Dynamics of photosynthetic pigments in an Andean lake in Colombia

Guatavita Lake is a small, sheltered tropical high mountain lake located in the Colombian Andes, with a closed watershed and a maximum depth of 25 m. It is the freshwater source for human consumption in nearby small towns, as well as being a site of cultural value for the country, as it was a sacred place to indigenous peoples until about five centuries ago. As the structure and function of this aquatic ecosystem is poorly understood, this study provides initial knowledge on its phytoplankton biomass dynamics, which should be useful in designing efficient management plans with environmental baseline information for similar lakes elsewhere. Physical and chemical data, and photosynthetic pigment concentrations, were measured for the period November 1999–November 2000 at the central vertical axis of Guatavita Lake. The vertical profile of the chlorophyll‐a concentration was closely related to the dissolved inorganic nitrogen concentrations and the thermal stratification characteristics. The maximum chlorophyll‐a concentration in the metalimnion was recorded for the thermal stratification period (November 1999–June 2000). Deepening of the maximum chlorophyll‐a concentration began in February, continuing to June, when it reached its lowest value at the 15 m depth. The phytoplankton biomass values showed an increment within the entire water column at the beginning of the mixing period (July). The relation between the metalimnetic peak of chlorophyll‐a and the dissolved inorganic nitrogen concentration suggests the growth of the phytoplankton community is limited mainly by the availability of nitrogen.     

Lake-Level Change and Water Balance Analysis at Lake Qinghai,West China during Recent Decades

Lake Qinghai, the largest saline lake with an area of 4,260 km² (2000) and average depth of 21 m (1985) in West China, has experienced severe decline in water level in recent decades. This study aimed to investigate water balance of the lake and identify the causes for the decline in lake level. There was a 3.35-m decline in water level with an average decreasing rate of 8.0 cm year⁻¹ between 1959 and 2000. The lake water balance showed that mean annual precipitation between 1959 and 2000 over the lake was 357 ± 10 mm, evaporation was 924 ± 10 mm, surface runoff water inflow was 348 ± 21 mm, groundwater inflow was 138 mm ± 9 and the change in lake level was −80 ± 31 mm. The variation of lake level was highly positively correlated to surface runoff and precipitation and negatively to evaporation, the correlation coefficients were 0.89, 0.81 and −0.66, respectively. Water consumption by human activities accounts for 1% of the evaporation loss of the lake, implying that water consumption by human activities has little effect on lake level decline. Most dramatic decline in lake level occurred in the warm and dry years, and moderate decline in the cold and dry years, and relatively slight decline in the warm and wet years, therefore, the trend of cold/warm and dry climate in recent decades may be the main reasons for the decline in lake level.     

Egg Thiamine Status of Lake Ontario Salmonines 1995–2004 with Emphasis on Lake Trout

Alewives (Alosa pseudoharengus), the major prey fish for Lake Ontario, contain thiaminase. They are associated with development of a thiamine deficiency in salmonines which greatly increases the potential for developing an early mortality syndrome (EMS). To assess the possible effects of thiamine deficiency on salmonine reproduction we measured egg thiamine concentrations for five species of Lake Ontario salmonines. From this we estimated the proportion of families susceptible to EMS based on whether they were below the ED20, the egg thiamine concentration associated with 20% mortality due to EMS. The ED20s were 1.52, 2.63, and 2.99 nmol/g egg for Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush), and coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), respectively. Based on the proportion of fish having egg thiamine concentrations falling below the ED20, the risk of developing EMS in Lake Ontario was highest for lake trout, followed by coho (O. kisutch), and Chinook salmon, with the least risk for rainbow trout (O. mykiss). For lake trout from western Lake Ontario, mean egg thiamine concentration showed significant annual variability during 1994 to 2003, when the proportion of lake trout at risk of developing EMS based on ED20 ranged between 77 and 100%. Variation in the annual mean egg thiamine concentration for western Lake Ontario lake trout was positively related (p < 0.001, r² = 0.94) with indices of annual adult alewife biomass. While suggesting the possible involvement of density-dependent changes in alewives, the changes are small relative to egg thiamine concentrations when alewife are not part of the diet and are of insufficient magnitude to allow for natural reproduction by lake trout.     

