Carbon Cycling in the
Watershed and Lakes
Bopi Biddanda,
Scott Kendall, Eric Strickler, Angie Defore, Maggie Weinert,
Deb Dila, Kaitlyn Driza and Kate Coveney
Annis Water Resources Institute and Lake Michigan Center
Grand Valley State University, MI
Carbon Cycle
Reevaluation of the Role of Inland Waters
a) Traditional view of carbon transport
from terrestrial environment to oceans,
b) Modern view of carbon transport
showing inland waters as reactive sites
of carbon metabolism (Cole et al. 2007).
Muskegon Lake - fed by Muskegon River
(background) flowing into Lake Michigan
(foreground).
www.co.muskegon.mi.us
Freshwater ecosystems are major sites of C processing!
River to lake gradient
Transition
Visible trophic level changes occur along the Land to Lake gradient!
Visible Mesoscale River Runoff into Lake Michigan
Grand River
Photo credit: Marge Beaver, Muskegon
Johengen et al. JGLR, 2008
Rivers link Land-derived C & Nutrients to the Lake via Aquatic Microbes!
Massive Sediment Resuspension event 3/98
Total Suspended Matter (surface reflectence) in Surface Waters
Aquatic microorganisms link terrestrial organic matter and
nutrients to aquatic productivity (Biddanda and Cotner, 2002).
Lake Michigan
Toast to a Lake Brew
When rain runs down-river to the lake
Where wicked winds stir the lot
You know the brew is in the coastal pot!
As plankton go nuts over N and P
With little light in which to see
Animals dine on resuspended waste
Production and respiration peak in haste!
Then as rivers slow and winds subside
The placid lake takes it in stride
Returns to its native serene state of blue
And is ready for another dose of home-brew!
–Bopi Biddanda
IAGLR, May 2009; ASLO Bulletin 2009.
Storm of October 2010
Methods
• Respiration (R) and Production (P) were measured
by tracking changes in dissolved oxygen
concentrations in BOD bottle incubations under in
situ conditions over a daily cycle.
• R = Dark bottles
• NPP = Light Bottles
• GPP = R + NPP
Controls, Light and Dark Bottles
Plankton Metabolism: Land to Lake Gradient in Lake Michigan
Average NPP (2002-2008), Lake Michigan T ransect
400.00
NPP
(ugC/L/d)
300.00
200.00
100.00
0.00
-100.00
M -110
M -45
M -15
M L-C
M uskegon Lk
Site
Decreasing Net Primary Production Along the Land to Lake Gradient
Plankton Metabolism: Land to Lake Gradient in Lake Michigan
Average R (2002-2008), Lake Michigan T ransect
R
(ugC/L/d)
200
150
100
50
0
M -110
M -45
M -15
M L-C
M uskegon Lk
Site
Decreasing Plankton Respiration Along the Land to Lake Gradient
Plankton Metabolism: Land to Lake Gradient in Lake Michigan
Average GPP (2002-2008) Lake Michigan T ransect
650.00
550.00
GPP
(ugC/L/d)
450.00
350.00
250.00
150.00
50.00
-50.00
M -110
M -45
M -15
M L-C
M uskegon LK
Site
Decreasing Gross Primary Production Along the Land to Lake Gradient
Plankton Metabolism: Land to Lake Gradient in Lake Michigan
Average R and GPP (2002-2008), Lake Michigan T ransect
River GPP > R (C sink). Lake GPP < R (C source)
600.00
GPP or R
(ugC/L/d)
500.00
y = 130.63x - 195.95
400.00
2
R = 0.957
GPP
300.00
R
Linear (R)
200.00
Linear (GPP)
100.00
y = 41.81x - 29.011
2
R = 0.9432
0.00
-100.00
0
1
Lake
2
3
Site
4
5
Land
Production drops much faster than R along the Land to Lake Gradient!
Day-Night Oxygen Cycle in Muskegon Lake May 2009
Muskegon Lake Open Water Metabolism (6-9 May 2009)
10
9.5
9
Sonde 4
Sonde 5
Sonde 6
8.5
8
7.5
0:30:32
21:45:32
19:00:33
16:15:32
13:30:32
10:45:32
8:00:32
5:15:32
2:30:32
23:45:32
21:00:32
18:15:32
15:30:32
12:45:32
10:00:32
7:15:32
4:30:32
1:45:32
23:00:32
20:15:32
17:30:32
14:45:32
7
Time (hours)
“Production and respiration are two sides of the same metabolic coin - the yin an yang of the biosphere”
Muskegon Lake Metabolism 2008-09
Seasonal Cycle
• Predictable patterns in GPP:R ratio
–
–
during the spring and summer
during fall and winter
Sink to Source? Effect of Climate Warming on Plankton Metabolism in Muskegon Lake
Plankton and Temperature: Schematic diagram of hypothesized results and
actual findings. P refers to Gross Primary Production of Plankton and R refers to
Plankton Respiration. The horizontal P/R line refers to the 1:1 line where P and R
are increasing at the same rate (left). The decreasing P/R line refers to R
increasing more than P as waters warm (right).
Observations
• Respiration is a major fate of current as well as past
primary production in Lake Michigan.
• Terrestrial inputs of carbon and nutrients
support significant respiration and production in
the Lake.
• As production declines more than respiration along
the Land to Lake gradient, the relative role of
respiration increases - with nearshore net
autotrophic systems giving way to net hetrotrophic
systems offshore.
• Spring-summer net autotrophy and fall-winter net
heterotrophy trends are observed regularly.
• As lakes warm, Respiration may exceed Production
shifting lakes from sinks to sources of C
• There is a need for continuous lake observatories.
Muskegon Lake Observatory for
Ecosystem Changes
Real-time Continuous Lake News!
Lake Carbon Cycle
People:
Funding: NSF, NOAA, MSGC