Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Effects Of Experimental Greenhouse Warming On Phytoplankton And Zooplankton Communities In Fishless Alpine Ponds, Angela L. Strecker, Tyler P. Cobb, Rofl D, Vinebrooke

Angela L. Strecker

The impacts of global warming on aquatic ecosystems are expected to be most pronounced at higher trophic levels in cold-water environments. Therefore, we hypothesized that wanning of fishless alpine ponds would suppress large-bodied consumers (e.g., cladocerans, copepods) and stimulate fast-growing microorganisms (e.g., phytoflagellates, rotifers), thereby altering the community composition and total abundance of zooplankton and phytoplankton. This hypothesis was tested using three blocks of four experimental mesocosms (1000-liter capacity) that were located next to alpine ponds in Banff National Park, Canada. Each block received unfiltered pond water and sediment from a pond following ice out in June 2000. A warming …