Effects of nutrient reduction and habitat heterogeneity on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in a large shallow eutrophic lake

Zhigang Mao; Yong Cao; Xiaohong Gu; Yongjiu Cai; Huihui Chen; Qingfei Zeng; Erik Jeppesen

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161538

Effects of nutrient reduction and habitat heterogeneity on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in a large shallow eutrophic lake

Zhigang Mao, Yong Cao, Xiaohong Gu^*, Yongjiu Cai, Huihui Chen, Qingfei Zeng, Erik Jeppesen

^*Corresponding author for this work

Department of Ecoscience - Freshwater Ecology

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaper › Journal article › Research › peer-review

6 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The Taihu Lake ecosystem has been subjected to numerous anthropogenic stressors during the past decades, leading to substantial changes in nutrient dynamics and habitat quality. For instance, the northwestern lake bays receive large amounts of nutrient-rich wastewater and have frequently experienced algal blooms, while the eastern lake region is still dominated by submersed macrophytes. Such changes in environmental characteristics can greatly impact benthic macroinvertebrate communities. We used a 15-year monitoring data series collected by the Taihu Laboratory for Lake Ecosystem Research to examine the spatial and temporal variations of the benthic invertebrate fauna and evaluate its status and trends. We found that three major communities could be distinguished based on taxonomic group composition and abundance, and these corresponded well with three lake habitat types: algal-dominated, macrophyte-dominated, and open-lake zone. An analysis of temporal trends showed major changes in the macroinvertebrates during the study period, largely driven by a lake-wide and significant decline in the abundance of pollution-tolerant taxa. The spatial and temporal variations of macroinvertebrate communities were mainly explained by nutrients (e.g., total nitrogen and ammonium concentrations) and habitat factors (e.g., sediment substrates and macrophyte biomass) as indicated by Random Forests regression, but the major drivers of macroinvertebrate density differed among the three lake zones at the temporal scale. Moreover, our findings suggest that benthic invertebrates were more sensitive to the improvement of the lake's environmental conditions than the pelagic community was. This study provides insights into the responses of macroinvertebrates to ecological dynamics in lakes and highlights the importance of continued monitoring for tracking long-term changes.

Original language	English
Article number	161538
Journal	Science of the Total Environment
Volume	867
ISSN	0048-9697
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161538
Publication status	Published - Apr 2023

Keywords

Eutrophication control
Long-term monitoring
Random Forests regression
Spatial distribution pattern
Taihu Lake
Trophic status indicator

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10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161538

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@article{9a7ea634d8a34bf3a649895bb4ef1b58,

title = "Effects of nutrient reduction and habitat heterogeneity on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in a large shallow eutrophic lake",

abstract = "The Taihu Lake ecosystem has been subjected to numerous anthropogenic stressors during the past decades, leading to substantial changes in nutrient dynamics and habitat quality. For instance, the northwestern lake bays receive large amounts of nutrient-rich wastewater and have frequently experienced algal blooms, while the eastern lake region is still dominated by submersed macrophytes. Such changes in environmental characteristics can greatly impact benthic macroinvertebrate communities. We used a 15-year monitoring data series collected by the Taihu Laboratory for Lake Ecosystem Research to examine the spatial and temporal variations of the benthic invertebrate fauna and evaluate its status and trends. We found that three major communities could be distinguished based on taxonomic group composition and abundance, and these corresponded well with three lake habitat types: algal-dominated, macrophyte-dominated, and open-lake zone. An analysis of temporal trends showed major changes in the macroinvertebrates during the study period, largely driven by a lake-wide and significant decline in the abundance of pollution-tolerant taxa. The spatial and temporal variations of macroinvertebrate communities were mainly explained by nutrients (e.g., total nitrogen and ammonium concentrations) and habitat factors (e.g., sediment substrates and macrophyte biomass) as indicated by Random Forests regression, but the major drivers of macroinvertebrate density differed among the three lake zones at the temporal scale. Moreover, our findings suggest that benthic invertebrates were more sensitive to the improvement of the lake's environmental conditions than the pelagic community was. This study provides insights into the responses of macroinvertebrates to ecological dynamics in lakes and highlights the importance of continued monitoring for tracking long-term changes.",

keywords = "Eutrophication control, Long-term monitoring, Random Forests regression, Spatial distribution pattern, Taihu Lake, Trophic status indicator",

author = "Zhigang Mao and Yong Cao and Xiaohong Gu and Yongjiu Cai and Huihui Chen and Qingfei Zeng and Erik Jeppesen",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023",

year = "2023",

month = apr,

doi = "10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161538",

language = "English",

volume = "867",

journal = "Science of the Total Environment",

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Effects of nutrient reduction and habitat heterogeneity on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in a large shallow eutrophic lake. / Mao, Zhigang; Cao, Yong; Gu, Xiaohong et al.
In: Science of the Total Environment, Vol. 867, 161538, 04.2023.

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaper › Journal article › Research › peer-review

TY - JOUR

T1 - Effects of nutrient reduction and habitat heterogeneity on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in a large shallow eutrophic lake

AU - Mao, Zhigang

AU - Cao, Yong

AU - Gu, Xiaohong

AU - Cai, Yongjiu

AU - Chen, Huihui

AU - Zeng, Qingfei

AU - Jeppesen, Erik

PY - 2023/4

Y1 - 2023/4

N2 - The Taihu Lake ecosystem has been subjected to numerous anthropogenic stressors during the past decades, leading to substantial changes in nutrient dynamics and habitat quality. For instance, the northwestern lake bays receive large amounts of nutrient-rich wastewater and have frequently experienced algal blooms, while the eastern lake region is still dominated by submersed macrophytes. Such changes in environmental characteristics can greatly impact benthic macroinvertebrate communities. We used a 15-year monitoring data series collected by the Taihu Laboratory for Lake Ecosystem Research to examine the spatial and temporal variations of the benthic invertebrate fauna and evaluate its status and trends. We found that three major communities could be distinguished based on taxonomic group composition and abundance, and these corresponded well with three lake habitat types: algal-dominated, macrophyte-dominated, and open-lake zone. An analysis of temporal trends showed major changes in the macroinvertebrates during the study period, largely driven by a lake-wide and significant decline in the abundance of pollution-tolerant taxa. The spatial and temporal variations of macroinvertebrate communities were mainly explained by nutrients (e.g., total nitrogen and ammonium concentrations) and habitat factors (e.g., sediment substrates and macrophyte biomass) as indicated by Random Forests regression, but the major drivers of macroinvertebrate density differed among the three lake zones at the temporal scale. Moreover, our findings suggest that benthic invertebrates were more sensitive to the improvement of the lake's environmental conditions than the pelagic community was. This study provides insights into the responses of macroinvertebrates to ecological dynamics in lakes and highlights the importance of continued monitoring for tracking long-term changes.

AB - The Taihu Lake ecosystem has been subjected to numerous anthropogenic stressors during the past decades, leading to substantial changes in nutrient dynamics and habitat quality. For instance, the northwestern lake bays receive large amounts of nutrient-rich wastewater and have frequently experienced algal blooms, while the eastern lake region is still dominated by submersed macrophytes. Such changes in environmental characteristics can greatly impact benthic macroinvertebrate communities. We used a 15-year monitoring data series collected by the Taihu Laboratory for Lake Ecosystem Research to examine the spatial and temporal variations of the benthic invertebrate fauna and evaluate its status and trends. We found that three major communities could be distinguished based on taxonomic group composition and abundance, and these corresponded well with three lake habitat types: algal-dominated, macrophyte-dominated, and open-lake zone. An analysis of temporal trends showed major changes in the macroinvertebrates during the study period, largely driven by a lake-wide and significant decline in the abundance of pollution-tolerant taxa. The spatial and temporal variations of macroinvertebrate communities were mainly explained by nutrients (e.g., total nitrogen and ammonium concentrations) and habitat factors (e.g., sediment substrates and macrophyte biomass) as indicated by Random Forests regression, but the major drivers of macroinvertebrate density differed among the three lake zones at the temporal scale. Moreover, our findings suggest that benthic invertebrates were more sensitive to the improvement of the lake's environmental conditions than the pelagic community was. This study provides insights into the responses of macroinvertebrates to ecological dynamics in lakes and highlights the importance of continued monitoring for tracking long-term changes.

KW - Eutrophication control

KW - Long-term monitoring

KW - Random Forests regression

KW - Spatial distribution pattern

KW - Taihu Lake

KW - Trophic status indicator

U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161538

DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161538

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 36640891

AN - SCOPUS:85146146333

SN - 0048-9697

VL - 867

JO - Science of the Total Environment

JF - Science of the Total Environment

M1 - 161538

ER -

Effects of nutrient reduction and habitat heterogeneity on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in a large shallow eutrophic lake

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Keywords

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