Does salinization impact long-term Daphnia assemblage dynamics? Evidence from the sediment egg bank in a small hard-water lake

Abstract

Salinization of freshwater ecosystems threatens global aquatic biodiversity. There is a need for studies that follow populations in situ during salinization to understand the effects on species and ecosystems. We follow 170 years of Daphnia dynamics in the sediment ephippia archive of a small urban lake near St. Paul, Minnesota, to characterize effects of severe recent salinization on lake Daphnia. We found modest changes in the flux of ephippia in this lake; all three key Daphnia functional groups remained in the assemblage throughout the period of salinization. Reconstruction of the size distribution of Daphnia pulicaria demonstrated a consistent increase in body size in opposition to the expected trajectory during salinization. Our findings highlight that in hard-water lakes, the effects of salinization are nuanced and require further investigation to better understand overall impacts of salinization on hard-water lake Daphnia assemblages.