Phosphorus accumulates faster than nitrogen globally in freshwater ecosystems under anthropogenic impacts
Year: 2016
Type: article
Abstract: Combined effects of cumulative nutrient inputs and biogeochemical processes that occur in freshwater under anthropogenic eutrophication could lead to myriad shifts in nitrogen (N):phosphorus (P) stoichiometry in global freshwater ecosystems, but this is not yet well-assessed. Here we evaluated the characteristics of N and P stoichiometries in bodies of freshwater and their herbaceous macrophytes across human-impact levels, regions and periods. Freshwater and its macrophytes had higher N and P concentrations and lower N : P ratios in heavily than lightly human-impacted environments, further evidenced by spatiotemporal comparisons across eutrophication gradients. N and P concentrations in freshwater ecosystems were positively correlated and N : P was negatively correlated with population density in China. These results indicate a faster accumulation of P than N in human-impacted freshwater ecosystems, which could have large effects on the trophic webs and biogeochemical cycles of estuaries and coastal areas by freshwater loadings, and reinforce the importance of rehabilitating these ecosystems.
Source: Ecology Letters
DOI: 10.1111/ele.12658
Institutions: Peking University, China Agricultural University, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Centre for Research on Ecology and Forestry Applications, Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UAB, Arizona State University, Beijing Normal University, State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, University of Minnesota, Western Sydney University
Language: English
Subfield: Environmental Chemistry
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2475918282