at subbasin scale that have varying environmental and biological conditions. Our analysis reveals that the DOC:CDOM ratio is mainly related to landcover types. Higher DOC:CDOM linear regression slopes observed in evergreen leaf litter leachate suggest that CDOM comprises a smaller fraction of the DOC pool in evergreen sites in comparison to agricultural and deciduous leaf litter leachates. Given the same DOC concentrations, the range of CDOM levels from deciduous forest plant varied 3 times greater than that from other plant types. Results indicate that soil narrows the slope differences in the linear regressions of DOC from CDOM for all plant types (by 19% of evergreen, 18% of agriculture, and 77% of deciduous). Raising soil temperature by 5°C could double the range of DOC concentration and CDOM absorption for all scenarios. We present a mathematical model to estimate DOC concentration in freshwater environment via CDOM variations with reference to land cover and soil effects. The model was able to explain 95% of field measurements of multiple years in four subbasins. This improved understanding is critical for the remote sensing of DOC directly via observations of CDOM.

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Invasive dreissenid mussels benefit invasive crayfish but not native crayfish in the Laurentian Great Lakes

Title
Invasive dreissenid mussels benefit invasive crayfish but not native crayfish in the Laurentian Great Lakes

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2017

Authors

Glon, M. G., Larson, E. R., Reisinger, L. S., & Pangle, K. L.

Journal
Journal of Great Lakes Research

Volume
43(2)

Pagination
289-297

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Abstract

Invasive ecosystem engineers, such as dreissenid mussels, may facilitate subsequent invaders. Despite their potential ecological importance, interactions between dreissenid mussels and crayfish in the Laurentian Great Lakes have received little research attention. Invasive rusty crayfish (Orconectes rusticus) have recently spread within the Great Lakes, and we hypothesized that food resources provided by invasive dreissenid mussels may have enhanced this spread. Dreissenid mussels may also benefit native crayfish such as the virile crayfish (O. virilis), but the distribution of virile species has not increased in the Great Lakes in recent years. We tested the interactive effects of dreissenid mussels and crayfish density on the growth, survival and activity of sympatric rusty and virile crayfish using a mesocosm experiment. We found that dreissenid mussels increased growth and activity of rusty crayfish while high crayfish densities negatively affected rusty crayfish growth. Dreissenid mussels did not affect growth or activity of virile crayfish, but high crayfish densities negatively affected their survival. The different responses of rusty and virile crayfish to mussels may be due to a greater ability of invasive crayfish to exploit mussel-associated food resources and/or to behavioral interactions between these species in sympatry. Our results suggest that dreissenid mussels may facilitate the establishment, spread, and potential impacts of invasive crayfish where these taxa co-occur.

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Quantifying environmental DNA signals for aquatic invasive species across multiple detection platforms

Title
Quantifying environmental DNA signals for aquatic invasive species across multiple detection platforms

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2014

Authors

Nathan, L. M., Simmons, M., Wegleitner, B. J., Jerde, C. L., & Mahon, A. R.

Journal
Environmental science & technology

Volume
48(21)

Pagination
12800-12806

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Abstract

The use of molecular surveillance techniques has become popular among aquatic researchers and managers due to the improved sensitivity and efficiency compared to traditional sampling methods. Rapid expansion in the use of environmental DNA (eDNA), paired with the advancement of molecular technologies, has resulted in new detection platforms and techniques. In this study we present a comparison of three eDNA surveillance platforms: traditional polymerase chain reaction (PCR), quantitative PCR (qPCR), and digital droplet PCR (ddPCR) in which water samples were collected over a 24 h time period from mesocosm experiments containing a population gradient of invasive species densities. All platforms reliably detected the presence of DNA, even at low target organism densities within the first hour. The two quantitative platforms (qPCR and ddPCR) produced similar estimates of DNA concentrations. The analyses completed with ddPCR was faster from sample collection through analyses and cost approximately half the expenditure of qPCR. Although a new platform for eDNA surveillance of aquatic species, ddPCR was consistent with more commonly used qPCR and a cost-effective means of estimating DNA concentrations. Use of ddPCR by researchers and managers should be considered in future eDNA surveillance applications.

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A mesocosm investigation of the effects of quagga mussels (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis) on Lake Michigan zooplankton assemblages

Title
A mesocosm investigation of the effects of quagga mussels (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis) on Lake Michigan zooplankton assemblages

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2018

Authors

Whitten, A. L., Jarrin, J. R. M., & McNaught, A. S.

