Evaluation of Restoration Measures in a Shallow Lake through a Comparison of Present Day Zooplankton Communities with Historical Samples

TY - JOUR

T1 - Evaluation of Restoration Measures in a Shallow Lake through a Comparison of Present Day Zooplankton Communities with Historical Samples

AU - Louette, G.

AU - Declerck, S.

AU - Vandekerkhove, J.

AU - De Meester, Luc

N1 - WOS:000269978600008 ISI Document Delivery No.: 496MO Times Cited: 11 Cited Reference Count: 49 Louette, Gerald Declerck, Steven Vandekerkhove, Jochen De Meester, Luc De Meester, Luc/F-3832-2015; Declerck, Steven/E-4338-2010 De Meester, Luc/0000-0001-5433-6843; Declerck, Steven/0000-0001-6179-667X; Louette, Gerald/0000-0003-3548-2364 LIFE [LIFE98NAT/B/5172]; European Union (EU); Flemish (ANB); Fund for Scientific Research-Flanders (FWO-Vlaanderen); EU Research Training Network [FP6-512492] This study was carried out in the framework of LIFE project (LIFE98NAT/B/5172) "Restoration and management of Lake Kraenepoel (Aalter)" and financially supported by the European Union (EU), the Flemish (ANB), and local (Aalter) government. We thank the Pettiaux family, owners of the northern section of the lake, for their cooperation, and the many people who helped with sampling and sample processing. S.D. is a postdoctoral fellow of the Fund for Scientific Research-Flanders (FWO-Vlaanderen). J.V. is an experienced researcher within the EU Research Training Network (FP6-512492). 11 2 28 Wiley-blackwell publishing, inc Malden 57

PY - 2009

Y1 - 2009

N2 - Many shallow lakes have lost a large part of their ecological value during the past decades. Human-induced factors such as eutrophication and inappropriate fish stock management are generally the main causes for this loss. To restore such degraded habitats, several measures are taken, typically involving a reduction of nutrient loading and interventions in the aquatic food web functioning (biomanipulation). In this study, we report on the joint effects of a series of restoration measures in a shallow lake (Lake Kraenepoel, Belgium, 22 ha) and evaluate these effects via three different criteria. The first criterion is that the target condition, being a clearwater phase with submerged macrophytes, was successfully achieved and persisted for a period of at least 5 years after restoration. Second, we detected a substantial change in community structure of cladoceran zooplankton and an associated increase in species richness and conservation value following restoration measures. Finally, we observed that the general structure of the present day cladoceran zooplankton community resembles well that of the preeutrophication period (1929-1931). Current species richness, however, tends to be lower than in the reference period, and some rare species are still lacking. It is conceivable that, when submerged macrophytes develop further, a subset of specialist species may reappear. Overall, the use of historical habitat-specific samples offers a major opportunity for evaluating restoration success in great detail. Community structures may directly be compared, the gain or loss of specific species can accurately be documented, and more insights in the observed patterns be obtained.

AB - Many shallow lakes have lost a large part of their ecological value during the past decades. Human-induced factors such as eutrophication and inappropriate fish stock management are generally the main causes for this loss. To restore such degraded habitats, several measures are taken, typically involving a reduction of nutrient loading and interventions in the aquatic food web functioning (biomanipulation). In this study, we report on the joint effects of a series of restoration measures in a shallow lake (Lake Kraenepoel, Belgium, 22 ha) and evaluate these effects via three different criteria. The first criterion is that the target condition, being a clearwater phase with submerged macrophytes, was successfully achieved and persisted for a period of at least 5 years after restoration. Second, we detected a substantial change in community structure of cladoceran zooplankton and an associated increase in species richness and conservation value following restoration measures. Finally, we observed that the general structure of the present day cladoceran zooplankton community resembles well that of the preeutrophication period (1929-1931). Current species richness, however, tends to be lower than in the reference period, and some rare species are still lacking. It is conceivable that, when submerged macrophytes develop further, a subset of specialist species may reappear. Overall, the use of historical habitat-specific samples offers a major opportunity for evaluating restoration success in great detail. Community structures may directly be compared, the gain or loss of specific species can accurately be documented, and more insights in the observed patterns be obtained.

KW - biomanipulation Cladocera community ecology conservation biology restoration success species richness sediment removal long-term acidification recovery cladoceran fish biodiversity dispersal success Environmental Sciences & Ecology

U2 - 10.1111/j.1526-100X.2008.00409.x

DO - 10.1111/j.1526-100X.2008.00409.x

M3 - Article

SN - 1061-2971

VL - 17

SP - 629

EP - 640

JO - Restoration Ecology

JF - Restoration Ecology

IS - 5

ER -