Abstract
Studies of the relative importance of various phytoplankton size classes (pico-, nano-, micro-, and macro-) during thermal stratification at oligomesotrophic Mountain Lake, Giles County, Virginia were conducted from March through October 1994. A detailed time- and depth-series study was conducted to compare 14C-fixation rates in these phytoplankton size fractions. Data indicated that on average the microplankton were the most important size class in cell number and cell volume and contributed ≈95% of the total primary productivity. The picoplankton ranked second in importance constituting ≈5% of total primary productivity, whereas the relatively small numbers of nano- and macroplankton contributed little primary productivity. No obvious relationships were apparent among cell densities, cell volumes, and chlorophyll a values during late summer thermal stratification, possibly due to shifts in community structure at that time. The findings contrast with many other oligo- to mesotrophic ecosystems where the pico- and nanoplankton have demonstrated significantly greater importance, especially in summer.
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Beaty, M.H., Parker, B.C. Relative importance of pico-, nano-, and microplankton to the productivity of Mountain Lake, Virginia. Hydrobiologia 331, 121–129 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00025413
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00025413