Journal
Journal of Great Lakes Research

Volume
44(1)

Pagination
105-113

ISBN Number

Keywords

Quagga mussels
Zooplankton
Mesocosm
Direct consumption
Lake Michigan

Abstract

Dreissenid mussels are known to disrupt the base of the food web by filter feeding on phytoplankton; however,
they may also directly ingest zooplankton thereby complicating their effects on plankton communities.
The objective of this study was to quantify the effects of quagga mussel feeding on the composition and size
structure of Lake Michigan zooplankton assemblages. Two mesocosm (six 946 L tanks) experiments were
conducted in summer 2013, using quagga mussels and zooplankton collected near Beaver Island, MI, to examine
the response of zooplankton communities to the presence and absence of mussels (experiment 1) and
varying mussel density (experiment 2). Mesocosms were sampled daily and zooplankton taxa were enumerated
and sized using microscopy and FlowCAM® imaging. In experiment 1, the presence of quagga mussels
had a rapid negative effect on veliger and copepod nauplii abundance, and a delayed negative effect on rotifer
abundance. In experiment 2, mussel density had a negative effect on veliger, nauplii, and copepodite
abundance within 24 h. Multivariate analyses revealed a change in zooplankton community composition with
increasing mussel density. Ten zooplankton taxa decreased in abundance and frequency as quagga mussel
density increased: except for the rotifer Trichocerca sp., treatments with higher mussel densities (i.e., 1327,
3585, and 5389 mussels/m2) had the greatest negative effect on small-bodied zooplankton (≤ 128 μm). This
study confirms results from small-scale (≤ 1 L) experiments and demonstrates that quagga mussels can alter
zooplankton communities at mesoscales (~ 1000 L), possibly through a combination of direct consumption
and resource depletion.

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Evaluation of a method that uses one cubic meter mesocosms to elucidate a relationship between inoculation density and establishment probability for the nonindigenous, invasive zooplankter, Bythotrephes longimanus

Title
Evaluation of a method that uses one cubic meter mesocosms to elucidate a relationship between inoculation density and establishment probability for the nonindigenous, invasive zooplankter, Bythotrephes longimanus

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2019

Authors

Donn K. Branstrator, Matthew C. TenEyck, Matthew A. Etterson, Euan D. Reavie & Allegra A. Cangelosi

Journal
Biological Invasions

Volume
21

Pagination
3655-3670

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Keywords

Abstract

The introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species by ships is a global concern, and development and implementation of effective prevention measures are an urgent priority. Two questions plague science and policy. First, what level of reduction in live organism discharges from ships yields a given desired level of reduction in species establishment probability? Second, how can this question be empirically tested in a practicable and replicable manner? We evaulated the extent to which experiments using 1 m3 mesocosms could help elucidate a relationship between inoculation density and reproductive output (a proxy for establishment probability) of a surrogate invader, Bythotrephes longimanus (Crustacea: Cladocera). The inoculation densities were 1, 5, 10, 20, or 40 individuals m−3. All individuals in each inoculum were added as a single event at the start of each of four, two-week-long experiments. B. longimanus were inoculated into ambient water pumped from the Duluth-Superior Harbor at the start of each experiment between June and August, 2015. The mesocosm volume and range of inoculation densities has relevancy to the International Maritime Organization’s Ballast Water Management Convention D2 standard which allows a density of < 10 viable organisms m−3 in discharged ballast water for organisms > 50 μm minimum dimension. Reproductive output was detected among 78 of 80 mesocosms after 2 weeks. Among 13 abiotic and biotic variables, inoculation density was overwhelmingly the best predictor, and water temperature was the second best predictor, of B. longimanus reproductive output. Net reproductive value of the inoculants was ≥ 1 among 35 of 80 mesocosms after 2 weeks. There was evidence for density-dependent reduction in population growth rate in the higher inoculation density mesocosms. We examined various parts of our method for robustness. Translation of the results into meaningful estimates of establishment probability in the field remains a vivid challenge. We introduce the idea of using annual hatching rates of natural banks of dormant eggs in lake sediments as a method to characterize relationships between propagule pressure and establishment probability at the scale of an ecosystem for seasonally transient species such as B. longimanus.

