Pseudo-diel vertical migration in zooplankton: a whole-lake 15N tracer experiment (original) (raw)

Short-term changes in zooplankton community in Paso Ancho basin (Strait of Magellan): functional trophic structure and diel vertical migration

Polar Biology, 2011

Knowledge on community structure oriented to describe energy flow during late summer season in Paso Ancho basin (Strait of Magellan) is scarce and particularly affected by vertical diel migration (VDM). The main aim of this work is to identify the VDM patterns of selected species and functional feeding groups of mesozooplankton, collected by the electronic multinet BIONESS in 1995. Detailed studies were carried out on keystone components of the community: 7 species of copepods (Ctenocalanus citer, Drepanopus forcipatus, Metridia lucens, Clausocalanus brevipes, Scolecithricella minor, Paraeuchaeta antarctica, Calanus simillimus), one ostracod (Discoconchoecia elegans), one chaetognath (Sagitta tasmanica), one euphausiid (Euphausia vallentini), and two polychaetes (Pelagobia longicirrata, Tomopteris planktonis). Unexpected deviations from the classic pattern reported in literature were uncovered. The shallow layer mesozooplankton at night, although dominated by exclusively or preferentially herbivores, particularly by E. vallentini, was not represented by several species known as herbivores that remained in the deep layer throughout the day cycle. The deep-layer zooplankton throughout the day cycle was well represented by carnivores, detritivores, and omnivores. It is suggested that during lowchlorophyll summer conditions, the composition of functional groups and diet, and VDM patterns changed to take advantage of sinking phytoplankton and picoplankton in deep layers. Pelagic-benthic coupling would be strengthened due to animals that suppressed their vertical daily rise to the shallow layer at nights but remained in the deep layers to feed on a rain of particulate organic matter and other non-migrant zooplankton.

FRESHWATER BIOLOGY SPECIAL REVIEW Diel horizontal migration of zooplankton: costs and benefits of inhabiting the littoral

2015

1. In some shallow lakes, Daphnia and other important pelagic consumers of phyto-plankton undergo diel horizontal migration (DHM) into macrophytes or other structures in the littoral zone. Some authors have suggested that DHM reduces predation by fishes on Daphnia and other cladocerans, resulting in a lower phytoplankton biomass in shallow lakes than would occur without DHM. The costs and benefits of DHM, and its potential implications in biomanipulation, are relatively unknown, however. 2. In this review, we compare studies on diel vertical migration (DVM) to assess factors potentially influencing DHM (e.g. predators, food, light, temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH). We first provide examples of DHM and examine avoidance by Daphnia of both planktivorous (PL) fishes and predacious invertebrates. 3. We argue that DHM should be favoured when the abundance of macrophytes is high (which reduces planktivory) and the abundance of piscivores in the littoral is sufficient to reduce planktivo...

Diel horizontal migration of zooplankton: costs and benefits of inhabiting the littoral

2002

SUMMARY 1. In some shallow lakes, Daphnia and other important pelagic consumers of phytoplankton undergo diel horizontal migration (DHM) into macrophytes or other structures in the littoral zone. Some authors have suggested that DHM reduces predation by fishes on Daphnia and other cladocerans, resulting in a lower phytoplankton biomass in shallow lakes than would occur without DHM. The costs and benefits of DHM, and its potential implications in biomanipulation, are relatively unknown, however. 2.

A review of the adaptive significance and ecosystem consequences of zooplankton diel vertical migrations

Hydrobiologia, 2003

Diel vertical migration (DVM) by zooplankton is a universal feature in all the World's oceans, as well as being common in freshwater environments. The normal pattern involves movement from shallow depths at night to greater depths during the day. For many herbivorous and omnivorous mesozooplankton that feed predominantly near the surface on phytoplankton and microzooplankton, minimising the risk of predation from fish seems to be the ultimate factor behind DVM. These migrants appear to use deep water as a dark daytime refuge where their probability of being detected and eaten is lower than if they remained near the surface. Associated with these vertical movements of mesozooplankton, predators at higher trophic levels, including invertebrates, fish, marine mammals, birds and reptiles, may modify their behaviour to optimise the exploitation of their vertically migrating prey. Recent advances in biotelemetry promise to allow the interaction between migrating zooplankton and diving air-breathing vertebrates to be explored in far more detail than hitherto.

