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Patterns and controls of seasonal variability of carbon stable isotopes of particulate organic matter in lakes

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Abstract

Carbon stable isotopes (δ13C) of particulate organic matter (POM) have been used as indicators for energy flow, primary productivity and carbon dioxide concentration in individual lakes. Here, we provide a synthesis of literature data from 32 freshwater lakes around the world to assess the variability of δ13CPOM along latitudinal, morphometric and biogeochemical gradients. Seasonal mean δ13CPOM, a temporally integrated measure of the δ13CPOM, displayed weak relationships with all trophic state indices [total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN), and chlorophyll a (Chl a)], but decreased significantly with the increase in latitude, presumably in response to the corresponding decrease in water temperature and increase in CO2 concentration. The seasonal minimum δ13CPOM also correlated negatively with latitude while seasonal maximum δ13CPOM correlated positively with all trophic state indices, pH, and δ13C of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC). Seasonal amplitude of δ13CPOM (the difference between seasonal maximum and minimum values) correlated significantly with pH, TP and Chl a concentrations and displayed small variations in oligotrophic, mesotrophic and low latitude eutrophic lakes, which is attributed to low primary productivity and abundant non-living POM in the low trophic state lakes and relatively stable environmental conditions in the subtropics. Seasonal amplitude of δ13CPOM was the greatest in high latitude eutrophic lakes. Greater seasonal changes in solar energy and light regime may be responsible for the large seasonal variability in high latitude productive lakes. This synthesis provides new insights on the factors controlling variations in stable carbon isotopes of POM among lakes on the global scale.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Syväranta for providing ambient data for Lake Jyväsjärvi. Comments from an anonymous reviewer resulted in significant improvements to this manuscript. This work was partly supported by National Foundation of Science of China Grant No. U0733007.

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Author notes

  1. Binhe Gu

    Present address: Comprehensive Science Integration Division, South Florida Water Management District, 3301 Gun Club Road, West Palm Beach, FL, 33411, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Hydrobiology, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China

    Binhe Gu

  2. Department of Geological Sciences and Land Use and Environmental Change Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA

    Claire L. Schelske

  3. Department of Biology, Valdosta State University, Valdosta, GA, 31698, USA

    Matthew N. Waters

Authors
  1. Binhe Gu
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  2. Claire L. Schelske
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  3. Matthew N. Waters
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Binhe Gu.

Additional information

Communicated by Craig Osenberg.

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Gu, B., Schelske, C.L. & Waters, M.N. Patterns and controls of seasonal variability of carbon stable isotopes of particulate organic matter in lakes. Oecologia 165, 1083–1094 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-010-1888-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-010-1888-6

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