Eutrophisation et faune benthique de trois lacs de montagne

Zoobenthic communities were used to indicate the trophic state of three mountain lakes of western Switzerland. In these lakes, the macrobenthos was constituted mainly by oligochaetes and chironomid larvae;Tubifex tubifex was the most abundant worm species. In Lakes Lioson and Hongrin, the abundance of zoobenthos did not change or increased slightly with depth andStylodrilus heringianus was present. In Lake Chavonnes, zoobenthos decreased strongly with depth and it consisted mainly ofTubifex tubifex. These data, compared with those from other oligotrophic lakes, indicated that Lake Chavonnes was eutrophic whereas Lakes Lioson and Hongrin were oligotrophic. However, Lake Hongrin—an artificial lake made in 1968—constituted a special case. Its water comes in part from mountain rivers and in part from Lake Geneva. Consequently, some benthic species of Lake Geneva have colonized Lake Hongrin and its water is warmer than in a typical mountain lake.