Eddie von Wachenfeldt

Stable isotope analysis of benthic fauna and their food sources in boreal lakes

Abstract The origin of organic C supporting zoobenthic communities in 8 boreal lakes with different concentrations of dissolved organic C (DOC) was assessed by stable-isotope analysis. Profundal zoobenthos was depleted in 13C compared to littoral zoobenthos, and this difference increased with decreasing DOC concentration. The δ13C of littoral zoobenthos suggested reliance on benthic algae, whereas depleted 13C of profundal zoobenthos could be explained by contributions from allochthonous and autochthonous C sources. In deeper lakes, profundal zoobenthos diets also included C processed by methanotrophic bacteria. Littoral zoobenthos δ13C decreased with increasing DOC concentration in the lake water. Our results suggest that littoral benthic fauna are mainly supported by benthic algae in low-DOC lakes and by phytoplankton and allochthonous organic C in high-DOC lakes and that this difference is a result of light absorbance and energy supply by allochthonous organic C. Increasing allochthonous DOC inputs, as expected in a warmer and wetter climate, might reduce benthic algal production and alter the organic C base for benthic food webs in lake ecosystems.

Preferential sequestration of terrestrial organic matter in boreal lake sediments

The molecular composition and origin has recently been demonstrated to play a critical role in the persistence of organic matter in lake water, but it is unclear to what degree chemical attributes and sources may also control settling and burial of organic matter in lake sediments. Here we compared the annual contribution of allochthonous and autochthonous sources to the organic matter settling in the water column and present in the sediments of 12 boreal lakes. We used the fluorescence properties and elemental composition of the organic matter to trace its origin and found a consistent pattern of increasing contribution of terrestrial compounds in the sediments as compared to the settling matter, with an annual average allochthony of ~87% and ~57%, respectively. Seasonal data revealed a predominance of in-lake-produced compounds sinking in the water column in summer. Yet only a slight concurrent decrease in the contribution of terrestrial C to lake sediments was observed during the same period, and sediment allochthony increased again to high levels in autumn. Our results reveal a preferential preservation of allochthonous matter in the sediments and highlight the role of lakes as sequesters of organic carbon primarily originating from the surrounding landscape.