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TECHNICAL REPORTS

Wetlands and Aquatic Processes

Cascading Ecological Effects of Low-Level Phosphorus Enrichment in the Florida Everglades

^a Southeast Environmental Research Center, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199
^b Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199
^c Department of Environmental Studies, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199
^d Center for Biodiversity, Illinois Natural History Survey, Champaign, IL 61820
^e U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA 20192
^f Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR 97207

^* Corresponding author (gaisere{at}fiu.edu)

Received for publication May 26, 2004. Few studies have examined long-term ecological effects of sustained low-level nutrient enhancement on wetland biota. To determine sustained effects of phosphorus (P) addition on Everglades marshes we added P at low levels (5, 15, and 30 µg L^–1 above ambient) for 5 yr to triplicate 100-m flow-through channels in pristine marsh. A cascade of ecological responses occurred in similar sequence among treatments. Although the rate of change increased with dosing level, treatments converged to similar enriched endpoints, characterized most notably by a doubling of plant biomass and elimination of native, calcareous periphyton mats. The full sequence of biological changes occurred without an increase in water total P concentration, which remained near ambient levels until Year 5. This study indicates that Everglades marshes have a near-zero assimilative capacity for P without a state change, that ecosystem responses to enrichment accumulate over time, and that downstream P transport mainly occurs through biota rather than the water column.

Abbreviations: TP, total phosphorus

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This Issue in Journal of Environmental Quality

JEQ 2005 34: 403-407. [Full Text]