SEASONAL POPULATION DYNAMICS OF ZOOPLANKTON AND THEIR PARASITE COMMUNITIES IN LAKES OF SOUTHERN ALBERTA

Parasite epidemics within zooplankton hosts can shape aquatic food web structure and functioning, potentially affecting higher trophic levels. Identifying the controls and consequences of epidemics can thus enhance our understanding of the ecology of aquatic systems. The parasite populations and communities in zooplankton are thought to be shaped by complex controls related to seasonal changes in the biotic and abiotic environment, including nutrient availability, mixing and resuspension of parasite infective stages, temperature-dependent release and viability of free-living parasite stages, and host population dynamics. These controls not only affect the parasites themselves, but also how they are transmitted from host to host. Yet, despite the potential limnological importance of parasites, our understanding of zooplankton-parasite interactions is limited. Past research has typically focused on select microparasite taxa and a limited set of environmental factors, making it difficult to draw conclusions about community-level interactions and their controls. Here, we explored the seasonal patterns of zooplankton-parasite community dynamics in four eutrophic lentic ecosystems (lake, reservoir and open water wetland ecosystems) in a heavily agriculturalized and effluent-impacted aquatic network in southern Alberta, Canada. We sampled the meso-zooplankton communities seasonally in each ecosystem, for enumeration and identification of zooplanktonic hosts and their parasites. Water quality conditions, including vertical profiles of limnological conditions (i.e., temperature, dissolved oxygen) were also measured.  Our presentation will summarize our results and provide new insights into seasonality of both micro- and macroparasites associated with zooplankton, and how these associations vary across distinct ecosystems.

Presentation Preference: Standard Oral (12 Minutes)

Primary Presenter: Molly Tilley, University of Lethbridge (m.tilley@uleth.ca)

Authors:

Molly Tilley, University of Lethbridge  (m.tilley@uleth.ca)

Paola Ayala Borda, University of Lethbridge  (paola.ayalaborda@uleth.ca)

Cameron Goater, University of Lethbridge  (cam.goater@uleth.ca)

Tara Stewart Merrill, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies  (stewartmerrillt@carinstitute.org)

Matthew Bogard, University of Lethbridge  (matthew.bogard@uleth.ca)