Diel vertical migration of zooplankton in a permanently stratified small tropical reservoir (Tierra Blanca, Venezuela)

Internationale Vereinigung für theoretische und angewandte Limnologie: Verhandlungen, 2008

Aeeording to HurcHINSON (1967), the dai1y movement of zooplankton is a very widespread phenomenon. Daily ( diel) vertieal migration (DVM) is responsible for short-term ehanges in the vertieal distribution of zooplankton (ZADEREEV & TowMEYEV 2007). Both marine and freshwater zooplankton exhibit a daily migration behavior (LAMPERT & SoMMER 1997) that eou1d eonfer some seleetive advantages (INFANTE 1988), sueh as more effieient uti1ization o f resourees or the avoidanee o f predation (Guwicz 1986). The most eommon DVM pattern involves an upward migration from deeper waters at dusk, resulting in a population maximum in relatively shallow water at night, followed by sinking to deeper water at dawn. Deviations from this pattern include "reverse" DVM, with a single surfaee maximum during the day, and "twilight" DVM in whieh surfaee maxima oeeur both at dawn and dusk (HurcHINSON 1967, BARBIERO et al. 2003). There are few studies of freshwater zooplankton vertieal migrati...

Diel vertical migration patterns of three zooplankton populations in a Chilean lake

Revista Chilena De Historia Natural, 2004

In this work we analyzed the depth-distribution, at noon and midnight, of three zooplankton populations which are common inhabitants of lakes from central Chile and coexist in lake El Plateado. The species were Tumeodiaptomus diabolicus, Diaphanosoma chilense and Bosmina longirostris. Also, we analyzed the association between the depth-specific abundances of the groups and the depth-specific temperature and oxygen values during the sampling period. Our results show that: (1) the three population exhibited diel vertical migration during part of the year; (2) T. diabolicus and D. chilense exhibited the normal pattern of vertical migration, and B. longirostris presented both the normal and the reverse pattern; (3) for all species and most dates, zooplankters experience significant decreases in oxygen exposure as a consequence of downward migration. Temperature costs are less important but present in T. diabolicus and D. chilense during part of the year.

Vertical distribution and diel migration of zooplankton and micronekton in Polcevera submarine canyon of the Ligurian mesopelagic zone (NW Mediterranean Sea)

Progress in Oceanography, 2020

Changes in the composition and biomass distribution of deep-living zooplankton over wide gradients of depth (0-1300 m) have been analyzed in the Central Ligurian Basin (Northwestern Mediterranean Sea), seeking the environmental variables responsible for these changes. Spring vertical distribution (early May 2013) and diel vertical migration (DVM) of some key species of macroplankton and micronekton communities were studied every 6 h during a 24 h cycle. The hauls, performed with the multiple opening/closing 230 µm BIONESS net system, made possible a detailed description of the vertical distribution of twenty-three species: one siphonophore, one pyrosomid, one salp, three pteropods, four amphipods, one mysid, eight euphausiids, two decapods, two fishes. Cluster analysis performed on major species of macroplankton and micronekton community assemblage mainly highlighted the presence of four well defined assemblages, based on the depth range in the water column: 0-60 m, 60-100 m, 100-600 m and from 600 to 1300 m. During daytime, vertical distributions of biomass exhibited similar profiles, with maxima in the 0-60 m layer. Highest abundances were recorded between 20-40 and 40-60 m depth, at midnight and in the morning. The highest values of both biodiversity and number of species were found in a deeper layer comprised between 400 and 600 m. Most of the species showed similar distributions throughout the sampled area, either with typical non-diel-migrating characters such as the euphausiid Stylocheiron longicorne and the fishes Cyclothone braueri and C. pygmaea, or with clear diel-migrant behaviour (e.g. the siphonophore Chelophyes appendiculata and the euphausiid Euphausia krohni). Some species (e.g. Vibilia armata, Phronima sedentaria, Scina crassicornis, Salpa fusiformis, Cavolinia inflexa, Gennadas elegans) exhibited a bimodal vertical distribution that could be attributed to different causes able to influence and modify their vertical migration. The lower values of chlorophylla concentrations found in the present studyinthe month of May corresponds to the transition period from a mesotrophic system to a rather oligotrophic one. Temperature and chlorophyll were the variables that principally influenced the distinction between shallow (0-60 m) and deep communities. Below 60 m depth, the dissolved oxygen and salinity become the most important variables affecting the zooplankton community.

