Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Nutrient Function Over Form: Organic And Inorganic Nitrogen Additions Have Similar Effects On Lake Phytoplankton Nutrient Limitation, Sabrina N. Volponi, Heather L. Wander, (...), Brian S. Kim, Et Al

VIMS Articles

The concentration of dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) is increasing in many northern hemisphere lakes, yet its use by phytoplankton and fate in the environment seldom have been quantified. We conducted 1 week, insitu, microcosm incubations across 25 lakes in northeastern North America to understand how DON, dissolved norganic nitrogen (DIN), and dissolved inorganic phosphorus (P) affected phytoplankton biomass. In addition,we tested whether lakes were limited by single macronutrients (N or P) or colimited by both. Phytoplankton biomass in 80% of lakes responded similarly to DON and DIN additions. Of the lakes where N form produced differential responses, the majority of …