Late Holocene diatom assemblages in a lake-sediment core from Central Kamchatka,Russia

Fossil diatom assemblages in a sediment core from a small lake in Central Kamchatka (Russia) were used to reconstruct palaeoenvironmental conditions of the late Holocene. The waterbody may be a kettle lake that formed on a moraine of the Two-Yurts Lake Valley, located on the eastern slope of the Central Kamchatka Mountain Chain. At present, it is a seepage lake with no surficial outflow. Fossil diatom assemblages show an almost constant ratio between planktonic and periphytic forms throughout the record. Downcore variations in the relative abundances of diatom species enabled division of the core into four diatom assemblage zones, mainly related to changes in abundances of Aulacoseira subarctica, Stephanodiscus minutulus, and Discostella pseudostelligera and several benthic species. Associated variations in the composition and content of organic matter are consistent with the diatom stratigraphy. The oldest recovered sediments date to about 3220 BC. They lie below a sedimentation hiatus and likely include reworked deposits from nearby Two-Yurts Lake. The initial lake stage between 870 and 400 BC was characterized by acidic shallow-water conditions. Between 400 BC and AD 1400, lacustrine conditions were established, with highest contributions from planktonic diatoms. The interval between AD 1400 and 1900 might reflect summer cooling during the Little Ice Age, indicated by diatoms that prefer strong turbulence, nutrient recycling and cooler summer conditions. The timing of palaeolimnological changes generally fits the pattern of neoglacial cooling during the late Holocene on Kamchatka and in the neighbouring Sea of Okhotsk, mainly driven by the prevailing modes of regional atmospheric circulation.     

Variability of sediment diatom assemblages in an upland,wind-stressed lake (Loch Fleet,Galloway, S.W. Scotland)

The variability of diatom distribution in an acidified, upland wind-stressed lake (Loch Fleet, Galloway, S. W. Scotland) was assessed by analysis of 28 surface sediment samples and 11 cores. Correspondence analysis (CA) and cluster analysis were used to illustrate the variability of the surface sediment and core samples. There was reasonable uniformity of taxa in most of the surface sediment samples, although 7 samples, as indicated by both CA and cluster analyses were atypical. Most cores recorded clearly the acidification of the lake, although percentages of individual taxa varied up to 20% between cores. Two cores had old, preacidification diatom assemblages (of indeterminate age) close to the sediment surface. These old sediments were probably the source of the re-worked diatoms found in the atypical surface sediment assemblages. Diatom trends, as CA ordinations and pH profiles, were less variable than the surface sediment assemblages. It is argued that non-uniform sediment accumulation rates and diatom deposition cause variability in surface sediment diatom samples. This variability may be reduced in core profiles by homogenization during further resuspension/deposition cycles and burial. Cores, and the associated time component they offer, may be useful in assessing the variability of surface sediment assemblages.     

Water depth is a strong driver of intra-lake diatom distributions in a small boreal lake

There has been much debate over the relative importance of environmental selection and spatial variation on community organization in microorganisms. To assess the importance of environmental or spatial variables in diatom species assemblages in Gall Lake, northwest Ontario, 41 surface-sediment samples were collected in a two-dimensional gridded pattern along and across depth contours. A depth-constrained cluster analysis separated the diatom flora into three communities: a shallow-water benthic zone (B1); a deeper-water benthic zone (B2); and a planktonic zone (P). Redundancy analysis (RDA) confirmed that water depth was a major predictor of variation in the flora. Further RDAs and variation partitioning using orthogonal polynomials and Moran’s eigenvector maps showed that spatial location had minimal effect on the diatom assemblages. Principal components analysis grouped the diatom flora not only by assemblage, but also by water depth, regardless of two-dimensional spatial separation, suggesting the importance of the environmental gradients associated with lake depth. These findings indicate that environment is a more important explanatory variable than spatial variables for diatoms within lakes, suggesting dispersal plays a limited role in intra-lake diatom distributions.     

