Open AccessCarbon, Nitrogen, and Phosphorus Stoichiometric Response to Hydrologic Extremes in a Tributary to Lake Erie, USA
Author(s) -
Smith D. R.,
Jarvie H. P.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
agricultural and environmental letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.681
H-Index - 12
ISSN - 2471-9625
DOI - 10.2134/ael2018.08.0043
Subject(s) - tributary , redfield ratio , environmental science , hydrology (agriculture) , ditch , effluent , phosphorus , ecological stoichiometry , water quality , tile drainage , environmental chemistry , nutrient , chemistry , environmental engineering , ecology , soil science , geology , soil water , biology , phytoplankton , geography , cartography , geotechnical engineering , organic chemistry
Core Ideas C/N/P stoichiometry at the 5th and 95th percentile of discharge was compared. Extreme low‐flow stoichiometry was N or P limited relative to other nutrients. Extreme high‐flow N contributions from tile push stoichiometry toward the Redfield ratio. Wastewater outflow pushes third‐order stream to the Redfield ratio for low and high flow.Anthropogenic activities are a major cause of water quality impairment. We evaluated how hydrologic extremes (5th and 95th percentile of flow) affect carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) stoichiometry in a tile‐drained agricultural tributary to Lake Erie. Water samples collected (2003–2009) from three sites along one agricultural drainage ditch and its receiving third‐order stream were analyzed for C, N, and P. The C/N/P concentrations were transformed to compare against the Redfield ratio (106:16:1 C/N/P), ideal for algal proliferation. Nitrogen was depleted relative to C and P at two sites on the agricultural ditch during extreme low‐flow conditions, whereas P was depleted to C and N at the third. Tile drainage N and P losses during high flows shifted stoichiometry toward the Redfield ratio. Stoichiometry in the third‐order stream was near the Redfield ratio at both hydrologic extremes, likely from wastewater treatment plant effluent.