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The relationship between nutrients and trophic‐level biomass in turbid tropical ponds
Author(s) -
Sarnelle Orlando,
Cooper Scott D.,
Wiseman Sheila,
Mavuti Kenneth M.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
freshwater biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.297
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1365-2427
pISSN - 0046-5070
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2427.1998.00332.x
Subject(s) - biomass (ecology) , nutrient , temperate climate , trophic level , zooplankton , eutrophication , trophic state index , turbidity , phosphorus , photic zone , environmental science , subtropics , ecology , biology , zoology , agronomy , phytoplankton , chemistry , organic chemistry
1. The total phosphorus–algal biomass relationship from a set of turbid tropical ponds in Kenya was compared with predictions derived from surveys of temperate and subtropical lakes. Despite high concentrations of total phosphorus (TP) (up to 797 μg L –1 ) and inorganic turbidity (up to 800 mg L –1 ), the log–log relationship between algal biomass and TP was steeper than expected. 2. No evidence of nitrogen limitation was found at high TP, and total nitrogen (TN):TP ratios were higher than in lakes with similar TP levels studied previously. High TN:TP ratios may be a consequence of excretion by cattle into the ponds, a nutrient source characterized by a high ratio of available N to available P. 3. Despite extremely high turbidity, the ratio of mixed layer depth to euphotic depth was generally low because these ponds are shallow (≤ 2 m), and was not related to algal yield. A positive relationship was also found between TP and zooplankton biomass, and between TP and the density of the zooplanktivorous bug, Anisops . In contrast, no relationship was found between fish biomass and TP, algal biomass or zooplankton biomass.