Variability in diatom and chrysophyte assemblages and inferred pH: paleolimnological studies of Big Moose Lake,New York,USA

We measured variability in the composition of diatom and chrysophyte assemblages, and the pH inferred from these assemblages, in sediment samples from Big Moose Lake, in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. Replicate samples were analyzed from (1) a single sediment core interval, (2) 12 different intervals from each of 3 separate cores, and (3) 10 widely spaced surface sediment samples (0–1 cm). The variability associated with sample preparation (subsampling, processing, and counting) was relatively small compared to between-core and within-lake variability. The relative abundances of the dominant diatom taxa varied to a greater extent than those of the chrysophyte scale assemblages. Standard deviations of pH inferences for multiple counts from the same sediment interval from diatom, chrysophyte, and diatom plus chrysophyte inference equations were 0.04 (n=8), 0.06 (n=32), and 0.06 (n=8) of a pH unit, respectively. Stratigraphic analysis of diatoms and chrysophytes from three widely spaced pelagic sediment cores provided a similar record of lake acidification trends, although with slight differences in temporal rates of change. Average standard deviations of pH inferences from diatom, chrysophyte and diatom plus chrysophyte inference equations for eight sediment intervals representing similar time periods but in different cores were 0.10, 0.20, and 0.09 pH unit, respectively. Our data support the assumption that a single sediment core can provide an accurate representation of historical change in a lake. The major sources of diatom variability in the surface sediments (i.e., top 1.0 cm) were (1) differences in diatom assemblage contributions from benthic and littoral sources, and (2) the rapid change in assemblage composition with sediment depth, which is characteristic of recently acidified lakes. Because scaled chrysophytes are exclusively planktonic, their spatial distribution in lake sediments is less variable than the diatom assemblages. Standard deviations of pH inferences for 10 widely spaced surface sediment samples from diatom, chrysophyte and diatom plus chrysophyte inference equations were 0.21, 0.09, and 0.16 of a pH unit, respectively.     

The sediment record of the past 200 years in a Swiss high-alpine lake: Hagelseewli (2339 m a.s.l.)

Sediment cores spanning the last two centuries were taken in Hagelseewli, a high-elevation lake in the Swiss Alps. Contiguous 0.5 cm samples were analysed for biological remains, including diatoms, chironomids, cladocera, chrysophyte cysts, and fossil pigments. In addition, sedimentological and geochemical variables such as loss-on-ignition, total carbon, nitrogen, sulphur, grain-size and magnetic mineralogy were determined. The results of these analyses were compared to a long instrumental air temperature record that was adapted to the elevation of Hagelseewli by applying mean monthly lapse rates.During much of the time, the lake is in the shadow of a high cliff to the south, so that the lake is ice-covered during much of the year and thus decoupled from climatic forcing. Lake biology is therefore influenced more by the duration of ice-cover than by direct temperature effects during the short open-water season. Long periods of ice-cover result in anoxic water conditions and dissolution of authigenic calcites, leading to carbonate-free sediments.The diversity of chironomid and cladoceran assemblages is extremely low, whereas that of diatom and chrysophyte cyst assemblages is much higher. Weak correlations were observed between the diatom and chrysophyte cyst assemblages on the one hand and summer or autumn air temperatures on the other, but the proportion of variance explained is low, so that air temperature alone cannot account for the degree of variation observed in the paleolimnological record.Analyses of mineral magnetic parameters, spheroidal carbonaceous particles and lead suggest that atmospheric pollution has had a significant effect on the sediments of Hagelseewli, but little effect on the water quality as reflected in the lake biota.     

Paleohydrology of Lake Nhaucati (southern Mozambique), ∼400 AD to present

This paper investigates the correlations between lake level change, rainfall variability and general atmospheric forcing in southern Africa. The analysis of fossil diatom assemblages in a sediment sequence from the small, rain-fed Lake Nhaucati, southern Mozambique, is presented and discussed in relation to regional palaeoclimate data. The accumulation of organic sediments in Lake Nhaucati began 1,600 years ago when the lake level was rising. Lithology and pollen suggest a low stand at 800 AD, which correlates with other climate proxies from the summer rainfall region of southern Africa. The diatom assemblage suggests that lake levels were high between 900 and 1300 AD, with shorter low stands at c.1100 and 1200 AD. The period after 1400 AD was marked by a slow rate of accumulation and consequently a low temporal resolution. The correlation with other climate proxies in the summer rainfall region, written sources, and pollen data suggests repeated droughts corresponding to the Little Ice Age, though the driest periods may have caused complete desiccation of the lake. Higher lake levels are suggested after 1800 AD, though written sources suggest droughts in the beginning of the twentieth century. The analysis shows a good correlation with palaeoclimate data from the summer rainfall region and confirms the presence of an anti-phase relationship between the summer rainfall region of southern Africa and the bi-modal rainfall region of east tropical Africa. It also supports the general hypothesis that variation in the intensity of the Inter Tropical Convergence Zone is the main agent modulating rainfall over southern and eastern Africa on centennial timescales.     

