NDLI: Recent rapid salinity rise in three East Antarctic lakes

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Roberts, Donna Hodgson, Dominic A. McMinn, Andrew Verleyen, Elie Terry, Bruce Corbett, Christine Vyverman, Wim
Copyright Year	2006
Abstract	Research in East Antarctica has shown several recent environmental changes that may be linked to human impacts on climate. In order to detect the influence and context of these changes on coastal aquatic ecosystems we examined lake sediment cores from three lakes in the Windmill Islands, East Antarctica; Beall Lake, Holl Lake and ȁ8Lake Mȁ9. Cores were sectioned at␣2.5 mm intervals. Their diatom species composition was examined to detect changes in lake salinity using a diatom-salinity transfer function, and their algal pigment content was examined to detect photoautotrophic community responses to environmental change. Results showed that Holl Lake originated in a depression exposed by Holocene recession of the continental ice sheet and that Beall Lake and Lake M originated as isolated marine basins formed by changes in relative sea level. A general late Holocene trend of declining lake salinity was evident in all three lakes, interrupted by one short-term high salinity event in Beall Lake. This is consistent with a long-term positive moisture balance. This general decline in salinity has been followed by a remarkable recent rapid increase in salinity in all three lakes in the last few decades. We speculate that this rapid increase in salinity might be linked to changes taking place in the region including feedbacks resulting from decreasing sea ice extent as recorded in the nearby Law Dome ice core, and positive feedbacks in the catchments whereby reduced snow cover has led to decreased albedo, which in turn has caused increased evaporation and sublimation. Collectively these changes have shifted the lakes across a threshold from positive to negative moisture balance. A minor, but not rapid shift in the abundance of diatom pigments relative to pigments from green algae and cyanobacteria was also detected suggesting that some changes in photoautotrophic community composition have occurred. Measurements of modern nutrient levels are also higher than would be expected in Beall Lake and Holl Lake, given the extremely low sediment accumulation rates. This may be associated with a c. 300% increase in the population of Adélie penguins in the Windmill Islands recorded since the 1950s, or may a first signs of a rapid increase in catchment development and associated lake productivity as experienced in Antarctic and Arctic lakes subject to recent rapid regional warming. The most marked feature of the records is the rapid increase in salinity in all three lakes in␣the last few decades, which has occurred in lakes both with and without resident penguin populations.
Starting Page	385
Ending Page	406
Page Count	22
File Format	PDF
ISSN	09212728
Journal	Journal of Paleolimnology
Volume Number	36
Issue Number	4
e-ISSN	15730417
Language	English
Publisher	Kluwer Academic Publishers
Publisher Date	2006-05-31
Publisher Place	Dordrecht
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Windmill Islands Climate change Palaeolimnology Diatoms Salinity Pigments Penguins Geology Hydrobiology Physical Geography Climate Change Sedimentology Environment
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Earth-Surface Processes Aquatic Science

Sl.	Authority	Responsibilities	Communication Details
1	Ministry of Education (GoI), Department of Higher Education	Sanctioning Authority	https://www.education.gov.in/ict-initiatives
2	Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	Host Institute of the Project: The host institute of the project is responsible for providing infrastructure support and hosting the project	https://www.iitkgp.ac.in
3	National Digital Library of India Office, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	The administrative and infrastructural headquarters of the project	Dr. B. Sutradhar bsutra@ndl.gov.in
4	Project PI / Joint PI	Principal Investigator and Joint Principal Investigators of the project	Dr. B. Sutradhar bsutra@ndl.gov.in Prof. Saswat Chakrabarti will be added soon
5	Website/Portal (Helpdesk)	Queries regarding NDLI and its services	support@ndl.gov.in
6	Contents and Copyright Issues	Queries related to content curation and copyright issues	content@ndl.gov.in
7	National Digital Library of India Club (NDLI Club)	Queries related to NDLI Club formation, support, user awareness program, seminar/symposium, collaboration, social media, promotion, and outreach	clubsupport@ndl.gov.in
8	Digital Preservation Centre (DPC)	Assistance with digitizing and archiving copyright-free printed books	dpc@ndl.gov.in
9	IDR Setup or Support	Queries related to establishment and support of Institutional Digital Repository (IDR) and IDR workshops	idr@ndl.gov.in

Climatically driven pH changes in two Norwegian alpine lakes

Palaeolimnological evidence for recent climatic change in lakes from the northern Urals, arctic Russia

Late Holocene changes in ultraviolet radiation penetration recorded in an East Antarctic lake

Records of environmental and climatic changes during the late Holocene from Svalbard: palaeolimnology of Kongressvatnet

Present Limnological Conditions and Recent (ca. 340 yr) Palaeolimnology of a Tropical Lake in the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas, Eastern Mexico

The European Union Water Framework Directive: opportunities for palaeolimnology

Limnology of Two Antarctic Epishelf Lakes and their Potential to Record Periods of Ice Shelf Loss

Limnological effects of growth and cessation of agricultural land use in Ladoga Karelia: sedimentary pollen and diatom analyses

Linking neo- and palaeolimnology: a case study using crater lake diatoms from central Turkey

Recent rapid salinity rise in three East Antarctic lakes

Similar Documents

Climatically driven pH changes in two Norwegian alpine lakes

Palaeolimnological evidence for recent climatic change in lakes from the northern Urals, arctic Russia

Late Holocene changes in ultraviolet radiation penetration recorded in an East Antarctic lake

Records of environmental and climatic changes during the late Holocene from Svalbard: palaeolimnology of Kongressvatnet

Present Limnological Conditions and Recent (ca. 340 yr) Palaeolimnology of a Tropical Lake in the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas, Eastern Mexico

The European Union Water Framework Directive: opportunities for palaeolimnology

Limnology of Two Antarctic Epishelf Lakes and their Potential to Record Periods of Ice Shelf Loss

Limnological effects of growth and cessation of agricultural land use in Ladoga Karelia: sedimentary pollen and diatom analyses

Linking neo- and palaeolimnology: a case study using crater lake diatoms from central Turkey

Recent rapid salinity rise in three East Antarctic lakes