Periphyton dynamics in a subalpine mountain stream during winter
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Abstract
We conducted two experiments to determine the activity of and factors which control periphyton during winter in Stevensville Brook, Vermont. The first experiment during winter/spring 1994 examined the effect of a 300 to 450% difference in light and doubling of flow (low and high light, slow and fast flow) on periphyton chlorophyll a (chl a) and ash-free dry mass (AFDM) from stream rocks and artificial substrata. A second experiment was performed to determine whether periphyton was nitrogen or phosphorus limited. In addition, stream water was sampled during fall/winter 1994/95 for nitrate (NO3), ammonia (NH4), soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), and total phosphorus (TP) to determine the availability of nutrients in Stevensville Brook. Increases of up to 250% for AFDM and 600% for chl a during the first study indicated robust activity throughout the winter despite low temperatures and light. Flow had a negative effect and sampling date was found to have a significant effect on periphyton biomass (chl a and AFDM) while light was found to influence increases in AFDM on clay tiles only. Water analyses showed that SRP was less than 0.001 mg L−1, NH4 and TP were low and often undetectable, and NO3 remained at about 0.20 mg L−1. Results from the nutrient enrichment experiment showed a significant response of chl a to P but not N and no response of AFDM to enrichment with either N or P. In Stevensville Brook during winter, the algal community, as represented by the chl a concentration, is predominantly controlled by phosphorus concentrations and is influenced to a lesser extent by flow; the periphyton community as a whole, represented by AFDM, is controlled mostly by stream flow and light.
Study Area
Publication type | Article |
---|---|
Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
Title | Periphyton dynamics in a subalpine mountain stream during winter |
Series title | Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research |
DOI | 10.1080/15230430.2000.12003348 |
Volume | 32 |
Issue | 2 |
Year Published | 2000 |
Language | English |
Publisher | Taylor& Francis |
Description | 8 p. |
First page | 127 |
Last page | 134 |
Country | United States |
State | Vermont |
Other Geospatial | Stevensville Brook |
Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |