Ceratium Schrank is dinoflagellate genus commonly found in
marine environments, and considered invasive in continental waters (Silva et al., 2012SILVA, LC., LEONE, CI., SANTOS-WISNIEWSKI, MJ., PERET, AC. and
ROCHA, O., 2012. Invasion of the dinoflagellate Ceratium furcoides
(Levander) Langhans 1925 at tropical reservoir and its relation to
environmental variables. Biota Neotropica, vol. 12, no. 2, p. 93-100.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1676-06032012000200010.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1676-06032012...
). Species of this genus are
able to develop blooms due to their mobility and resistance to sedimentation, to the
occupation of the surface layer and optimised use of resources such as light and
nutrients (Donagh et al., 2005DONAGH, ME., CASCO, MA. and CLAPS, MC., 2005. Colonization of a
Neotropical Reservoir (Córdoba, Argentina) by Ceratium
hirundinella (O. F. Müller) Bergh. Annales de Limnologie -
International. Journal of Limnology, vol. 41, no. 4, p. 291-299.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/limn/2005020.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/limn/2005020...
). Even
though its blooms are not toxic, they still bring harmful effects to aquatic communities
as anoxic conditions causing the death of a local population of lobsters (Pitcher and Probyn, 2011PITCHER, GC. and PROBYN, TA., 2011. Anoxia in southern Benguela
during the autumn of 2009 and its linkage to a bloom of the dinoflagellate
Ceratium balechii. Harmful Algae, no. 11, p. 23-32.).
In Brazil, the occurrence of a species of this genus has been recently
registered in freshwater ecosystems. Santos-Wisniewski
et al. (2007)SANTOS-WISNIEWSKI, MJA., SILVA, LC., LEONE, IC., LAUDARES-SILVA, RB.
and ROCHA, O., 2007. First record of the occurrence of Ceratium furcoides
(Levander) Langhans 1925, an invasive species in the hydroelectricity
power plant Furnas Reservoir, MG, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Biology, vol. 67,
no. 4, p. 791-793. PMid: 18278340.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007000400033.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007...
recorded a bloom of C. furcoides in
Furnas reservoir, Minas Gerais state, and Matsumura-Tundisi et al. (2010)MATSUMURA-TUNDISI, T., TUNDISI, JG., LUZIA, AP. and DEGANI, RM.,
2010. Occurrence of Ceratium furcoides (Levander) Langhans 1925 bloom
at the Billings Reservoir, São Paulo State, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of
Biology, vol. 70, no. 3, p. 825-829. PMid: 21085787.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842010000400013.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842010...
in Billings reservoir, São
Paulo state, both eutrophic enviroments. In the rivers semiarid region of Brazil the
occurrences of C. furcoides and also of C.
hirundinella were described by Oliveira et
al. (2011)OLIVEIRA, HSB., MOURA, AN. and CORDEIRO-ARAÚJO, MK., 2011.
First record of Ceratium Schrank, 1973 (Dinophyceae: Ceratiaceae) in
freshwater ecosystems in the semiarid region of Brazil. Check List, vol. 7, no.
5, p. 626-628.. C. furcoides e C.
hirundinella are ecologically and morphologically similar (Gil et al., 2012GIL, CB., RESTREPO, JJR., BOLTOVSKOY, A. and VALLEJO, A., 2012.
Spatial and temporal change characterization of Ceratium furcoides
(Dinophyta) in the equatorial reservoir Riogrande II, Colombia. Acta
Limnologica Brasiliensia, vol. 24, no. 2, p. 207-219.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S2179-975X2012005000039.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S2179-975X2012...
) differing only in the number
of apical plates (Santos-Wisniewski et al.,
2007SANTOS-WISNIEWSKI, MJA., SILVA, LC., LEONE, IC., LAUDARES-SILVA, RB.
and ROCHA, O., 2007. First record of the occurrence of Ceratium furcoides
(Levander) Langhans 1925, an invasive species in the hydroelectricity
power plant Furnas Reservoir, MG, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Biology, vol. 67,
no. 4, p. 791-793. PMid: 18278340.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007000400033.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007...
).
Regarding Rio Grande do Sul state, the study by Cardoso et al. (2010)CARDOSO, LS., FAGUNDES, PB. and BECKER, V., 2010. Spatial and
temporal variations of Dinophyceae in subtropical reservoirs in southern Brazil.
Hydrobiologia, vol. 654, no. 1, p. 205-214.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10750-010-0382-9.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10750-010-038...
in four meso-eutrophic reservoirs
identified eight species of Dinophyceae. Species of Ceratium, however,
were not registered by these authors, so this genus had not, to date, been registered in
freshwater reservoirs within the state. This note, thus, documents the first observation
of a bloom of C. furcoides in Rio Grande do Sul state.
The upper Jacuí hydrographical basin located in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, has an area of 12.985,44 km2 and belongs to the Guaíba hydrographical region (Sema, 2009). The upper course of the Jacuí river is characterised by the presence hydroeletric power stations, where five water reservoirs were constructed forming a cascade system. Phytoplankton samples were collected in the water reservoir for the Itaúba Hydroeletrical power station. It is the fourth reservoir in the Jacuí cascading system. It has an area of 13.29 km2, a perimeter of 140.55 km, and maximum depth of approximately 90 m. Its main tributary is the river Ivaí (Sema, 2009).
On 31th August 2012 four sampling stations (Figure 1) were visited and at each station
samples were taken from three different depths (Figure 2). A five litre Van Dorn bottle was used to collect the water.
The samples were concentrated in situ using a plankton net (10
µm pore size) and preserved with 1% Lugol solution. An analysis of the
whole phytoplankton community was carried out and taxonomic identification to genus
level followed Bicudo and Menezes (2006) and Santos-Wisniewski et al. (2007)SANTOS-WISNIEWSKI, MJA., SILVA, LC., LEONE, IC., LAUDARES-SILVA, RB.
and ROCHA, O., 2007. First record of the occurrence of Ceratium furcoides
(Levander) Langhans 1925, an invasive species in the hydroelectricity
power plant Furnas Reservoir, MG, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Biology, vol. 67,
no. 4, p. 791-793. PMid: 18278340.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007000400033.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007...
. Quantitative analyses followed
Uthermöhl (1958)UTHERMÖHL, H., 1958. On the perfecting of quantitative
phytoplankton method. International Association of Theoretical and Applied
Limnology Commun, vol. 9, p. 1-38. using an
inverted microscope (Motic AE31).
Location of Itaúba reservoir, (A) in grey Rio Grande do Sul state, southern Brazil; (B) in white the upper course of Jacuí hydrographical basin and the Itaúba reservoir; (C) Itaúba reservoir map with its main tributaries and the location of the four sampling stations (Ss).
Cell density (cell·mL–1) of Ceratium furcoides in four sampling stations (Ss) and three different depths in the Itaúba reservoir, August 2012. S: surface layer; ds: secchi disk depth; zf: lower limit of the photic zone.
Generally, the sampling stations at the Itaúba reservoir had an average depth of 45 m. Water transparency varied between 0.50 and 1.65 m and the occurrence of C. furcoides (Figure 3) was registered at every sampling station in the reservoir.
Ceratium furcoides (Levander) Langhans 1925. (A) dorsal view ; (B) lateral view. Length:173-150 µm (162 µm average); width: 60-39 µm (45 µm average). (Photos: Domingues, A.L.).
In the phytoplankton community 36 species, belonging to eight classes were
identified. Chlorophyceae and Bacillariophyceae were the classes with the highest
species richness, but C. furcoides was the dominant species in all
samples. In Figure 2 it is noticeable that the
highest cell concentration was found at the sampling stations located close to the dam:
Ss1 and Ss2. It is also clear that the concentration decreases with increasing distance
to the barrage, shifting between 2036 cell·mL–1 at Ss1, 1500
cell·mL–1 at Ss2 and 272 cell·mL–1 at
Ss3. Such densities may be considered high when compared to those found at Furnas
reservoir: 285 cell·mL–1 (Santos-Wisniewski et al., 2007SANTOS-WISNIEWSKI, MJA., SILVA, LC., LEONE, IC., LAUDARES-SILVA, RB.
and ROCHA, O., 2007. First record of the occurrence of Ceratium furcoides
(Levander) Langhans 1925, an invasive species in the hydroelectricity
power plant Furnas Reservoir, MG, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Biology, vol. 67,
no. 4, p. 791-793. PMid: 18278340.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007000400033.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007...
) but relatively low when compared to the
Billings reservoir: 21.000 cell·mL–1 (Matsumura-Tundisi et al., 2010MATSUMURA-TUNDISI, T., TUNDISI, JG., LUZIA, AP. and DEGANI, RM.,
2010. Occurrence of Ceratium furcoides (Levander) Langhans 1925 bloom
at the Billings Reservoir, São Paulo State, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of
Biology, vol. 70, no. 3, p. 825-829. PMid: 21085787.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842010000400013.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842010...
