Abstract
Aquatic macrophytes can serve as useful indicators of water pollution along the littoral of lakes. In Bavaria, the submerged vegetation of about 100 lakes has been investigated by SCUBA diving over the past decade to evaluate the state of nutrient pollution. All lakes are marl lakes located in the northern calcareous alps and the prealpine region. The lakes differ in size, morphology, water residence time, nutrient loading, trophic status, recreational activities, and other characteristics. In all cases the entire shoreline of the lakes has been investigated. Among the investigated lakes are the three biggest Bavarian lakes, i.e. Lake Chiemsee, Lake Starnberg and Lake Ammersee. Mapping of the submerged vegetation occurred in four different depth zones, and variable shoreline sections. The length of each section was determined by the uniformity of the vegetation; as it changed, a new section was designated. Within each section and zone species were recorded and abundance of all observed macrophytes was estimated semi-quantitatively on a five-point scale. Nine different groups of macrophytes were recognised, including, in total, 45 different species of macrophytes. On the basis of this catalogue of indicator species, in combination with the abundance of the species, a ‘macrophyte index’ was devised, which ranges from 1 (unpolluted) to 5 (heavily polluted). Six groups of values of the macrophyte index, each represented by a different colour or grey-scale (in this publication), are presented to allow a clear illustration of the results. Important information for the successful restoration of lakes in Upper Bavaria has been obtained from the distribution patterns of the submerged vegetation. Many unknown waste water inflows or diffuse sources could be detected due to abrupt changes in the macrophyte index. Furthermore, the success of waste water removal by a ‘macrophyte index’ring canalisation’, resulting in a re-oligotrophication of many Bavarian lakes can be followed by changes in the macrophyte index.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Agami, M. & Y. Waisel, 1985. Inter-relationships between Najas marina L. and three other species of aquatic macrophytes. Hydrobiologia 126: 169–173.
Ammann, H., 1912. Physikalische and biologische Beobachtungen an obcrbaycrischen Seen. Thesis, Königl. Techn. Hochsch. München.
Bailey, R.C., 1988. Correlations between species richness and exposure: freshwater molluscs and macrophytes. Hydrobiologia 162: 183–191.
Blindow, J., 1987. The composition and density of epiphyton on several species of submerged macrophytes — The neutral substrate hypothesis tested. Aquat. Bot. 29: 157–168.
Brand, F., 1896. Über die Vegetationsverhültnisse des Würmsees and seine Grundalgen. Bot. Centralbl. 65: 1–13.
Bristow, J.M. & M. Whitcombe, 1971. The role of roots in the nutrition of aquatic vascular plants. Am. J. Bot. 58: 8–13.
Carnigan, R., 1982. An empirical model to estimate the relative importance of roots in phosphorus uptake by aquatic macrophytes. Can. J. Fish. Aquat, Sci. 39: 243–247.
Carnigan, R. & J. Kalif, 1980. Phosphorus sources for aquatic weeds: water or sediments? Science 207: 987–989.
Christie, C.E. & J.P. Smol, 1993. Diatom assemblages as indicators of lake trophic status in southeastern Ontario lakes. J. Phycol. 29: 575–586.
Dale, H.M., 1986. Temperature and light: The determination factors in maximum depth distribution of aquatic macrophytes in Ontario, Canada. Hydrobiologia 133: 73–78.
Dave, G. 1992. Sediment toxicity and heavy metals in eleven lime reference lakes of Sweden. Wat. Air Soil Pollut. 63: 187–200.
Drake, J.C. & S.I. Heaney, 1987. Occurence of phosphorus and its potential remobilization in the littoral sediments of a productive English lake. Freshwat. Biol 17: 513–523.
Henschel, T. & A. Melzer, 1992. Die limnologische Entwicklung des Starnberger Sees im Fortgang der Abwasserfernhaltung unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Makrophytenvegetation, Informationsber. Bayer. Landesamt f. Wasserwirtsch. München 3 /92: 1–117.
Krausch, H.-D., 1964. Die Pflanzengesellschaften des StechlinseeGebietes. I. Die Gesellschaften des offenen Wassers. Limnologica 2: 145–203.
Lachavanne, J.-B. & R. Wattenhofer, 1975. Contribution à l’étude des macrophytes du Léman. Commission internat. pour la protection des eaux du Léman et du Rhône contre la pollution, Geneva: 1–147.
Lachavanne, J.-B., J. Perfetta & R. Juge, 1992. Influence of water eutrophication on the macrophyte vegetation of Lake Lugano. Aquat. Sci. 54: 351–363.
Lang, G., 1968. Vegetationsveränderungen am Bodenseeufer in den letzten hundert Jahren. Schrift. Ver. Gesch. Bodensees 86: 295319.