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Evaluation of a method for ballast water risk-release assessment using a protist surrogate

Title
Evaluation of a method for ballast water risk-release assessment using a protist surrogate

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2018

Authors

Aliff, M.N., E.D. Reavie, M.C. TenEyck, D.K. Branstrator, T. Schwerdt, A.A. Cangelosi, M. Cai

Journal
Hydrobiologica

Volume
817

Pagination
11-22

ISBN Number

Keywords

Mesocosm, Invasive species, Phytoplankton, Experiment, Algae

Abstract

Understanding the risk–release relationship (the relationship between density of organisms released and associated risk of establishment of a population) of aquatic invasive species is important for setting policy standards to protect natural water bodies from species spread through human-mediated vectors, in particular ballast discharge. To test the viability of an experimental and analytical approach to investigate this relationship, we conducted a mesocosm-based experiment using a test organism, Melosira varians (a freshwater phytoplanktonic diatom native to the Great Lakes). Varying densities of the test organism were added to 19-l mesocosms of water from the Duluth-Superior Harbor at Superior, Wisconsin, in three consecutive trials over 4 months. Each mesocosm was sampled weekly for 4 weeks, and the size of the M. varians population and phytoplankton community was measured via assessments of cell densities. Population responses varied by initial M. varians density. Based on a logistic model, the inoculation density necessary for establishment of M. varians was approximately 12 cells/ml. These findings suggest mesocosm experiments coupled with logistic modeling have the potential to characterize risk–release relationships. Additional investigations using similar methods should be undertaken with a variety of test organisms and environmental conditions to further vet this method and extend understanding of risk–release relationships.

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Pressure-Induced Shifts in Trophic Linkages in a Simplified Aquatic Food Web

Title
Pressure-Induced Shifts in Trophic Linkages in a Simplified Aquatic Food Web

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2017

Authors

Schrama M, Barmentlo SH, Hunting ER, van Logtestijn RSP, Vijver MG, van Bodegom PM

Journal
Frontiers in Environmental Science

Volume
5

Pagination
1-10

ISBN Number

Keywords

stable isotopes, imidacloprid, terbuthylazine, multiple stressors, anthropogenic pressures, interaction
web, green web, brown web

Abstract

It is essential to understand effects of existing and emerging anthropogenic stressors on the structure of aquatic food webs in more natural settings, to obtain realistic predictions on how they can affect major ecosystem properties and functioning. We therefore examined whether (1) realistic concentrations of key agricultural pesticides and nutrients induce shifts in trophic linkages (2) observed changes in trophic linkages are qualitatively different between the green (algal-based) and brown (detritus-based) part of the food web. To this end, we exposed a simplified, yet realistic freshwater invertebrate community to environmentally relevant concentrations of three anthropogenic pressures (eutrophication; the herbicide terbuthylazine; and the insecticide imidacloprid) in a full factorial mesocosm design. Trophic linkages and the changes therein were assessed measuring stable isotopes of natural carbon and nitrogen. Results show that the green and brown part of the food web react qualitatively different to interacting pressures. Whereas, herbivorous species react mainly to the nutrients and herbicides and the synergistic interaction between these, species in the detritivore part of the food web were affected by insecticide applications and interactions with nutrients. These results suggest that agricultural pressures can induce shifts in trophic linkages, but that they can have contrasting effects on the different parts of the food web. Such antagonistic and synergistic interactions can provide powerful explanations for observed responses of ecosystems to interacting stressors. These findings may have important implications for our understanding on interactions of agricultural stressors and their propagation in aquatic food webs.

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Assessing combined impacts of agrochemicals: Aquatic macroinvertebrate population responses in outdoor mesocosms

Title
Assessing combined impacts of agrochemicals: Aquatic macroinvertebrate population responses in outdoor mesocosms

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2018

Authors

Barmentlo SH, Schrama M, Hunting ER, Heutink R, van Bodegom PM, de Snoo GR, Vijver MG

Journal
Science of The Total Environment

Volume
631-632

Pagination
341-347

ISBN Number

Keywords

Agrochemicals
Mixtures
Outdoor testing
Aquatic invertebrates
Mesocosm

Abstract

Agricultural ditches host a diverse community of species. These species often are unwarrantedly exposed to fertilizers and a wide-array of pesticides (hereafter: agrochemicals). Standardized ecotoxicological research provides valuable information to predict whether these pesticides possibly pose a threat to the organisms living within these ditches, in particular macro-invertebrates. However, knowledge on how mixtures of these agrochemicals affect macro-invertebrates under realistic abiotic conditions and with population and community complexity is mostly lacking. Therefore we examined here, using a full factorial design, the population responses of macroinvertebrate species assemblages exposed to environmentally relevant concentrations of three commonly used agrochemicals (for 35 days) in an outdoor experiment. The agrochemicals selected were an insecticide (imidacloprid), herbicide (terbuthylazine) and nutrients (NPK), all having a widespread usage and often detected together in watersheds. Effects on species abundance and body length caused by binary mixture combinations could be described from single substance exposure. However, when agrochemicals were applied as tertiary mixtures, as they are commonly found in agricultural waters, species’ abundance often deviated from expectations made based on the three single treatments. This indicates that pesticide-mixture induced toxicity to population relevant endpoints are difficult to extrapolate to field conditions. As in agricultural ditches often a multitude (approx. up to 7) of agrochemicals residues are detected, we call other scientist to verify the ecological complexity of non-additive induced shifts in natural aquatic invertebrate populations and aquatic species assemblages.

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Thiacloprid‐induced toxicity influenced by nutrients: Evidence from in situ bioassays in experimental ditches

Title
Thiacloprid‐induced toxicity influenced by nutrients: Evidence from in situ bioassays in experimental ditches

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2018

Authors

Barmento SH, Parmentier EM, de Snoo GR, Vijver MG

Journal
Environmental Toxicology

Volume
37

Pagination
1907-1915

ISBN Number

Keywords

Agrochemical; Crustacean; Fertilizer; Insect; Multiple stressors; Neonicotinoid

Abstract

Many studies show that neonicotinoid insecticides cause toxicity to aquatic invertebrates. Some studies report that insecticide toxicity may differ in combination with other agrochemicals under realistic field conditions. To explore such altered toxicity further, we aimed to determine the single and combined effects of environmentally relevant levels of the neonicotinoid thiacloprid and nutrients on different endpoints of 4 aquatic invertebrate species. Animals were exposed to these agrochemicals using a caged experiment within experimental ditches. We observed thiacloprid‐induced toxicity for 2 crustaceans, Daphnia magna and Asellus aquaticus, and for 1 out of 2 tested insect species, Cloeon dipterum. We observed no toxic effects for Chironomus riparius at the time‐weighted average test concentration of 0.51 μg thiacloprid/L. For D. magna, the observed toxicity, expressed as the lowest‐observed‐effect concentration (LOEC), on growth and reproduction was present at thiacloprid concentrations that were 2456‐fold lower than laboratory‐derived LOEC values. This shows that these species, when exposed under natural conditions, may exhibit neonicotinoid‐induced toxic stress. Contrary to the low nutrient treatment, such toxicity was often not observed under nutrient‐enriched conditions. This was likely attributable to the increased primary production that allowed for compensatory feeding. These findings warrant the inclusion of different feeding regimes in laboratory experiments to retrieve the best estimates of neonicotinoid‐induced toxicity in the natural environment. Environ Toxicol Chem 2018;37:1907–1915. © 2018 SETAC

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Multiple-stressor effects of sediment, phosphorus and nitrogen on stream macroinvertebrate communities

Title
Multiple-stressor effects of sediment, phosphorus and nitrogen on stream macroinvertebrate communities

Publication Type
Journal Article

Year of Publication
2018

Authors

Davis SJ, Ó hUallacháina D, Mellander PE, Kelly AM, Matthaei CD, Piggott JJ, Kelly-Quinn M

Journal
Science of The Total Environment

Volume
637-638

Pagination
577-587

ISBN Number

Keywords

Agricultural stressors, Mesocosm experiment, Invertebrate drift, Nutrients, Europe

Abstract

Multiple stressors affect stream ecosystems worldwide and their interactions are of particular concern, with gaps existing in understanding stressor impacts on stream communities. Addressing these knowledge gaps will aid in targeting and designing of appropriate mitigation measures. In this study, the agricultural stressors fine sediment (ambient, low, medium, high), phosphorus (ambient, enriched) and nitrogen (ambient, enriched) were manipulated simultaneously in 64 streamside mesocosms to determine their individual and combined effects on the macroinvertebrate community (benthos and drift). Stressor levels were chosen to reflect those typically observed in European agricultural streams. A 21-day colonisation period was followed by a 14-day manipulative period. Results indicate that added sediment had the most pervasive effects, significantly reducing total macroinvertebrate abundance, total EPT abundance and abundances of three common EPT taxa. The greatest effect was at high sediment cover (90%), with decreasing negative impacts at medium (50%) and low (30%) covers. Added sediment also led to higher drift propensities for nine of the twelve drift variables. The effects of nitrogen and phosphorus were relatively weak compared to sediment. Several complex and unpredictable 2-way or 3-way interactions among stressors were observed. While sediment addition generally reduced total abundance at high levels, this decrease was amplified by P enrichment at low sediment, whereas the opposite effect occurred at medium sediment and little effect at high sediment. These results have direct implications for water management as they highlight the importance of managing sediment inputs while also considering the complex interactions which can occur between sediment and nutrient stressors.

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