Late Miocene lacustrine sedimentation in the Mytilinii Basin,Samos Island,Greece

The Mytilinii Basin, eastern Samos Island, Greece, is one of many basins that developed in southeastern Europe during the Upper Neogene. The oldest lacustrine portion is of Late Miocene age, and besides tuffs, includes bituminous limestones, marlstones, dolostones and porcelanites of the Pythagorion Formation, and the limestones and diatomites of the overlying Hora Beds. Younger sedimentary rocks of Turolian through Pliocene age partially covered the Pythagorion Formation and Hora Beds (PFHB). Diatom floras range from well preserved to highly corroded and from sparse to abundant. The main taxa include Cyclotella aegaea, C. aegaea var. pythagoria, an unidentified Cyclotella and Nitzschia frustulum, and less common Epithemia turgida, E. reichelti, Synedra ulna, Tryblionella granulata, Encyonema silesiaca, Diploneis ovalis and Cocconeis placentula. Chrysophyte cysts, Hydrobia molluscs and trace fossils occur sporadically. The environmental evolution of the PFHB can be divided into three major stages. Fluctuating shallow to deeper waters in a saline lake characterized Stage A. Saline lake and playa environments with evidence for frequent earthquake events in the form of convolute bedding, drape folds and brecciated sediments characterized Stage B. During Stage C, the lake may have partially or completely split into two separate lakes. In the southeast, a saline playa passed laterally into a deeper-water lake. Locally, fresher-water ponds occurred. Subsequently, a deeper, possibly oligotrophic lake developed. In contrast, a saline lake with abundant diatoms formed in the northwest of the basin, in which diatom blooms led to whiting events and deposition of carbonate laminae. Cyclotella dominated the early floras in this water body, with later assemblages being co-dominated by Cyclotella and Nitzschia frustulum, possibly reflecting seasonal changes. Sedimentation was terminated by uplift and (or) increasing aridity associated with the Messinian Salinity Crisis.     

Relationships between hydrological and limnological conditions in lakes of the Slave River Delta (NWT,Canada) and quantification of their roles on sedimentary diatom assemblages

Water chemistry and surface sediments were analyzed from 41 shallow lakes representing three previously-defined hydrological categories in the Slave River Delta, Northwest Territories, Canada, in order to identify relationships between hydrological and limnological conditions and their associations with recently deposited diatom assemblages. Evaporation-dominated lakes are physically removed from the influence of the Slave River, and are characterized by high alkalinity and high concentrations of nutrients and ions. In contrast, flood-dominated lakes tend to receive a pulse of floodwater from the Slave River during the spring thaw and have low alkalinity and low concentrations of most nutrients and ions. Exchange-dominated lakes are variably influenced by floodwaters from the Slave River and seiche events from Great Slave Lake throughout the spring thaw and open-water season, and are characterized by a broad array of limnological conditions that are largely dependent on the strength of the connection to these sources of floodwater. Specific diatom ‘indicator’ taxa have been identified that can discriminate these three hydrological lake categories. Evaporation-dominated lakes are associated with high relative abundance of common epiphytic diatom taxa, while diatoms indicative of flood- and exchange-dominated lakes span a wide range of habitat types (epiphytic, benthic) but also include unique planktonic diatoms (Stephanodiscus and Cyclostephanos taxa) that were not found in surface sediments of evaporation-dominated lakes. The planktonic diatom taxa originate from the Slave River, and thus are indicative of river influence. In complex, remote, freshwater ecosystems like the Slave River Delta, integration of results from hydrological and limnological approaches provides a necessary foundation to assess present, past and future hydroecological responses to changes in river discharge and climate.     

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.     

A reference typology of low alkalinity lakes in the UK based on pre-acidification diatom assemblages from lake sediment cores