Zooplankton diel vertical migration in the Corsica Channel (north-western Mediterranean Sea) detected by a moored ADCP

Ocean Science Discussions

Diel vertical migration (DVM) is a survival strategy adopted by zooplankton, that was investigated in the Corsica Channel using ADCP data, from April 2014 to November 2016. The principal aim of the study is to characterize migratory patterns and biomass temporal evolution along the water column. The ADCP measured vertical velocity and echo intensity in the water column range between about 70 m and 390 m (the bottom depth is 443 m). In addition, net samples were taken during summer 2015 at the same location. During the investigated period, biomass had a well-defined daily and seasonal cycle, with peaks occurring in late winterspring, when the stratification of water column is weaker. Biomass evolution along the whole water column is well correlated with primary production estimated with satellite data. Blooming and no-blooming periods have been identified and studied separately. During the no-blooming period biomass was most abundant in the surface and the deep layers, while during the blooming period the surface maximum disappeared and the deep layer with high biomass became thicker. These two layers are likely to correspond to two different zooplanktonic communities. Nocturnal DVM appears to be the main pattern during both periods, but also reverse and twilight migration are detected. Nocturnal DVM was more evident at mid-water than near in the deep and the surface layers. DVM occurred with different intensities in blooming and noblooming periods, and phenomena like nocturnal sinking were found to be stronger during the blooming period. One of the main outcomes is that the principal drivers for DVM are light intensity and stratification, but also others are taken in consideration. midnight or nocturnal sinking and is a downward movement accomplished after the sunset ascent and before the sunrise descent, which some zooplanktonic organisms do to leave the surface feeding layer and return to depth (Pearre, 2003 and references therein). Indeed, many authors agree on the presence of a continuum of migrating behaviours between the two opposed patterns of nocturnal and reversed migration (Haney, 1988). Essentially, in nocturnal DVM, the benefit of a reduced probability of predation is suggested to outweigh the cost of being spatially separated from the near-surface food, with a resulting reduced potential for daytime feeding (Hays, 2003). The less common twilight and reverse migration patterns have advantages as well, one of which could be to avoid other nocturnal migrators, as e.g. non-visually hunting invertebrate predators or simply competitors (Heywood, 1996; Ringelberg, 2009). DVM is that much widespread and is found within practically all taxonomic groups, that it is generally assumed that in many cases there must be a common underlying ultimate driving force (Pearre, 2003). Pioneering studies (Clarke, 1934; Eyden, 1923) hypothesized that migrators ascend into food-rich layers when hungry and descend after feeding, thus directly linking DVM to feeding. Likewise, Hardy (1953) and Stuart and Verheye (1991) suggested that carnivorous migrators, such as chaetognaths, might be simply following their herbivorous preys. However, in some cases, diel migration appears to have no link to feeding, e.g. when benthically feeding animals rise at night (as reported e.g. by Neverman and Wurtsbaugh, 1994). On the other hand, theories of migration based only on light or temperature effects, as driving factors, might not fully explain this complex biological phenomenon and ignore individual behaviours and responses to the environment (Gibbons, 1993). Laboratory studies show that organisms kept constantly at dark, with similar in situ conditions, continue to maintain a damped DVM rhythm, with an evening ascent and a clear downward movement in the morning (Häfker et al., 2017). This suggests the importance of an endogenous circadian biochemical internal clock and might explain the midnight sinking, the sunrise ascent (twilight migration) and DVM within the aphotic layer (van Haren and Compton, 2013). In fact, DVM is conditioned by a larger number of endogenous and exogenous factors (Ringelberg, 2009). Among endogenous factors there are sex, developmental stage, age, genotype, size, and internal rhythms (Richards et al., 1996), while exogenous factors include light, food availability, gravity, thermohaline characteristics (temperature, salinity, stratification), oxygen and hydrostatic pressure. Studying the diel vertical distributions of zooplanktonic biomass is essential to achieve a better understanding of the functioning of pelagic ecosystems and the biological pump. By feeding near the surface at night, and then fasting at depth during the day, where it continues to defecate, respire and excrete, migrating zooplankton removes carbon and nitrogen from the surface layers and releases them at depth (Hays et al., 1997; Longhurst and Glen Harrison, 1989; Schnetzer and Steinberg, 2002). Vertical migrators (including both zooplankton and phytoplankton) play a relevant role in the vertical fluxes of matter and energy in the marine environment. The net direction of this flux is downward, although migrators are able to return significant amounts of matter/energy upward, contributing to the effective recycling of nutrients within the euphotic zone (Pearre, 2003), thus supporting regenerated primary production. Traditionally, DVM surveys are very time and labour intensive. Emerging technologies, such as acoustic techniques, can reduce this investment, greatly increasing the ability to decrypt the drivers, benefits for migrating organisms and total extent of vertical migrations. The Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) is a widespread instrument used to measure water Ocean Sci. Discuss.,

