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Article Dans Une Revue Aquatic Sciences - Research Across Boundaries Année : 2013

Chara can outcompete Myriophyllum under low phosphorus supply

Résumé

In the course of re-oligotrophication in Lower Lake Constance, Germany, the tall-growing angiosperm Myriophyllum spicatum has been almost replaced by dense and lower-growing charophytes. We hypothesise that Chara globularis negatively affects the performance of M. spicatum due to density competition and nutrient interference. Intra-and interspecific competition was assessed using a response surface experimental design with different densities of both species in mono and mixed stands in an outdoor mesocosm experiment. After 8 weeks, we measured the growth and various functional traits of both species, including stoichiometry, ash-free dry mass and dry-matter content, and for M. spicatum, additionally chlorophyll content, leaf-mass fraction, formation of autofragments, and root/shoot ratio. With increasing density, C. globularis reduced the growth of M. spicatum much more strongly than that of conspecifics. Increasing density of C. globularis led to a lower chlorophyll a to b ratio and lower nitrogen content based on ash-free dry mass in M. spicatum as well as reduced autofragmentation. Established C. globularis meadows can negatively affect tall-growing angiosperms such as M. spicatum when the environmental conditions, such as low phosphorus availability and high water-clarity, are appropriate. These findings have implications for the management of lakes, specifically those where a nuisance growth of tall macrophytes occurs, e.g. in systems where M. spicatum is invasive.

Dates et versions

hal-01119563 , version 1 (23-02-2015)

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Doreen Richter, Elisabeth M. Gross. Chara can outcompete Myriophyllum under low phosphorus supply. Aquatic Sciences - Research Across Boundaries, 2013, 75 (3), pp.457-467. ⟨10.1007/s00027-013-0292-9⟩. ⟨hal-01119563⟩
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