Anthropogenic activities in the páramo trigger ecological shifts in Tropical Andean lakes

Kimberley Hagemans; Timme H. Donders; Kees Nooren; Iris E.E. Scheper; Martin C.A. Stekelenburg; Maud Theunissen; Philip S.J. Minderhoud; Alejandra Goldenberg-Vilar; Susana León-Yánez; Manuela Ormaza; Friederike Wagner-Cremer; Aleksandra Cvetkoska

doi:10.1017/qua.2023.9

Anthropogenic activities in the páramo trigger ecological shifts in Tropical Andean lakes

Kimberley Hagemans, Timme H. Donders, Kees Nooren, Iris E.E. Scheper, Martin C.A. Stekelenburg, Maud Theunissen, Philip S.J. Minderhoud, Alejandra Goldenberg-Vilar, Susana León-Yánez, Manuela Ormaza, Friederike Wagner-Cremer, Aleksandra Cvetkoska^* (Corresponding author)

^*Corresponding author for this work

NIOO - Aquatic Ecology (AqE)

Research output: Contribution to journal/periodical › Article › Scientific › peer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

A robust understanding of the impact of anthropogenic activities on high-altitude tropical aquatic ecosystems is key for the conservation and protection of the Tropical Andean biodiversity hot spot. We present the results of a multiproxy study of lake sediments from the high Andean páramo of El Cajas National Park, a UNESCO biosphere reserve in Ecuador. The main site, Laguna Pallcacocha, is well known for recording El Niño–driven clastic flood layers that are triggered by high-intensity rainfall anomalies from the eastern Pacific. The second site, Laguna El Ocho, does not contain clastic laminations, providing a control. The records show abrupt shifts in diatom assemblages ca. AD 1991 in both high-elevation Andean lakes accompanied by local changes in páramo composition that suggest a sudden nutrient enrichment of the environment. The diatom assemblages from Laguna Pallcacocha, in relation to the clastic input events, are remarkably stable and do not show evident El Niño signals at the analysed resolution. Based on comparison with the nonlaminated El Ocho record, we deduce the main source of this nutrient enrichment to be the construction of a heavily transited road that runs through the park, while climate warming played secondary role by amplifying its effects.

Original language	English
Journal	Quaternary Research
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1017/qua.2023.9
Publication status	E-pub ahead of print - 05 Apr 2023

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Hagemans, K., Donders, T. H., Nooren, K., Scheper, I. E. E., Stekelenburg, M. C. A., Theunissen, M., Minderhoud, P. S. J., Goldenberg-Vilar, A., León-Yánez, S., Ormaza, M., Wagner-Cremer, F., & Cvetkoska, A. (2023). Anthropogenic activities in the páramo trigger ecological shifts in Tropical Andean lakes. Quaternary Research. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1017/qua.2023.9

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title = "Anthropogenic activities in the p{\'a}ramo trigger ecological shifts in Tropical Andean lakes",

abstract = "A robust understanding of the impact of anthropogenic activities on high-altitude tropical aquatic ecosystems is key for the conservation and protection of the Tropical Andean biodiversity hot spot. We present the results of a multiproxy study of lake sediments from the high Andean p{\'a}ramo of El Cajas National Park, a UNESCO biosphere reserve in Ecuador. The main site, Laguna Pallcacocha, is well known for recording El Ni{\~n}o–driven clastic flood layers that are triggered by high-intensity rainfall anomalies from the eastern Pacific. The second site, Laguna El Ocho, does not contain clastic laminations, providing a control. The records show abrupt shifts in diatom assemblages ca. AD 1991 in both high-elevation Andean lakes accompanied by local changes in p{\'a}ramo composition that suggest a sudden nutrient enrichment of the environment. The diatom assemblages from Laguna Pallcacocha, in relation to the clastic input events, are remarkably stable and do not show evident El Ni{\~n}o signals at the analysed resolution. Based on comparison with the nonlaminated El Ocho record, we deduce the main source of this nutrient enrichment to be the construction of a heavily transited road that runs through the park, while climate warming played secondary role by amplifying its effects.",

author = "Kimberley Hagemans and Donders, {Timme H.} and Kees Nooren and Scheper, {Iris E.E.} and Stekelenburg, {Martin C.A.} and Maud Theunissen and Minderhoud, {Philip S.J.} and Alejandra Goldenberg-Vilar and Susana Le{\'o}n-Y{\'a}nez and Manuela Ormaza and Friederike Wagner-Cremer and Aleksandra Cvetkoska",

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AU - Hagemans, Kimberley

AU - Donders, Timme H.

AU - Nooren, Kees

AU - Scheper, Iris E.E.

AU - Stekelenburg, Martin C.A.

AU - Theunissen, Maud

AU - Minderhoud, Philip S.J.

AU - Goldenberg-Vilar, Alejandra

AU - León-Yánez, Susana

AU - Ormaza, Manuela

AU - Wagner-Cremer, Friederike

AU - Cvetkoska, Aleksandra

N1 - Data archiving: not nioo

PY - 2023/4/5

Y1 - 2023/4/5

N2 - A robust understanding of the impact of anthropogenic activities on high-altitude tropical aquatic ecosystems is key for the conservation and protection of the Tropical Andean biodiversity hot spot. We present the results of a multiproxy study of lake sediments from the high Andean páramo of El Cajas National Park, a UNESCO biosphere reserve in Ecuador. The main site, Laguna Pallcacocha, is well known for recording El Niño–driven clastic flood layers that are triggered by high-intensity rainfall anomalies from the eastern Pacific. The second site, Laguna El Ocho, does not contain clastic laminations, providing a control. The records show abrupt shifts in diatom assemblages ca. AD 1991 in both high-elevation Andean lakes accompanied by local changes in páramo composition that suggest a sudden nutrient enrichment of the environment. The diatom assemblages from Laguna Pallcacocha, in relation to the clastic input events, are remarkably stable and do not show evident El Niño signals at the analysed resolution. Based on comparison with the nonlaminated El Ocho record, we deduce the main source of this nutrient enrichment to be the construction of a heavily transited road that runs through the park, while climate warming played secondary role by amplifying its effects.

AB - A robust understanding of the impact of anthropogenic activities on high-altitude tropical aquatic ecosystems is key for the conservation and protection of the Tropical Andean biodiversity hot spot. We present the results of a multiproxy study of lake sediments from the high Andean páramo of El Cajas National Park, a UNESCO biosphere reserve in Ecuador. The main site, Laguna Pallcacocha, is well known for recording El Niño–driven clastic flood layers that are triggered by high-intensity rainfall anomalies from the eastern Pacific. The second site, Laguna El Ocho, does not contain clastic laminations, providing a control. The records show abrupt shifts in diatom assemblages ca. AD 1991 in both high-elevation Andean lakes accompanied by local changes in páramo composition that suggest a sudden nutrient enrichment of the environment. The diatom assemblages from Laguna Pallcacocha, in relation to the clastic input events, are remarkably stable and do not show evident El Niño signals at the analysed resolution. Based on comparison with the nonlaminated El Ocho record, we deduce the main source of this nutrient enrichment to be the construction of a heavily transited road that runs through the park, while climate warming played secondary role by amplifying its effects.

U2 - 10.1017/qua.2023.9

DO - 10.1017/qua.2023.9

M3 - Article

SN - 0033-5894

JO - Quaternary Research

JF - Quaternary Research

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Anthropogenic activities in the páramo trigger ecological shifts in Tropical Andean lakes

Abstract

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