This paper has two aims: (1) to show for the first time how a natural typology can be established using palaeoecological methods; and (2) to show how it can be used in lake restoration studies with respect to the definition of recovery targets for acidified lakes. By defining the characteristic reference assemblages for low alkalinity site types rather than for a specific site it allows success to be measured more broadly, unconstrained by the specific composition of the pre-acidification flora. We analyse statistically the pre-acidification diatom assemblages of sediment cores from 121 low alkalinity lakes in the UK in order to assess whether a reference typology for such lakes can be defined on the basis of their diatom floras. We use samples dating to ~1850 AD to represent pre-acidification conditions. The results show that three main clusters can be identified, two dominated by benthic taxa (Clusters 1 and 3) and one dominated by planktonic taxa (Cluster 2). Cluster 1 is characterised by taxa such as Brachysira vitrea, Cymbella microcephala and Fragilaria spp., Cluster 2 by Cyclotella comensis, C. radiosa, Asterionella formosa, Aulacoseira subarctica and Achnanthes minutissima and Cluster 3 by Eunotia incisa, Frustulia rhomboides var. saxonica, Fragilaria virescens var. exigua, and Cymbella perpusilla. Although environmental data for 1850 AD are not available it is apparent from the contemporary distribution of the taxa in the different clusters that Cluster 2 represents the most alkaline pre-acidification conditions. Some sites in this cluster have been acidified, but some, especially the larger, deeper lakes have been enriched. Cluster 1 includes sites that contain diatoms with relatively high pH optima (pH 6.4–7.4) whereas Cluster 3 sites contain diatoms with the lowest pre-acidification pH conditions in the data-set. Sites in this cluster also have the lowest base cation concentrations at the present day and include the sites in the UK that have been most affected by acid deposition.     

Paleoenvironmental inferences from diatom assemblages of the middle Miocene Shanwang Formation,Shandong, China

Diatoms were analyzed in a laminated sediment sequence from the middle Miocene, lacustrine Shanwang Formation, Shandong Province, eastern China, to reconstruct past conditions in the lake and evaluate relationships between inferred changes in the aquatic and terrestrial environments. Changes in the diatom assemblages over the 22.9-m-long sediment sequence were used to assign 19 lithologic layers to five zones. In Zone 1, Aulacoseira cf. distans and Melosira youngi were dominant in diatomaceous laminations. In Zone 2, only a few Aulacoseira spp. and Cymbella spp. were found in the yellow-green mudstone samples. In Zone 3, benthic pennate taxa, such as Fragilaria, Pinnularia, and Cymbella dominated in parts of the laminites. In Zone 4, Aulacoseira taxa regained dominance, and in Zone 5, benthic diatoms were found in only one sample. Shifts in the diatom assemblages and other sedimentological evidence indicate a change in the water level from a relatively deep system (>8–12 m) to a mudflat, then fluctuating water levels (8–12 m), shallower conditions (4–8 m), and finally a terrestrial environment. Abundant Aulacoseira indicate not only cold water, but also wind-induced turbulence. Water depth fluctuations coincided with the aridity index, reflected by terrestrial plant fossils in the sediments. Water pH, total phosphorus (TP), and total organic carbon (TOC) reconstructions were undertaken using the European Diatom Database (EDDI), and results showed a correlation between fluctuating water levels and volcanic activity in Zone 3.     

Reconstructing nutrient histories in the Norfolk Broads, UK: implications for the role of diatom-total phosphorus transfer functions in shallow lake management

The fossil diatom records preserved in radiometrically dated sediment cores from four shallow lakes in the Norfolk Broads, UK (Barton Broad, Rollesby Broad, Wroxham Broad and Upton Broad) were analysed. A weighted-averaging partial least squares (WA-PLS) diatom-total phosphorus (TP) transfer function, based on a training set of 152 mostly shallow (maximum depth < 3 m) lakes in northwest Europe, was applied to the full diatom dataset for each core to reconstruct the past TP concentrations of the lakes. Owing to the dominance of non-planktonic Staurosira, Pseudostaurosira and Staurosirella spp. (formerly classified in the genus Fragilaria) throughout the diatom records, the quantitative diatom inferred TP (DI-TP) concentrations did not adequately reflect the changes that occurred in the lakes as indicated by shifts in the other diatom taxa, or as reported in the literature. This was most apparent at Barton Broad and Rollesby Broad, where there was a marked increase in the importance of planktonic taxa associated with highly nutrient-rich waters but no increase in DI-TP. The modern and fossil data were thus square-root transformed to downweight the dominant taxa and the new transfer function was applied to the cores. An improvement was seen only in the reconstruction for Barton Broad. Finally, the Staurosira, Pseudostaurosira and Staurosirella spp. were removed from the modern and fossil diatom data, and the transfer function was re-applied. The trends in DI-TP became less clear, particularly for Upton Broad and Barton Broad, owing to a paucity of data for calibration once these taxa were deleted from the counts data. The problems associated with reconstructing trophic status and determining TP targets for restoration from fossil diatom assemblages in these systems are discussed.     

