Improved prediction of vegetation composition in NW European softwater lakes by combining location,water and sediment chemistry |
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Authors: | Email author" target="_blank">Cristina?PulidoEmail author Kaj?Sand-Jensen Esther?C?H?E?T?Lucassen Jan?G?M?Roelofs Klaus?P?Brodersen Ole?Pedersen |
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Institution: | 1.Freshwater Biological Laboratory, Department of Biology,University of Copenhagen,Hiller?d,Denmark;2.B-WARE Research Centre, Radboud University Nijmegen,Nijmegen,The Netherlands;3.Department of Aquatic Ecology and Environmental Biology,Institute for Water and Wetland Research, Radboud University Nijmegen,Nijmegen,The Netherlands |
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Abstract: | Isoetids, as indicators of near-pristine softwater lakes, have a high priority in national and international (European Water
Directive Framework) assessments of ecological lake quality. Our main goal was to identify the most important environmental
factors that influence the composition of plant communities and specifically determine the presence and abundance of the isoetid
Lobelia dortmanna in NW European softwater lakes. Geographical position and composition of surface water, porewater, sediment and plant communities
were examined in 39 lakes in four regions (The Netherlands, Denmark, West Norway and East Norway) distributed over a 1,200-km
long distance. We confirmed that lake location was accompanied by significant changes in environmental variables between NW
European lakes. Lake location was the single most important determinant of vegetation composition and it had significant individual
contributions independent of the coupling to environmental variables. This influence of location was supported by a significant
decline of community similarity with geographical distance between pairs of lakes at regional, inter-regional and international
scales. Combining the geographical position with environmental variables for surface water, porewater and sediment significantly
improved prediction of vegetation composition. Specifically, the combination of latitude, surface water alkalinity, porewater
phosphate and redox potential offered the highest correlation (BIO ENV correlation 0.66) to vegetation composition. This complex
analysis can also account for high sediment variability in the littoral zone of individual lakes, by using site-specific physico-chemical
sediment factors, and offer better predictions of vegetation composition when lake water chemistry is relatively homogeneous
among lakes within regions. |
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