Diatom stratigraphy of the last 250 ka at Lake El’gygytgyn,northeast Siberia

Diatom species counts were conducted on 171 sediment samples from the 13-m-long core PG1351 from Lake El’gygytgyn, northeast Siberia. The planktonic Cyclotella ocellata-complex dominates the diatom assemblage through most of the core record, persisting through a variety of climate conditions. Periphytic diatoms, although less abundant, have greater diversity and greater down-core assemblage variation. During warm climate modes, longer summer ice-free conditions may have allowed more complex diatom communities to develop in shallow-water habitats, and enhanced circulation may have increased transport of these diatoms to deeper parts of the lake. Zones of low overall diatom abundance further support inferred intervals of low lake productivity during times of extended lake ice and snow cover. More data on the modern spatial and temporal distribution of diatom species in the Lake El’gygytgyn system will improve inferences from core records. This is the last in a series of eleven papers published in this␣special issue dedicated to initial studies of El'gygytgyn Crater Lake and its catchment in NE Russia. Julie Brigham-Grette, Martin Melles, Pavel Minyuk were guest editors of this special issue.     

Diatoms in sediments of perennially ice-covered Lake Hoare, and implications for interpreting lake history in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica

Diatom assemblages in surficial sediments, sediment cores, sediment traps, and inflowing streams of perennially ice-covered Lake Hoare, South Victorialand, Antarctica were examined to determine the distribution of diatom taxa, and to ascertain if diatom species composition has changed over time. Lake Hoare is a closed-basin lake with an area of 1.8 km², maximum depth of 34 m, and mean depth of 14 m, although lake level has been rising at a rate of 0.09 m yr^-1 in recent decades. The lake has an unusual regime of sediment deposition: coarse grained sediments accumulate on the ice surface and are deposited episodically on the lake bottom. Benthic microbial mats are covered in situ by the coarse episodic deposits, and the new surfaces are recolonized. Ice cover prevents wind-induced mixing, creating the unique depositional environment in which sediment cores record the history of a particular site, rather than a lake-wide integration. Shallow-water (<1 m) diatom assemblages (Stauroneis anceps, Navicula molesta, Diadesmis contenta var. parallela, Navicula peraustralis) were distinct from mid-depth (4–16 m) assemblages (Diadesmis contenta, Luticola muticopsis fo. reducta, Stauroneis anceps, Diadesmis contenta var. parallela, Luticola murrayi) and deep-water (26–31 m) assemblages (Luticola murrayi, Luticola muticopsis fo. reducta, Navicula molesta). Analysis of a sediment core (30 cm long, from 11 m water depth) from Lake Hoare revealed two abrupt changes in diatom assemblages. The upper section of the sediment core contained the greatest biomass of benthic microbial mat, as well as the greatest total abundance and diversity of diatoms. Relative abundances of diatoms in this section are similar to the surficial samples from mid-depths. An intermediate zone contained less organic material and lower densities of diatoms. The bottom section of core contained the least amount of microbial mat and organic material, and the lowest density of diatoms. The dominant process influencing species composition and abundance of diatom assemblages in the benthic microbial mats is episodic deposition of coarse sediment from the ice surface.     