Diatom and thecamoebian signatures of Red River (Manitoba and North Dakota) floods: Data collected from the 1997 and 1999 spring freshets

Overbank deposits that aggraded during the severe and moderate Red River, Manitoba and North Dakota floods of 1997 and 1999 were examined to characterize the typical diatom and thecamoebian flood assemblages. The deposits contain diatom assemblages dominated by Nitzschia spp., Stephanodiscus spp. and Navicula spp. as well as large quantities of Hantzschia amphioxys, Luticola imbricata and L. mutica and lesser amounts of Aulacoseira italica, A. granulata, A. ambigua, Cyclotella meneghiniana, Amphora montana and Synedra ulna. Samples collected from the Red River in late summer are dominated by the plankton Cyclotella atomus, species of Stephanodiscus, Cyclostephanos sp. 1 (cf. delicatus), Cyclotella meneghiniana, Nitzschia reversa and Nitzschia acicularis. Late summer, floodplain lake plankton are dominated by Fragilaria capucina, Cocconeis placentula, Stephanodiscus parvus/minutulus and Cyclotella atomus. Red River thecamoebian flood assemblages are dominated by Cyclopyxis spp., with lesser amounts of Centropyxis aculeata and Arcella vulgaris. Late summer water samples from the Red River contain very few thecamoebian remains. The majority of the taxa present are Centropyxis aculeata, Arcella vulgaris and Cyclopyxis spp. Floodplain lakes are dominated by benthic thecamoebians, especially Difflugia oblonga and Cucurbitella tricuspis, a eutrophic indicator. The results of this baseline study suggest that diatom and thecamoebian assemblages can characterize flood deposits, within floodplain lake basins, during both very high and moderately high flood years, and that these assemblages are inherently different from those typically found in lakes along the Red River.     

Spatial and temporal distribution of diatoms in sediments of Lake Malawi,Central Africa,and ecological implications

Lake Malawi lies in a major rift valley in Central Africa that is some 700 m deep and 550 km long. A total of 242 cores and 111 grab samples were recovered between 1984 and 1989 and form the data base for a study of diatom distribution in this lake basin. The sediments consist of homogeneous diatomites, pelagic diatomaceous muds, varved diatomite-mud couplets, turbidites, littoral sand sheets and extensive deposits of ferro-manganous nodules.Fossil diatoms show major temporal and regional contrasts between the southern, central and northern areas of the lake. A wide variety of Aulacoseira species occur in the southern lake sediments. To the north, the Nkhotakota region is generally characterised by Stephanodiscus and Aulacoseira, with occasional diatomite laminae composed of Aulacoseira or Nitzschia. The central parts of the lake show the greatest variation, with Stephanodiscus, Nitzschia and Aulacoseira all being prominent. The northern region is dominated by Aulacoseira nyassensis throughout most core sequences.Variability in these assemblages appears to be controlled by Si:P ratios, Si concentrations, turbulence and light penetration. These factors themselves are influenced by differences in the depth and duration of lake mixing due to variations in wind strength, seiches and bottom topography among different regions of the lake and from lakewide circulation patterns.     

Ecological distribution of scaled-chrysophyte assemblages from the sediments of 54 lakes in Nova Scotia and southern New Brunswick,Canada

Chrysophyte scales have been used in several paleolimnological studies to track long-term environmental change, however little data exist for the many lakes in the Maritime provinces of eastern Canada. As part of a multi-disciplinary investigation of acidification and other environmental stressors in the Maritimes, chrysophytes scales were identified and enumerated from the sediments of 52 lakes from Nova Scotia and two lakes from New Brunswick. A total of 25 chrysophyte taxa were identified from the surface sediments, reflecting the modern-day chrysophyte assemblages. The dominant species included Mallamonas duerrschmidtiae and Mallomonas acaroides. Taxa of the genus Synura were present in some lakes, but mainly in the more southern sites. In general, the floras were less diverse than those recorded from similar studies in other temperate regions. This may be related to the fact that the calibration lake set contained only a relatively short limnological gradient, and the assemblages reflect the acidic to circumneutral conditions of these lakes. Synura petersenii, a taxon that has been linked to imparting taste and odor problems to lakes, and had been shown to increase in the recent sediments of many other Canadian lakes, was only rarely present. In contrast to other studies, scaled chrysophytes were very rare in the pre-industrial sediments, with substantial nineteenth century populations only present in four relatively deep (>19 m) lakes. Detailed stratigraphic analyses of eight sediment cores revealed that scaled-chrysophyte assemblages increased dramatically during the latter part of the twentieth century. Limnological changes associated with climate (e.g. increased thermal stratification due to a 1.5°C temperature increase since ~1850) may have influenced chrysophyte distributions in these lakes.     

