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Relating effect and response traits in submersed aquatic macrophytes.

Katharina A M Engelhardt1

  • 1University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, Appalachian Laboratory, Frostburg 21532-2307, USA. engelhardt@al.umces.edu

Ecological Applications : a Publication of the Ecological Society of America
|October 31, 2006
PubMed
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Understanding how aquatic plants respond to environmental changes is key for ecosystem management. Root growth rate in submersed macrophytes can predict ecosystem recovery after water level changes.

Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Environmental Science
  • Aquatic Botany

Background:

  • Anthropogenic pressures increasingly stress global ecosystems, necessitating reliable prediction of environmental change consequences.
  • Examining biota response traits and effect traits offers a framework for understanding ecosystem dynamics.
  • Submersed aquatic macrophytes play crucial roles in wetland ecosystems, influencing nutrient cycling and water quality.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the response and effect traits of four submersed aquatic macrophytes (Stuckenia pectinata, Potamogeton nodosus, P. crispus, and Zannichellia palustris).
  • To understand how water level management influences wetland plant populations and associated ecosystem processes.
  • To identify plant traits that predict ecosystem functioning under environmental change.

Main Methods:

Related Experiment Videos

  • Monocultures of four submersed aquatic macrophyte species were established in outdoor mesocosms.
  • Resource (sediment/water nutrients), non-resource (pH, alkalinity, temperature, oxygen), and biotic (periphyton biomass) properties were measured.
  • A temporary water draw-down simulating environmental change was applied to assess species recovery and ecosystem response.

Main Results:

  • Species exhibited distinct effects on ecosystem properties related to nutrient uptake and photosynthesis.
  • Shoot growth correlated negatively with light transmittance; root growth and root:shoot ratio correlated with nutrient depletion.
  • Water column occupation was linked to water alkalinity, pH, and sediment temperature.
  • Root growth rate simultaneously reflected species' impact on sediment nutrients and ecosystem recovery post-drawdown.

Conclusions:

  • Root growth rate is a significant trait for predicting submersed macrophyte effects on ecosystem functioning, particularly concerning water level management.
  • This trait can serve as a predictor for ecosystem response to environmental changes in wetlands.
  • Further research across diverse species, stressors, and ecosystems is recommended to refine predictions of global environmental change impacts.