Late Holocene environmental changes inferred from diatoms in a lake on the western Taimyr Peninsula, northern Russia

Changes in the diatom assemblages preserved in a sediment core taken from a small lake located north of arctic treeline on the western Taimyr Peninsula, Russia, were examined in order to investigate late Holocene (i.e., ca 5000 cal yr BP to present) climatic and environmental changes within the region. Early diatom assemblages were dominated by benthic Fragilaria taxa and indicate a transitional phase in the lake history, most likely reflecting lake development and environmental change associated with treeline retreat to the south of the study site. Concurrent with pollen and macrofossil evidence of a vegetation shift to shrub tundra in the catchment basin at ca 4200 cal yr BP, an increase in cold-water taxa, followed by little change in diatom assemblages until ca 2800 cal yr BP, suggests that conditions were relatively cool and stable at this time. The last 2000 years of the Middendorf Lake record have been marked by fluctuating limnological conditions, characterized by striking successional shifts between Fragilaria pinnata and Aulacoseira distans var. humilis. Recent conditions in Middendorf Lake indicate an increase in diatom taxa previously rare in the record, possibly associated with twentieth-century climatic warming. The Middendorf Lake record indicates that significant limnological change may occur in the absence of catchment vegetation shifts, suggesting late-Holocene decoupling of aquatic and terrestrial responses to climatic and hydrological change. Our study results represent one of the few paleoecological records currently available from northern Russia, and highlight the need for further development of calibration data sets from this region.     

Distribution of diatom assemblages and their relationship to environmental variables in the surface sediments of three northern Egyptian lakes

Surficial sediments of three northern Egyptian lakes (Manzala, Burullus and Edku) show differences in diatom assemblages deposited in different sites of these lakes. A total of 172 species and varieties belonging to 58 genera were identified and counted from 62 samples. Of these, 163 diatom taxa were recorded from Manzala Lake sediments, 147 taxa were found in Burullus Lake sediments, and 117 taxa were identified in Edku Lake sediments. The considerable variation in the composition and distribution of the diatom assemblages among these lakes was mainly related to differences in the water quality, salinity, the concentration of nutrients and climatic changes. The planktonic diatom Cyclotella meneghiniana was dominant in the majority of the samples from Manzala Lake, but dominant in only a few samples from the middle parts of Burullus and Edku lakes. The non-planktonic epiphytic taxa Cocconeis placentula and Epithemia sorex were the subdominant species in the surface sediments, especially in shallow and marginal parts of the lakes. Multivariate statistical techniques (hierarchical ascending clustering and canonical correspondence analysis) were used to identify ecological groups of diatoms and to investigate which environmental variables were important in explaining the variation between these groups. Eight ecological groups containing distinctive diatom assemblages reflect current environmental conditions; especially saltwater intrusion in the north and nutrient-rich freshwater in the south.     

Diatom responses to 20th century climate-related environmental changes in high-elevation mountain lakes of the northern Canadian Cordillera

Diatom responses to 20th century climate-related environmental change were assessed from three high-elevation lakes in the northern Canadian Cordillera. Dominance of small benthic Fragilaria diatoms reflect the generally cold conditions with long periods of ice cover that have characterized these mountain lakes over at least the last ~300 years until the period of recent warming. At the turn of the 20th century, salient shifts in the diatom assemblages reveal individualistic limnological responses with the onset of climate warming trends in northwest Canada. At YK3 Lake, an oligotrophic, chemically dilute, alpine lake, increased representation of the planktonic Cyclotella pseudostelligera may reflect longer ice-free conditions and/or more stable thermal stratification. By contrast, in the more productive, alkaline lakes (BC2 and Deadspruce lakes), changes to more diverse assemblages of periphytic diatoms suggest greater benthic habitat availability, most likely associated with the enhanced growth of aquatic plants with lengthening of the growing seasons. In addition, diatom assemblages from these lakes suggest less alkaline conditions following the onset of 20th century climate warming. Continued alkalinity reduction throughout the 20th century is qualitatively inferred at the lower elevation, treeline lake (Deadspruce Lake), while greater representation of alkaliphilous Fragilaria diatoms after ~1950 suggested increased alkalinity at the alpine BC2 Lake. Our results confirm the sensitivity of diatoms from high-elevation mountain lakes to regional climate change in northwest Canada. Individualistic limnological responses to 20th century warming are potentially attributed to differences in their physical setting (e.g., bedrock geology, elevation, catchment vegetation) in this complex mountain environment.     