Restoration of small lakes through cooperative management: A suitable strategy for poverty‐laden areas in developing countries?

Lake Rupa is a small, subtropical, shallow lake with a surface area of 100 ha situated 600 m a.s.l. in Central Himalaya, Nepal. This degraded lake was studied between 2000 and 2006, with the goal of determining whether or not it could be restored by a community‐based cooperative of local people living in its catchment. Main threats to the lake, its aquatic life and its very existence include encroachment by excessive aquatic vegetation, sedimentation, and low in‐lake concentrations of dissolved oxygen (DO). Small lakes (≤ 500 ha) are relatively prone to the process of ‘succession and climax’, although they also can be of social, environmental and ecological importance. Thus, their disappearance could spark social chaos and disorder in areas already having to cope with other rapid environmental changes. This means that credible mechanisms for revitalizing or protecting small lakes are an important goal. Accordingly, a lake cooperative of 329 households living in close vicinity to Lake Rupa was formed in 2002, by prioritizing traditional fishers, women and other deprived community members with the goals of respecting the citizenry and equity. Following the cooperative's campaigns directed at weed removal and fish stocking, encroachment of vegetation on the lake margins was halted, its aquatic weeds became under control, and its fisheries improved. In addition to the cooperative's restoration activities, several water quality parameters, including water transparency and DO and chlorophyll‐a concentrations, were monitored on a monthly basis. The measured water transparency was inconsistent, exhibiting large variations between 2000 and 2003. Relatively low, but consistent, values, however, were measured after 2004. The results imply that the removal of weeds, and sufficient nutrients and solar radiation are subsequently available to the lake's phytoplankton communities. Supporting this notion is that the chlorophyll‐a concentration spiked to 205 µg L⁻¹ in November 2006, the water transparency became consistent, and the DO concentration increased to >3.8 mg L⁻¹ during the critical months (March–May) after 2004. These water quality indicators indicated improvement in the degraded Lake Rupa, suggesting that the establishment of cooperatives such as that highlighted in this study could be a powerful and sustainable mechanism for restoring degraded lakes in similar socioeconomic settings by maintaining equity, by connecting communities with their resources, and by facilitating integrity, equity, citizenry and social justice.     

Effect of Channel Changes in the St. Clair River During the Present Century

Periodic man-made changes in the outlet of Lake Huron through the St. Clair River date back to the middle of the last century. These artificial channel changes have been well documented during the present century. They consist of dredging for commercial gravel removal in the upper river during 1908–25 and uncompensated navigation improvements for the 7.6-m (25-ft) and 8.2-m (27-ft) projects completed in 1933 and 1962, respectively. The total effect of these changes on the levels of Lakes Michigan and Huron (hydraulically one lake) and on the upper St. Clair River profile was determined with dynamic flow models. The ultimate effect of the above dredging was a permanent lowering of the Lake Michigan-Huron levels 0.27 m (0.89 ft), which represents a tremendous loss of freshwater resource [32 km³ (7.7 mi³)].     

森林植被改善对鄱阳湖流域径流和输沙过程的影响

以河流基流为切入点,研究流域植被调节径流、水土保持等微观作用影响大中型河流湖泊径流过程和水沙过程宏观效应的机理。鄱阳湖流域60年来天然降水没有发生趋势性变化。流域森林覆盖率由34.73%上升到63.00%,植被质量改善,赣江等入湖河流基流增加83 m~3/s,河流输沙量减少。2000年以后和2000年以前相比较,枯水期降水径流系数增大,年流量过程平坦化,一定程度上减小洪灾风险,有利于水资源利用和生态环境保护。2001年以后进入鄱阳湖泥沙平均每年减少1 007×10~4t;出湖泥沙增加314×10~4t。因此,鄱阳湖入江水道由淤积转变为冲刷,但出湖流量过程没有趋势性变化。     

