Phytoplankton-Specific Response to Enrichment of Phosphorus-Rich Surface Waters with Ammonium, Nitrate, and Urea

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dc.contributor.authorDonald, Derek B.
dc.contributor.authorBogard, Matthew J.
dc.contributor.authorFinlay, Kerri
dc.contributor.authorBunting, Lynda
dc.contributor.authorLeavitt, Peter R.
dc.date.accessioned2023-06-30T16:16:39Z
dc.date.available2023-06-30T16:16:39Z
dc.date.issued2013-01-17
dc.descriptionCopyright 2013 Donald et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.en_US
dc.description.abstractSupply of anthropogenic nitrogen (N) to the biosphere has tripled since 1960; however, little is known of how in situ response to N fertilisation differs among phytoplankton, whether species response varies with the chemical form of N, or how interpretation of N effects is influenced by the method of analysis (microscopy, pigment biomarkers). To address these issues, we conducted two 21-day in situ mesocosm (3140 L) experiments to quantify the species- and genus-specific responses of phytoplankton to fertilisation of P-rich lake waters with ammonium (NH 4+), nitrate (NO 32), and urea ([NH 2 ]2 CO). Phytoplankton abundance was estimated using both microscopic enumeration of cell densities and high performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) analysis of algal pigments. We found that total algal biomass increased 200% and 350% following fertilisation with NO 32 and chemically-reduced N (NH 4+, urea), respectively, although 144 individual taxa exhibited distinctive responses to N, including compound-specific stimulation (Planktothrix agardhii and NH 4+), increased biomass with chemically-reduced N alone (Scenedesmus spp., Coelastrum astroideum) and no response (Aphanizomenon flos-aquae, Ceratium hirundinella). Principle components analyses (PCA) captured 53.2–69.9% of variation in experimental assemblages irrespective of the degree of taxonomic resolution of analysis. PCA of species-level data revealed that congeneric taxa exhibited common responses to fertilisation regimes (e.g., Microcystis aeruginosa, M. flos-aquae, M. botrys), whereas genera within the same division had widely divergent responses to added N (e.g., Anabaena, Planktothrix, Microcystis). Least-squares regression analysis demonstrated that changes in phytoplankton biomass determined by microscopy were correlated significantly (p,0.005) with variations in HPLC-derived concentrations of biomarker pigments (r2 = 0.13–0.64) from all major algal groups, although HPLC tended to underestimate the relative abundance of cyanobacteria. Together, these findings show that while fertilisation of P-rich lakes with N can increase algal biomass, there is substantial variation in responses of genera and divisions to specific chemical forms of added N.en_US
dc.description.authorstatusFacultyen_US
dc.description.peerreviewyesen_US
dc.description.sponsorshipThis work was supported by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada Discovery Grant (PRL) and Graduate Scholarships (DBD), Canada Research Chairs, Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Province of Saskatchewan, and the University of Regina. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.en_US
dc.identifier.citationDonald, D.B., M.J. Bogard, K. Finlay, L. Bunting, and P.R. Leavitt. 2013. Phytoplankton-specific response to enrichment of phosphorus-rich surface waters with ammonium, nitrate and urea. PLOS One 8: e53277. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0053277en_US
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0053277
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10294/15993
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherPublic Library of Scienceen_US
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 International*
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/*
dc.titlePhytoplankton-Specific Response to Enrichment of Phosphorus-Rich Surface Waters with Ammonium, Nitrate, and Ureaen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US
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