Pelagic-benthic coupling: deep benthic zone response to winter diatom bloom sinking in oligotrophic Lake Alchichica, Puebla, Mexico

Abstract

The aim of this study is to recognize the existence of a pelagic-benthic coupling in the oligotrophic, tropical Lake Alchichica through analysis of the response of the deep benthic zone to the winter diatom bloom deposition. The water column phytoplankton biomass and the sedimentary chlorophyll a were analyzed along an annual cycle. Alchichica is a warm monomictic lake circulating in winter and stratified over the rest of the year. The presence of turbulence and nutrient availability during the mixing period, favor the development of a diatom bloom composed by large species (e. g., Cyclotella alchichicana) which are not totally consumed and settle down. The deep benthic zone responds to the sinking of the winter diatom bloom with the prompt development and permanence for an extended period- of hypolimnetic anoxia, which in turns prevents the establishment and development of the benthic fauna in Lake Alchichica, and favors the internal loss of nitrogen through denitrification, and accordingly, promotes nitrogen to be the limiting nutrient for phytoplankton growth.