Development of a system‐based water balance model to assess interrelated physical and anthropogenic constraints in lake and reservoir watersheds,applied to Coeur d'Alene Lake,Idaho, USA

This study presents a methodology for the development of a water balance model that uses publicly available data in a manner useful to water scientists and managers who manage complex lake and reservoir watersheds. The approach was applied to Coeur d'Alene Lake, a naturally occurring lake that is controlled by a dam located on its outlet (Spokane River) in North Idaho, USA. As in many other areas, the region surrounding Coeur d'Alene Lake has experienced high rates of population growth in recent years, and there is concern that, as consumptive water use increases, the lake will eventually not be able to be managed to simultaneously maintain the federally mandated minimum flow requirements in the Spokane River and also maintain the target summertime elevation of 2128 feet (648.6 m) for recreation and hydropower purposes. The complexity caused by the competing uses at Coeur d'Alene Lake makes it an excellent case study for similarly characterized watersheds. Both a natural flow model and regulated elevation model were developed, and sensitivity analysis was conducted on both models to evaluate which lake processes have the greatest effects on lake elevation, thereby requiring the most attention. A ‘low‐flow’ scenario was modelled to demonstrate the usefulness of the model and to inform Coeur d'Alene Lake regional stakeholders regarding the interrelationship between current water policy and the lake's physical behaviour under stressed conditions that could result from climate change. Model result indicates that, while lake elevation may be maintained at the summertime elevation of 2128 feet (648.6 m) under a low‐flow scenario, the outflows in the Spokane River start to approach the minimum flow requirements in the month of August. The developed approach is useful where publicly available data exist and allows for economic, yet rigorous, water resources systems evaluation without requiring significant field data collection.     

近40年来中国西北内陆5个典型湖泊面积变化遥感分析

在全球气候变暖的背景下,研究中国西北内陆地区湖泊的面积变化不仅对水资源管理和可持续发展战略有着重要意义,也为评价气候变化与人类活动对湖泊的影响提供参考。以中国西北内陆区5个典型湖泊为研究对象,利用1970-2015年的Landsat MSS/TM/ETM+/OLI影像数据,利用归一化差异水体指数(Normalized Difference Water Index,NDWI)和改进型归一化差异水体指数(Modified Normalized Difference Water Index,MNDWI)分别提取5个典型湖泊边界并获取湖泊面积,同时利用5个典型湖泊周边的气象站降雨量、蒸发量等气象数据,尝试分析湖泊面积发生变化的原因。结果表明:红碱淖近30年来面积呈减小趋势,入湖河流拦蓄和煤炭地下开采等是导致面积减少的原因;博斯腾湖近40年来的面积呈先增加后减少的趋势,其面积变化主要受地表径流和积雪融水的影响;呼伦湖近40年来面积呈减少的趋势,其面积变化主要受入湖径流量的影响;贝尔湖近30年来呈相对稳定的趋势,其面积变化主要入湖径流量的影响;青海湖近40年来面积呈现先减小后增大的趋势,其面积变化主要受区域降水和入湖径流量的影响。     

基于互信息的湖泊日水位预测——以西洞庭湖为例

鉴于传统的湖泊水位预测在输入因子选择时具有一定的盲目性,以西洞庭湖为例,利用基于互信息的输入因子选择法建立了日水位预测模型。按河流生态功能将水文年划分为枯水期、汛前涨水期、汛期、汛后退水期4个时期,然后分期计算影响湖泊日水位的自变量与日水位的互信息,并引入广义相关系数将互信息归一化,选出各时期互信息最大的自变量因子作为模型的输入变量。经过模型计算与数据分析可得:F检验结果显著,回归值与实测值的相关度高,剩余标准差小。由此证明用互信息筛选出的因子作为模型的输入变量能取得较好的精度并在实际中易于操作。