Diatom-inferred lake level from near-shore cores in a drainage lake from the Experimental Lakes Area,northwestern Ontario,Canada

We inferred late Holocene lake-level changes from a suite of near-shore gravity cores collected in Lake 239 (Rawson Lake), a headwater lake in the Experimental Lakes Area, northwestern Ontario. Results were reproduced across all cores. A gravity core from the deep central basin was very similar to the near-shore cores with respect to trends in the percent abundance of the dominant diatom taxon, Cylcotella stelligera. The central basin, however, does not provide a sensitive site for reconstruction of lake-level changes because of the insensitivity of the diatom model at very high percentages of C. stelligera and other planktonic taxa. Quantitative estimates of lake level are based on a diatom-inferred depth model that was developed from surficial sediments collected along several depth transects in Lake 239. The lake-level reconstructions during the past ~3,000 years indicate that lake depth varied on average by ±2 m from present-day conditions, with maximum rises of ~3–4 m and maximum declines of ~3.5–5 m. The diatom-inferred depth record indicates several periods of persistent low levels during the nineteenth century, from ~900 to 1100 AD, and for extended periods prior to ~1,500 years ago. Periods of inferred high lake levels occurred from ~500 to 900 AD and ~1100 to 1650 AD. Our findings suggest that near-shore sediments from small drainage lakes in humid climates can be used to assess long-term fluctuations in lake level and water availability.     

Changes in diatom assemblages since pre-industrial times in 40 reference lakes from the Experimental Lakes Area (northwestern Ontario,Canada)

Diatom assemblages in recent versus pre-industrial sediments were examined in 40 relatively undisturbed lakes from the Experimental Lakes Area (ELA). The ELA region of northwestern Ontario receives low amounts of acidic deposition and the lakes have been minimally disturbed by watershed development or other human activities. Consequently, this region represents an important location to detect possible changes in lakes due to climate change. In over half of the lakes, planktonic taxa (especially Discostella stelligera) increased between 10 and 40% since pre-industrial times. Changes in diatom assemblages are consistent with taxa that would benefit from enhanced stratification and a longer ice-free season. We hypothesized that there should be a relationship between stratification and measured chemical and physical characteristics of the study lakes. Multiple correlation analysis was undertaken to see the relationship between planktonic taxa and D. stelligera since pre-industrial times and the physical and chemical characteristics of the study lakes. Lake depth was consistently identified as an important variable. The timing of the increase in planktonic taxa within cores from these lakes will be needed to rule out other possible regional changes that may also be occurring in the ELA region.     

A combined paleolimnological/genetic analysis of diatoms reveals divergent evolutionary lineages of Staurosira and Staurosirella (Bacillariophyta) in Siberian lake sediments along a latitudinal transect

Diatom diversity in lakes of northwest Yakutia (Siberia) was investigated by microscopic and genetic analysis of surface and cored lake sediments, to evaluate the use of sedimentary DNA for paleolimnological diatom studies and to identify obscure genetic diversity that cannot be detected by microscopic methods. Two short (76 and 73 bp) and one longer (577 bp) fragments of the ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (rbcL) gene, encoding the large subunit of the rbcL, were used as genetic markers. Diverse morphological assemblages of diatoms, dominated by small benthic fragilarioid taxa, were retrieved from the sediments of each lake. These minute fragilarioid taxa were examined by scanning electron microscopy, revealing diverse morphotypes in Staurosira and Staurosirella from the different lakes. Genetic analyses indicated a dominance of haplotypes that were assigned to fragilarioid taxa and less genetic diversity in other diatom taxa. The long rbcL_577 amplicon identified considerable diversification among haplotypes clustering within the Staurosira/Staurosirella genera, revealing 19 different haplotypes whose spatial distribution appears to be primarily related to the latitude of the lakes, which corresponds to a vegetation and climate gradient. Our rbcL markers are valuable tools for tracking differences between diatom lineages that are not visible in their morphologies. These markers revealed putatively high genetic diversity within the Staurosira/Staurosirella species complex, at a finer scale than is possible to resolve by microscopic determination. The rbcL markers may provide additional reliable information on the diversity of barely distinguishable minute benthic fragilarioids. Environmental sequencing may thus allow the tracking of spatial and temporal diversification in Siberian lakes, especially in the context of diatom responses to recent environmental changes, which remains a matter of controversy.     