Assessing sedimentation in a temperate dystrophic lake in the NE Atlantic seaboard region

Organic materials deposited in lacustrine environments can be derived from both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and can serve as valuable indicators of catchment and in-lake ecological changes over time. However, spatial and temporal variation in the deposition of these materials within a lake basin will influence the interpretation of these sediment deposits. In this study, materials deposited in suspended sediment traps and basin sediments in Lough Feeagh, a temperate coastal humic lake, show variations in organic matter, total organic carbon and nitrogen loads, algal pigment concentrations and diatom assemblages. Sediment trap samples from three locations along with adjacent surface sediment cores show a clear north–south (inlet to outlet) gradient. C/N ratios reflected a mixture of algal and land-derived organic matter with a major peat influence, and comparisons between sediment trap and surface sediment assemblages revealed pigment and diatom assemblages influenced by lake-basin position and water depth. While some coherency between trap and sediment samples was apparent a more complicated biological response is demonstrated along with reduced water clarity in recent years thus highlighting the implications of increased allochthonous imputs for biological and biogeochemical processes in oligo-humic aquatic systems.     

Diatom-temperature transfer functions based on the altitudinal zonation of diatom assemblages in Papua New Guinea: a possible tool in the reconstruction of regional palaeoclimatic changes

Indirect and direct gradient ordination techniques were used to study the relationship between present-day benthic and periphytic diatom assemblages and environmental factors along an altitudinal gradient in Papua New Guinea. Both within the screened initial data-set and a narrowly-defined subset of soft-water lakes, shifts in diatom assemblages are clearly related to altitudinal differences. This relation is used to construct transfer functions for inferring altitude (and hence average water temperature) from the diatom records. Calibration by canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) and simple weighted averaging calibration proved to be superior to models using WA with tolerance downweighting and to a simple WA model based on a selection of 52 indicator taxa. From the calibration models and the linear relationship between altitude and epilimnetic water temperature, the average lake water temperature can be predicted with an accuracy of 3.2°C. After further refinement, a transfer function for palaeotemperature based on diatoms would be of potential value for climatic reconstructions in tropical regions.     

Tracking recent recovery from eutrophication in a high arctic lake (Meretta Lake, Cornwallis Island, Nunavut, Canada) using fossil diatom assemblages

Meretta Lake (Resolute Bay, Cornwallis Island, Nunavut, Canada) is a high arctic lake that received raw sewage for almost 50 years from the Canadian Department of Transport Base. The lake was sampled from 1968–72 during the International Biological Programme, as part of the Char Lake Project. As the number of users at the Transport Base declined throughout the 1990s, so too did the lake's nutrient levels, and Meretta Lake is now classified as oligotrophic. A previous diatom-based paleolimnological study revealed marked species assemblage shifts coincident with sewage inputs beginning in the late 1940s; however, because the core was taken at a time when nutrient levels were still relatively high (i.e., 1993), the diatom record did not yet track any signs of recovery. In this present study, we examined fossil diatom assemblages from a sediment core taken in 2001. Our results indicate a shift to the pre-impact diatom assemblages in the most recent sediments, indicating that the paleolimnological record is tracking the decreased nutrient inputs to this high arctic lake, and confirms that no significant lags exist in these largely ice-covered lakes.     

Limnological and Climatic Environments at Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon during the past 45 000 years

Upper Klamath Lake, in south-central Oregon, contains long sediment records with well-preserved diatoms and lithological variations that reflect climate-induced limnological changes. These sediment archives complement and extend high resolution terrestrial records along a north–south transect that includes areas influenced by the Aleutian Low and Subtropical High, which control both marine and continental climates in the western United States. The longest and oldest core collected in this study came from the southwest margin of the lake at Caledonia Marsh, and was dated by radiocarbon and tephrochronology to an age of about 45 ka. Paleolimnological interpretations of this core, based upon geochemical and diatom analyses, have been augmented by data from a short core collected from open water environments at nearby Howards Bay and from a 9-m core extending to 15 ka raised from the center of the northwestern part of Upper Klamath Lake. Pre- and full-glacial intervals of the Caledonia Marsh core are characterized and dominated by lithic detrital material. Planktic diatom taxa characteristic of cold-water habitats (Aulacoseira subarctica and A. islandica) alternate with warm-water planktic diatoms (A. ambigua) between 45 and 23 ka, documenting climate changes at millennial scales during oxygen isotope stage (OIS) 3. The full-glacial interval contains mostly cold-water planktic, benthic, and reworked Pliocene lacustrine diatoms (from the surrounding Yonna Formation) that document shallow water conditions in a cold, windy environment. After 15 ka, diatom productivity increased. Organic carbon and biogenic silica became significant sediment components and diatoms that live in the lake today, indicative of warm, eutrophic water, became prominent. Lake levels fell during the mid-Holocene and marsh environments extended over the core site. This interval is characterized by high levels of organic carbon from emergent aquatic vegetation (Scirpus) and by the Mazama ash (7.55 ka), generated by the eruption that created nearby Crater Lake. For a brief time the ash increased the salinity of Upper Klamath Lake. High concentrations of molybdenum, arsenic, and vanadium indicate that Caledonia Marsh was anoxic from about 7 to 5 ka. After the mid-Holocene, shallow, but open-water environments returned to the core site. The sediments became dominated (>80%) by biogenic silica. The open-water cores show analogous but less extreme limnological and climatic changes more typical of mid-lake environments. Millennial-scale lake and climate changes during OIS 3 at Upper Klamath Lake contrast with a similar record of variation at Owens Lake, about 750 km south. When Upper Klamath Lake experienced cold-climate episodes during OIS 3, Owens Lake had warm but wet episodes; the reverse occurred during warmer intervals at Upper Klamath Lake. Such climatic alternations apparently reflect the variable position and strength of the Aleutian Low during the mid-Wisconsin.     

Factors affecting diatom distribution in floodplain lakes of the southeast Murray Basin,Australia and implications for palaeolimnological studies

Diatom assemblages of surface sediments in 46 billabongs from four river floodplains in the southeast Murray-Darling Basin, Australia were sampled to investigate drivers of species distribution. The principal purpose of the study was to derive information to aid interpretation of diatom-based palaeoecological studies of these systems and of floodplain lakes more generally. Patterns in billabong diatom assemblages in relation to river reach, hydrology and farming intensity on surrounding land were examined, as were correlations with water quality variables. Seasonal variation in billabong water quality was high relative to spatial variation, and spatial patterns in billabong water quality were weak. In contrast, strong patterns were evident in diatom assemblages. Three main patterns were observed: (1) a distinction between billabongs dominated by planktonic diatoms from those dominated by benthic and attached forms; (2) differences in diatom assemblages in billabongs on different river reaches; and (3) differences in assemblages in billabongs with different hydrology. Of all water quality variables tested, total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN) and pH exerted the strongest independent influence on diatom distribution; however, only TP remained an important variable when species variation due to river reach, hydrology, and aquatic plant cover was taken into account. The weak influence of water quality on diatom distribution is interpreted as reflecting the dichotomy between plankton and non-plankton-dominated billabongs, the influence of hydrology and biogeography, the lack of strong spatial water quality gradients and the high degree of temporal variability in water quality. The findings show that diatom records from billabong sediments can provide evidence of long-term changes in the abundance of aquatic macrophytes and hydrology. They also suggest that merging calibration data sets across regions for the purpose of improving diatom transfer functions for water quality reconstruction is of limited value for floodplain lakes, and that performance is more likely to be gained by boosting site numbers within regions.     

Diatom assemblage response to Iroquoian and Euro-Canadian eutrophication of Crawford Lake,Ontario, Canada