Depth-selection patterns and diel vertical migration of Daphnia ambigua (Crustacea: Cladocera) in lake El Plateado

Eutrophic temperate and sub-tropical lakes often exhibit a marked vertical structure during the warm season that involves important spatial differences of physical, chemical and biological variables. Therefore, zooplankton is exposed to a highly heterogeneous environment in the vertical dimension. In this work, We analyze the depthdistribution of the cladoceran Daphnia ambigua in the eutrophic, monomictic lake El Plateado at midday and midnight, along with its relationship with the vertical distribution of water temperature and dissolved oxygen concentration. We also attempt to define whether or not this population exhibits a diel vertical migration. The results show significant changes in the day/night vertical distribution of D. ambigua during its growing season, with the exception of the last date. Also, the data revealed that average depth selected by D. ambigua becomes shallower with time, and the amplitude of the vertical migration decreases throughout the season. During the period of lake stratification, temperature appears positively correlated, and oxygen negatively correlated to the frequency of D. ambigua. It is suggested that oxygen concentration plays a crucial role in modulating the vertical migration behavior of D. ambigua in lake El Plateado, which has important consequences for understanding the atypical pattern of population dynamics exhibited by this species.

Two hundred years of zooplankton vertical migration research

Biological Reviews, 2021

Vertical migration is a geographically and taxonomically widespread behaviour among zooplankton that spans across diel and seasonal timescales. The shorter-term diel vertical migration (DVM) has a periodicity of up to 1 day and was first described by the French naturalist Georges Cuvier in 1817. In 1888, the German marine biologist Carl Chun described the longer-term seasonal vertical migration (SVM), which has a periodicity of ca. 1 year. The proximate control and adaptive significance of DVM have been extensively studied and are well understood. DVM is generally a behaviour controlled by ambient irradiance, which allows herbivorous zooplankton to feed in food-rich shallower waters during the night when light-dependent (visual) predation risk is minimal and take refuge in deeper, darker waters during daytime. However, DVMs of herbivorous zooplankton are followed by their predators, producing complex predator-prey patterns that may be traced across multiple trophic levels. In contrast to DVM, SVM research is relatively young and its causes and consequences are less well understood. During periods of seasonal environmental deterioration, SVM allows zooplankton to evacuate shallower waters seasonally and take refuge in deeper waters often in a state of dormancy. Both DVM and SVM play a significant role in the vertical transport of organic carbon to deeper waters (biological carbon sequestration), and hence in the buffering of global climate change. Although many animal migrations are expected to change under future climate scenarios, little is known about the potential implications of global climate change on zooplankton vertical migrations and its impact on the biological carbon sequestration process. Further, the combined influence of DVM and SVM in determining zooplankton fitness and maintenance of their horizontal (geographic) distributions is not well understood. The contrasting spatial (deep versus shallow) and temporal (diel versus seasonal) scales over which these two migrations occur lead to challenges in studying them at higher spatial, temporal and biological resolution and coverage. Extending the largely population-based vertical migration knowledge base to individual-based studies will be an important way forward. While tracking individual zooplankton in their natural habitats remains a major challenge, conducting trophic-scale, high-resolution, year-round studies that utilise emerging field sampling and observation techniques, molecular genetic tools and computational hardware and software will be the best solution to improve our understanding of zooplankton vertical migrations.