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Climate-driven changes in the ecological stoichiometry of aquatic ecosystems

Climate-driven changes in the ecological stoichiometry of aquatic ecosystems Advances in ecological stoichiometry, a rapidly expanding research field investigating the elemental composition of organisms and their environment, have shed new light on the impacts of climate change on freshwater and marine ecosystems. Current changes in the Earth's climate alter the availability of carbon and nutrients in lakes and oceans. In particular, atmospheric CO 2 concentrations will rise to unprecedented levels by the end of this century, while global warming will enhance stratification of aquatic ecosystems and may thereby diminish the supply of nutrients into the surface layer. These processes enrich phytoplankton with carbon, but suppress nutrient availability. Phytoplankton with a high carbon-to-nutrient content provide poor-quality food for most zooplankton species, which may shift the species composition of zooplankton and higher trophic levels to less nutrient-demanding species. As a consequence, climate-driven changes in plankton stoichiometry may alter the structure and functioning of entire aquatic food webs. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment Ecological Society of America

Climate-driven changes in the ecological stoichiometry of aquatic ecosystems

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References (60)

Publisher
Ecological Society of America
Copyright
Copyright © 2010 by the Ecological Society of America
Subject
Reviews
ISSN
1540-9295
eISSN
1540-9309
DOI
10.1890/080178
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Advances in ecological stoichiometry, a rapidly expanding research field investigating the elemental composition of organisms and their environment, have shed new light on the impacts of climate change on freshwater and marine ecosystems. Current changes in the Earth's climate alter the availability of carbon and nutrients in lakes and oceans. In particular, atmospheric CO 2 concentrations will rise to unprecedented levels by the end of this century, while global warming will enhance stratification of aquatic ecosystems and may thereby diminish the supply of nutrients into the surface layer. These processes enrich phytoplankton with carbon, but suppress nutrient availability. Phytoplankton with a high carbon-to-nutrient content provide poor-quality food for most zooplankton species, which may shift the species composition of zooplankton and higher trophic levels to less nutrient-demanding species. As a consequence, climate-driven changes in plankton stoichiometry may alter the structure and functioning of entire aquatic food webs.

Journal

Frontiers in Ecology and the EnvironmentEcological Society of America

Published: Apr 1, 2010

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