Diatom and geochemical data from Crawford Lake, Ontario, have been used to document limnological responses to periods of cultural disturbance resulting from native Iroquoian occupation of the watershed (1268–1486 AD) and Euro-Canadian agriculture and deforestation (1867 AD–present). Here, we further develop the high-resolution nature of the Crawford Lake sediment record to examine the physical, chemical and biological aspects of limnological response to human disturbances in the lake catchment area with exceptional detail. We report detailed diatom abundance and flux data for individual taxa from Crawford Lake, and further describe the relationship between assemblage composition and environmental conditions using canonical correspondence analysis (CCA). Diatom assemblage data are used to calculate diatom inferred-total phosphorus (DI-TP) concentrations for the past ∼1,000 years. We also examine the diatom community response during and after periods of disturbance by Iroquoian and Euro-Canadian populations, and compare this response to existing geochemical proxies of lake production and new elemental geochemical indicators of catchment area erosion. In particular, we explore the differing limnological response to the two distinct periods of cultural eutrophication and examine the limnological processes that occurred during the period of␣low (or no) human activity (1487–1866 AD), when geochemical indicators of lake production recovered to pre-disturbance conditions, but diatom assemblages notably did not. Our results illustrate the highly susceptible nature of diatom communities to periods of anthropogenic disturbance, and emphasize that ecological indicators (such as diatom assemblages) should be included with other proxies (such as nutrient concentrations and physical characteristics) when assessing disturbance and recovery in lake systems.     

Diatom assemblages and water depth in Lake 239 (Experimental Lakes Area,Ontario): implications for paleoclimatic studies

Diatom assemblages in surface sediments were sampled along three transects in Lake 239, from the Experimental Lakes Area (NW Ontario), and analyzed in order to explore the relationship between modern species distributions and water depth. Approximately 170 diatom species were identified in surficial sediments at lake depths from 2 to 30 m. The species composition varied with sample depth but remained highly similar across all three transects. The main patterns of variation in the diatom assemblages across transects, derived from a detrended correspondence analysis (DCA), showed that assemblages were highly correlated (r = 0.97 to 0.98). At depths > 8 m the pattern of predominantly benthic composition changed to a planktonic assemblage dominated by Cyclotella stelligera. This depth currently corresponds to the depth of 1% light penetration as assessed from extinction coefficient measurements. Diatom species diversity increases with the switch to the near-shore benthic taxa in all three transects. Additionally, there is a large decrease in the ratio of chrysophyte scales to diatoms at depths < 8 m. Light transmission data from wet and dry periods over the last 35 years suggests that during dry periods the extent of the littoral zone should change by over 2 m. We suggest that cores along a transect from 8 to 14 m should provide a highly sensitive location for detailed paleoclimatic study.     

A paleolimnological record of anthropogenic disturbances at Holmes Lake,Adirondack Mountains,New York

Holmes Lake, Adirondack Mountains, New York, is a clear-water acidic lake that was treated with lime in 1983 to permit stocking of trout. Diatom assemblages in dated sediments reflect three anthropogenic modifications of the lake ecosystem: 1) assemblages from the mid- and late 1800's are associated with historical and sedimentary records of forest clearance, and indicate slightly increased pH; 2) acidobiontic species increase in sediments from the mid-1900's, a period of local reforestation and regionally increasing anthropogenic acid loading; 3) liming caused large increases of circumneutral periphytic species in the first growing season, and decreases of acidobiontic species by the second.     

A novel method to infer historical DDT use on Cape Cod,Massachusetts (USA), based on ΣDDT degradation and <Superscript>210</Superscript>Pb dating in lake sediment cores

Glacier shrinkage and melting of snow patches caused by the current phase of warming is having a profound impact on lake ecosystems located in glacierized environments at high altitude and/or latitude because it alters the hydrology and the physico-chemistry of the river discharges and catchment runoff. These changes, in turn, have a major impact on the biota of these lakes. In this study, we combined geochemical and diatom analyses of a sediment core retrieved from Lake Kanas (N.W. China) to assess how climate change has affected this ecosystem over the past ~ 100 years. Our results show that the aquatic ecosystem of Lake Kanas was sensitive to changes in the regional climate over that period of time. The lake has been affected by change in hydrology (e.g. influx of glacier meltwater, variations in precipitation) and change in hydrodynamics (water column stability). The variations in abundance and composition of the diatom assemblages observed in the sedimentary record have been subtle and are complex to interpret. The principal changes in the diatom community were: (1) a rise in diatom accumulation rates starting in the AD 1970s that is coeval with changes observed in temperate lakes of the Northern Hemisphere and (2) an increase in species diversity and assemblage turnover and a faster rate-of-change since ~ AD 2000. The diatom community is expected to change further with the projected melting of the Kanas glacier throughout the twenty-first century.