Use of paleolimnology to document the effect of lake shoreland development on water quality

Four Wisconsin, USA lakes were examined with paleolimnological techniques to determine the effects of shoreland development on water quality. Geochemical parameters such as aluminum, iron, manganese, phosphorus, nitrogen, and carbon were used to document watershed inputs while redox sensitive elements provided information on changes in hypolimnetic oxygen levels. Changes in the diatom community were used to assess the impacts of development upon the lakes' trophic status as well as changes in the littoral community. We assessed the relative sensitivity of high vs. low ANC lakes.The initial shoreland development, late in the 19^th or early in the 20^th century, involved seasonal cabins and minimal disturbance of the shoreland. This development phase had minimal impact upon the lakes compared to that during the mid- and late-twentieth century. Increased levels of iron and aluminum indicated the highest input of sediment occurred during the construction phase of converting shoreland homes from seasonal to year-round usage. Phosphorus deposition increased moderately in the high alkalinity lakes but more so in the low alkalinity lakes. In the low alkalinity stratified lake, increased levels of iron and manganese in the last decade indicated more anoxia in the hypolimnion. Phosphorus levels have also increased during this time period most likely as a result of elevated phosphorus release from the sediments.In the high alkalinity lakes, as the nutrient levels increased, diatom production initially shifted from benthic taxa of the family Fragilariaceae to metalimnetic taxa and as nutrients increased further, epilimnetic species. In the low alkalinity lakes, prior to settlement the major site of diatom prodution was the open water. Coincidental with the early shoreland development was an increase of macrophyte density as indicated by the epiphytic diatom Achnanthidium minutissimum ((Kützing) Czarnecki (= Achnanthes minutissima Kützing). The water quality in the high alkalinity lakes showed some improvement following completion of the home construction phase, especially in the lake with lower development density. The low alkalinity lakes did not show improved water quality and appear more sensitive to shoreland development.     

Late Wisconsinan and Holocene diatom stratigraphy from Amarok Lake,Baffin Island,N.W.T., Canada

Diatom analyses from the longest continuous record of lacustrine sedimentation in the eastern Canadian Arctic indicate four phases of lake development during the past 20000 years. PlanktonicAulacoseira taxa are dominant between 20 and 10 ka and during the Neoglacial. The earliest Holocene is characterized byFragilaria, whereas benthic acidophils (e.g.Frustulia, Brachysira & Eunotia spp.) dominate sediments of early to mid Holocene age. Ordination by correspondence analysis illustrates stratigraphic changes in diatom life form and pH tolerances, and these are related to both regional paleoclimatic conditions and local edaphic factors. The occurrences of planktonic floras during the cold Late Foxe and Neoglacial periods suggests that, even at these times, the lake became ice free during summer. The interplay of increased runoff as a mechanism of ice disintegration and enhanced silicon supply by erosional processes (corroborated by the more clastic nature of the sediments during these periods) likely enabledAulacoseira to flourish. Early and mid Holocene limnological regimes were more strongly controlled by lake authigenic processes.This paper was presented at the VI Palaeolimnology Symposium, held at Canberra in April 1993. Dr. Mark Brenner guest edited this contribution.     

Diatomaceous sedimentation in the Tertiary Lampang Basin, Northern Thailand

The Lampang Basin is the second largest Tertiary graben in northern Thailand and was formed in response to the Himalayan orogeny. Deposition started with Miocene sandstone, lignite, mudstone, shale and oil shale of the Mae Sot Formation, which gave way to Pliocene diatomite, diatomaceous clay and silty clay of the Ko Kha Formation, with coarse clastics being restricted to the basin margins. Secondary iron-staining and iron-rich nodules are also common in the latter formation.Diatoms only occur in the Ko Kha Formation, where they are abundant and well-preserved. Five assemblages, indicative of fresh to moderately alkaline water, are present. These floras are variously dominated by Aulacoseira granulata, A. granulata var. valida, A. agassizi, A goetzeana, A. ambigua, A. italica var. bacilligera and A. italica var. tenuissima. Pennate species are present, but infrequent.During the Pliocene, in the Ban Pa Muang area, non-diatomaceous lacustrine sediments were initially laid down. These gave way to the deposition of diatomaceous clays and diatomites dominated by A. granulata and A. agassizi, which flourished in the deeper and shallower sectors (respectively) of a fresh water body. The palaeolake then became mildly alkaline, with a flora dominated by A. granulata var. valida. Shallow, fresh conditions followed, characterised by varied Aulacoseira diatoms, before the lake again became deeper. This latter phase may be related to increased river recharge.     