Lodge, D.M. 1991. Herbivory on freshwater macrophytes. Aquat. Bot. 41: 195–224.
Lokker, C., D. Susko, L. Lovett-Doust & J. Lovett-Doust, 1994. Population genetic structure of Vallisneria americana, a dioecious clonal macrophyte. Am. J. Bot. 81: 1004–1012.
Melzer, A., 1981. Veränderungen der Makrophytenvegetation des Starnberger Sees und ihre indikatorische Bedeutung. Limnologica 13: 449–458.
Melzer, A. & R. Kaiser, 1986. Seasonal variations in nitrate content, total nitrogen, and nitrate reductase activities of macrophytes from a chalk stream in Upper Bavaria. Oecologia 68: 606–611.
Melzer, A. & M. Müller, 1983. In vivo-nitrate reductase activities of different species of Lemnaceae and comparison with endogenous nitrate depletion. In Proceedings of the International Symposium on Aquatic Macrophytes Sept. 1983 Nijmegen: 139–144.
Moen, R. A. & Y. Cohen, 1989. Growth and competition between Potamogeton pectinatus L. and Myriophyllum exalbescens Fern. in experimental ecosystems. Aquat. Bot. 33: 257–270.
Neuhaus, D., H. Kühl, J.-G. Kohl, P. Dörfel & T. Börner, 1993. Investigation on the genetic diversity of Phragmites stands using genomic fingerprinting. Aquat Bot. 45: 357–364.
Nichols, D.S. & D.R. Keeney, 1976. Nitrogen nutrition of Myriophyllum spicatum: uptake and translocation of 15 N by shoots and roots. Freshwat. Biol. 6: 145–154.
Reavie, E.D., R.I. Hall & J.P. Smol, 1995. An expanded weighted-averaging model for interferring past total phosphorus concentrations from diatom assemblages in eutrophic British Columbia (Canada) lakes. J. Paleolimnol. 14: 49–67.
Roelofs, J.G.M., 1983. Impact on acidification and eutrophication on macrophyte communities in soft water lakes in the Netherlands, I. Field observations. Aquat. Bot. 17: 139–155.
Sand-Jensen K. & M. Sondergaard, 1981. Phytoplankton and epiphyte development and their effect on submerged macrophytes in lakes of different nutrient status. Int. Rev. ges. Hydrobiol. 6: 529–552.
Sculthorpe, C. D., 1967. The Biology of Aquatic Vascular Plants. Edward Arnold, London.
Simons, J., M. Ohm, R. Daalder, P. Boers & W. Ripl, 1994. Restoration of Botshol (The Netherlands) by reduction of external nutrient load: recovery of a characean community, dominated by Chara connivens. Hydrobiologia 275 /276: 243–253.
Smith, C. S. & M. S. Adams, 1986. Phosphorus transfer from sediments by Myriophyllum spicatum. Limnol. & Oceanogr. 31: 1312–1321.
Succow, M. & D. Kopp, 1985. Seen als Naturraumtypen: Petermanns Geogr. Mitt. 3: 161–170.
Suominen, J. 1968. Changes in the aquatic macroflora of the polluted Lake Rautavesi, SW-Finland. Ann. Bot. Fenn. 5: 65–81.
Trapp, S., 1995. Wasserpflanzen Bremer Seen and ihr Verhältnis zur Gewässergüte. Abh. Naturw. Verein Bremen 3: 165–177.
Tüxen, R. & E. Preising, 1942. Grundbegriffe and Methoden zum Studium der Wasser-and Sumpfpflanzengesellschaften. Dtsch. Wasserwirtsch. 37: 10–17 & 57–69.
Twilley, R. B., M. M. Brinson & G. J. Davis, 1977. Phosphorus absorption, translocation, and secretion in Nuphar luteum. Limnol. Oceonogr. 22: 1022–1032.
Uotila, P., 1971. Distribution and ecological features of hydrophytes in the polluted Lake Vanajavesi, S-Finland. Ann. Bot. Fenn. 8: 257–295.
Vant, W. N., R. J. Davies-Colley, J. S. Clayton, & B. T. Coffey, 1986. Macrophyte depth limits in North Island ( New Zealand) lakes of differing clarity. Hydrobiologia 137: 55–60.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1999 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this paper
Cite this paper
Melzer, A. (1999). Aquatic macrophytes as tools for lake management. In: Harper, D.M., Brierley, B., Ferguson, A.J.D., Phillips, G. (eds) The Ecological Bases for Lake and Reservoir Management. Developments in Hydrobiology, vol 136. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3282-6_17
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3282-6_17
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-5251-3
Online ISBN: 978-94-017-3282-6
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive