Tan QG, Wang WX

Calcium influence on phosphorus regulation in Daphnia magna: implications for phosphorus cycling

Crustacean zooplankton play an important role in the phosphorus cycling in lake ecosystems. With the use of radiotracer technique and biokinetic model, the assimilation and loss budget of phosphorus in a freshwater zooplankter Daphnia magna can be quantitatively studied. We found that the calcium level in the water affects the relative importance of excretion and molting as the routes of phosphorus loss from daphnids. Since the excreted phosphorus is readily available to primary producers and the phosphorus contained in the molt sinks out of the epilimnion, the effects of Ca have significant implication in the phosphorus cycling in freshwater lakes.

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