). Exceptionally at sampling
station Ss4, where the lowest surface density (74
cell·mL–1) was found, the lower limit of the euphotic zone
was 4.95 m. This lower density allowed light availability to a greater depth, where the
vertical distribution of the species differed from the other sampling stations, with a
higher density in the lower limit of the euphotic zone (205
cell·ml–1).
Algal bloom events may cause harmful effects in aquatic communities, affecting the ecosystem balance, so constant monitoring is necessary. Furthermore, Itaúba reservoir is part of a cascading system, linked to a number of other reservoirs, where the occurrence of C. furcoides is also under study, in order to describe the extent of the establishment of this invasive species in the hydrographical basin, its ability to form blooms and the interferences caused on the local communities.
Acknowledgements - The authors wish to thank CNPq for financial support (Research project 478961/2010-3) and to CAPES for MSc grants to Cassol, A.P.V. and Domingues, A.L.
References
- BICUDO, CE.,M. and MENEZES, M., 2006. Gêneros de algas de águas continentais do Brasil: chave para identificação e descrições. 2. ed. São Paulo: Rima. 497 p.
- CARDOSO, LS., FAGUNDES, PB. and BECKER, V., 2010. Spatial and temporal variations of Dinophyceae in subtropical reservoirs in southern Brazil. Hydrobiologia, vol. 654, no. 1, p. 205-214. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10750-010-0382-9.
» http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10750-010-0382-9 - DONAGH, ME., CASCO, MA. and CLAPS, MC., 2005. Colonization of a Neotropical Reservoir (Córdoba, Argentina) by Ceratium hirundinella (O. F. Müller) Bergh. Annales de Limnologie - International. Journal of Limnology, vol. 41, no. 4, p. 291-299. http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/limn/2005020.
» http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/limn/2005020 - GIL, CB., RESTREPO, JJR., BOLTOVSKOY, A. and VALLEJO, A., 2012. Spatial and temporal change characterization of Ceratium furcoides (Dinophyta) in the equatorial reservoir Riogrande II, Colombia. Acta Limnologica Brasiliensia, vol. 24, no. 2, p. 207-219. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S2179-975X2012005000039.
» http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S2179-975X2012005000039 - MATSUMURA-TUNDISI, T., TUNDISI, JG., LUZIA, AP. and DEGANI, RM., 2010. Occurrence of Ceratium furcoides (Levander) Langhans 1925 bloom at the Billings Reservoir, São Paulo State, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Biology, vol. 70, no. 3, p. 825-829. PMid: 21085787. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842010000400013.
» http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842010000400013 - OLIVEIRA, HSB., MOURA, AN. and CORDEIRO-ARAÚJO, MK., 2011. First record of Ceratium Schrank, 1973 (Dinophyceae: Ceratiaceae) in freshwater ecosystems in the semiarid region of Brazil. Check List, vol. 7, no. 5, p. 626-628.
- PITCHER, GC. and PROBYN, TA., 2011. Anoxia in southern Benguela during the autumn of 2009 and its linkage to a bloom of the dinoflagellate Ceratium balechii. Harmful Algae, no. 11, p. 23-32.
- SANTOS-WISNIEWSKI, MJA., SILVA, LC., LEONE, IC., LAUDARES-SILVA, RB. and ROCHA, O., 2007. First record of the occurrence of Ceratium furcoides (Levander) Langhans 1925, an invasive species in the hydroelectricity power plant Furnas Reservoir, MG, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Biology, vol. 67, no. 4, p. 791-793. PMid: 18278340. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007000400033.
» http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-69842007000400033 - Secretaria Estadual do Meio Ambiente - SEMA,2009. Plano de gerenciamento da bacia hidrográfica do alto jacuí. Passo Fundo. 75 p. Relatório T2.
- SILVA, LC., LEONE, CI., SANTOS-WISNIEWSKI, MJ., PERET, AC. and ROCHA, O., 2012. Invasion of the dinoflagellate Ceratium furcoides (Levander) Langhans 1925 at tropical reservoir and its relation to environmental variables. Biota Neotropica, vol. 12, no. 2, p. 93-100. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1676-06032012000200010.
» http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1676-06032012000200010 - UTHERMÖHL, H., 1958. On the perfecting of quantitative phytoplankton method. International Association of Theoretical and Applied Limnology Commun, vol. 9, p. 1-38.
Publication Dates
-
Publication in this collection
May 2014
History
-
Received
23 Apr 2013 -
Accepted
29 Apr 2013