Palaeolimnology of the Upper Lerma Basin,Central Mexico: a record of climatic change and anthropogenic disturbance since 11 600 yr BP

The Upper Río Lerma valley, Estado de México, is a high-altitude (2575 m a.s.l.) basin floored by Quaternary alluvial, lacustrine and pyroclastic deposits. Two pits were dug in the swampy bed of the recently drained L. Chiconahuapan. Ten ¹⁴C dates have been obtained from these profiles, which consist of diatomaceous organic lake muds and peats with intercalated tephras. The oldest unit is the Upper Toluca Pumice (Tripartite Ash), dated 11 580±70 yr BP. Analyses of sediment chemistry, loss-onignition, mineral-magnetic variations and subfossil diatom assemblages provide evidence of environmental changes since this date. Alkaline ponds or freshwater lakes developed during the intervals 9000–6000, 6000–5500, 3600–1400 and 800–0 yr BP, and acidic marshes or bogs during the intervening dry episodes. An important phase of accelerated erosion, beginning around 3100 yr BP and culminating around 1400–700 yr BP, appears to have been associated with human disturbance of the basin soils.     

Lake-Sediment Records of Recent Environmental Change on Svalbard: Results of Diatom Analysis

Surface sediments from 23 lakes on Svalbard were analysed for diatoms. About 182 taxa were found but samples generally have a low richness, with the majority of sites dominated by benthic genera such as Fragilaria, Navicula, and Achnanthes. Centric Cyclotella species occur at only three sites. Modern relationships between diatom abundance and water chemistry and other environmental variables were explored numerically and a preliminary transfer function for pH was developed. Lakes fell into three groups on the basis of their diatom assemblages: (1) high pH, high cation, high conductivity sites characterised by Amphora libyca, (2) shallow sites with relatively high nutrient values characterised by Fragilaria species, and (3) more acid and dilute sites with high amounts of snow cover in the catchments characterised by small Achnanthes species and Navicula digitulus. Five sediment cores representing the recent past were also analysed for diatoms. Three shallow sites were dominated by Fragilaria species throughout the period represented by the cores and no shifts in inferred pH were found. At two deeper sites (Arresjøen, Birgervatnet) major assemblage shifts are found which are unrelated to independent evidence for atmospheric contamination. Early (ca. 1200 AD) changes found at both sites are possibly related to the onset of the ‘Little Ice Age’. Later changes are neither synchronous nor similar in nature and might be best explained as individual responses to the recovery from the ‘Little Ice Age’ and subsequent climatic warming.     

Responses of Fragilarioid-dominated diatom assemblages in a small Arctic lake to Holocene climatic changes, Russell Island, Nunavut, Canada

We present a paleolimnological record spanning the Holocene from a small lake on Russell Island (Lake PW02), in the central Canadian Arctic Archipelago (74.07° N, 97.77° W, 182 m asl). Fragilarioid diatom types in the genera Pseudostaurosira, Staurosira and Staurosirella constitute >90% of valves in fossil samples. Using modern biogeographic data which specify the temperature optima of the Fragilarioid diatom taxa, we present new inferences about the timing of paleoclimatic changes in the central Arctic islands. The early Holocene was characterized by maximum values for sediment organic matter, and lower ratios of Staurosirella pinnata to Staurosira construens v. venter, suggesting warm summer air temperatures between about 9500−6500 cal year BP. Influxes of biogenic silica and diatom valves decreased following 4000 cal year BP, the sediment accumulation rate slowed and diatom taxa of the littoral zone diversified, suggesting cooler summers and more persistent lake ice. Variations in the species composition of the assemblages indicate paleoclimatic changes that are in broad agreement with other paleoenvironmental records from the Arctic including melt records from the Agassiz Ice Cap. Although autecological data remain incomplete for Fragilarioid taxa, our results indicate differences in these taxa in responses to paleoenvironmental change and underline the potential for the increased use of these taxa in paleoenvironmental reconstructions. The record from Lake PW02, as in other records from Arctic lakes with low algal diversity throughout the Holocene, shows a pronounced increase in diatom diversity since the 1920s, and diatom production since the 1970s far exceeds any recorded during the Holocene.     

