Long-Term Environmental Change and Its Impact on Zooplankton Dynamics in Arctic Tundra Ponds

IF 2.7 2区生物学 Q2 ECOLOGY

Freshwater Biology Pub Date : 2026-04-17 DOI:10.1111/fwb.70216

Vanessa L. Lougheed, Christian G. Andresen, Krysta Lehman, Mariana Vargas Medrano, Bryan A. Yu

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Lakes and ponds are abundant in the Arctic tundra. Global warming is altering these freshwater ecosystems, enriching the water column, increasing biomass of algae and plants, and having the potential to shift the composition, dominance, and timing of emergence and reproduction of zooplankton communities. Capitalizing on historic data collected in the 1970s, the goal of this study was to determine how zooplankton communities have responded to this environmental change over a 40-year period.
Environmental data and zooplankton assemblages from six Arctic tundra ponds near Utqiaġvik, Alaska (USA) were recorded weekly from mid-June to mid-August in 2010 to 2012 and compared to data collected from the same ponds in 1971 to 1973.
The zooplankton community appeared to shift from one with high relative abundance of diaptomid copepods (from > 70% to < 25%, on average) to one with greater dominance by Daphnia middendorffiana (< 24% to > 25%) over a 40-year period. Changes in dominant species are likely attributable to warmer temperatures, increased food availability, as well as biotic interactions. Warmer spring temperatures were also associated with copepods reaching peak abundances earlier after overwintering. There were limited changes in species richness, although increased cover of vegetation expanding into the nearshore areas of the ponds likely led to increased abundance of plant-associated zooplankton and may have played a role in limiting dispersal among ponds, resulting in greater dissimilarity among ponds through time.
These changes in zooplankton abundance, timing of emergence, and spatial distribution may have important impacts on other components of the Arctic food web, including algae, as well as upper trophic levels that depend on zooplankton for food. Given that unprecedented warming is occurring and will likely continue into the future, these unique and abundant aquatic ecosystems must continue to be observed to predict, understand, and model future alterations, as these systems play critical ecological and biogeochemical roles in the Arctic ecosystem.

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北极冻土带池塘长期环境变化及其对浮游动物动态的影响

北极苔原上有许多湖泊和池塘。全球变暖正在改变这些淡水生态系统，丰富了水柱，增加了藻类和植物的生物量，并有可能改变浮游动物群落的组成、优势和出现和繁殖的时间。利用20世纪70年代收集的历史数据，这项研究的目标是确定浮游动物群落在40年的时间里是如何应对这种环境变化的。2010年至2012年6月中旬至8月中旬，对美国阿拉斯加州Utqiaġvik附近6个北极冻原池塘的环境数据和浮游动物组合进行了每周记录，并与1971年至1973年在同一池塘收集的数据进行了比较。在40年的时间里，浮游动物群落呈现出由双足类桡足类相对丰度较高的群落（平均从70%到25%）向中水蚤相对丰度较高的群落（从24%到25%）转变的趋势。优势物种的变化可能归因于气温升高、食物供应增加以及生物相互作用。温暖的春季温度也与桡足类在越冬后更早达到丰度峰值有关。物种丰富度的变化有限，尽管扩大到池塘近岸区域的植被覆盖增加可能导致与植物相关的浮游动物丰富度增加，并可能在限制池塘之间的扩散中发挥作用，导致池塘之间随着时间的推移存在更大的差异。这些浮游动物丰度、出现时间和空间分布的变化可能对北极食物网的其他组成部分产生重要影响，包括藻类，以及依赖浮游动物为食物的营养上层。鉴于前所未有的变暖正在发生，而且很可能会持续到未来，必须继续观察这些独特而丰富的水生生态系统，以预测、理解和模拟未来的变化，因为这些系统在北极生态系统中发挥着关键的生态和生物地球化学作用。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Freshwater Biology 生物-海洋与淡水生物学

CiteScore

5.90

自引率

3.70%

发文量

162

审稿时长

2 months

期刊介绍： Freshwater Biology publishes papers on all aspects of the ecology of inland waters, including rivers and lakes, ground waters, flood plains and other freshwater wetlands. We include studies of micro-organisms, algae, macrophytes, invertebrates, fish and other vertebrates, as well as those concerning whole systems and related physical and chemical aspects of the environment, provided that they have clear biological relevance. Studies may focus at any level in the ecological hierarchy from physiological ecology and animal behaviour, through population dynamics and evolutionary genetics, to community interactions, biogeography and ecosystem functioning. They may also be at any scale: from microhabitat to landscape, and continental to global. Preference is given to research, whether meta-analytical, experimental, theoretical or descriptive, highlighting causal (ecological) mechanisms from which clearly stated hypotheses are derived. Manuscripts with an experimental or conceptual flavour are particularly welcome, as are those or which integrate laboratory and field work, and studies from less well researched areas of the world. Priority is given to submissions that are likely to interest a wide range of readers. We encourage submission of papers well grounded in ecological theory that deal with issues related to the conservation and management of inland waters. Papers interpreting fundamental research in a way that makes clear its applied, strategic or socio-economic relevance are also welcome. Review articles (FRESHWATER BIOLOGY REVIEWS) and discussion papers (OPINION) are also invited: these enable authors to publish high-quality material outside the constraints of standard research papers.