Functional attributes of epilithic diatoms for palaeoenvironmental interpretations in South-West Greenland lakes

Benthic diatoms are commonly used for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction in Arctic regions, but interpretation of their ecology remains challenging. We studied epilithic diatom assemblages from the shallow margins of 19 lakes from three areas (coast-inland-ice sheet margin) along a climate gradient in Kangerlussuaq, West Greenland during two periods; shortly after ice-off (spring) and in the middle of the growth season (summer). We aimed to understand the distribution of Arctic epilithic diatoms in relation to water chemistry gradients during the two seasons, to investigate their incorporation into lake sediments and to assess their applicability as palaeoenvironmental indicators. Diatoms were correlated with nutrients in the spring and alkalinity/major ions in the summer, when nutrients were depleted; approximately half of the variance explained was independent of spatial factors. When categorised by functional attributes, diatom seasonal succession differed among regions with the most obvious changes in inland lakes where summer temperatures are warmer, organic nutrient processing is prevalent and silicate is limiting. These conditions led to small, motile and adnate diatoms being abundant in inland lakes during the summer (Nitzschia spp., Encyonopsis microcephala), as these functional attributes are suited to living within complex mats of non-siliceous microbial biofilms. Seasonal succession in silica-rich lakes at the coast was less pronounced and assemblages included Tabellaria flocculosa (indicating more acidic conditions) and Hannaea arcus (indicating input from inflowing rivers). The nitrogen-fixing diatom Epithemia sorex increased from the coast to the ice sheet, negatively correlating with a gradient of reactive nitrogen. The presence of this diatom in Holocene sediment records alongside cyanobacterial carotenoids during arid periods of low nitrogen delivery, suggests that it is a useful indicator of nitrogen limitation. Nitzschia species appear to be associated with high concentrations of organic carbon and heterotrophy, but their poor representation in West Greenland lake sediments due to taphonomic processes limits their palaeoenvironmental application in this region. Proportions of epilithic taxa in lake sediment records of coastal lakes increased during some wetter periods of the Holocene, suggesting that snowpack-derived nutrient delivery may offer diatom taxa living at lake margins a competitive advantage over planktonic diatoms during the “moating” ice melt period. Thus, further research investigating linkages between epilithic diatoms, snowpack and nutrient delivery in seasonally frozen lakes is recommended as these taxa live on the ‘front-line’ during the spring and may be especially sensitive to changes in snowmelt conditions.     

Cladocera as indicators of trophic state in Irish lakes

We examined the impact of lake trophic state on the taxonomic and functional structure of cladoceran communities and the role of nutrient loading in structuring both cladoceran and diatom communities. Surface sediment assemblages from 33 Irish lakes were analysed along a gradient of total phosphorus concentration (TP; 4.0–142.3 μg l⁻¹), using a variety of statistical approaches including ordination, calibration and variance partitioning. Ordination showed that the taxonomic structure of the cladoceran community displayed the strongest response to changes in lake trophic state, among 17 measured environmental variables. Trophic state variables chlorophyll-a and TP explained about 20% of the variance in both cladoceran and diatom assemblages from a set of 31 lakes. Procrustes analysis also showed significant concordance in the structure of cladoceran and diatom communities (P < 0.001). Thus, lake trophic state affects the taxonomic structure of both primary and secondary producers in our study lakes. We also found a significant decrease in relative abundance of taxa associated with both macrophytes and sediments, or sediments only, along the TP gradient (r = −0.49, P = 0.006, n = 30), as well as an increase in the proportion of the planktonic group (r = 0.43, P = 0.017, n = 30). This suggests that cladoceran community structure may also be shaped by lake trophic state indirectly, by affecting habitat properties. We found no relationship between lake trophic state and the relative abundance of each of three cladoceran groups that display different body size. We compared community structure between bottom and top sediment samples in cores from six Irish lakes. Results revealed similar trajectories of nutrient enrichment over time, as well as a strong shift in cladoceran functional structure in most systems. This study confirms that Cladocera remains in lake sediments are reliable indicators of lake trophic state. This study also highlights the fact that taxonomic and functional structure should both be considered to account for the multiple factors that shape cladoceran communities.