2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference

March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH

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5/24/2021  |   8:30 AM - 10:30 AM   |  LOCAL STRESSORS MINIMIZE THE EFFECTS OF NUTRIENTS ACROSS WATERSHEDS OF DIFFERENT SIZES AND DEGREES OF CHEMICAL IMPAIRMENT   |  Virtual Platform

LOCAL STRESSORS MINIMIZE THE EFFECTS OF NUTRIENTS ACROSS WATERSHEDS OF DIFFERENT SIZES AND DEGREES OF CHEMICAL IMPAIRMENT

Microbial carbon processing in streams can be affected by nutrient enrichment and exposure to toxic chemicals, but there is a need to better understand the nature of these effects across a variety of watershed sizes. At 13 sites in the upper Ohio River watershed, we investigated the effects of water chemistry on microbial processing using two types of standardized carbon substrates to test the hypothesis that chemical stressors can override the stimulatory effects of nutrients on microbial processing rates. We assessed microbial respiration and breakdown rates using a labile cellulose sponge, and a recalcitrant red oak wood veneers after four or six weeks, respectively across a range of watershed sizes. Labile carbon substrate respiration rate was positively correlated with chloride and SRP while negatively correlated with nitrate; breakdown rate was weakly positively correlated with SRP and temperature. On the wood substrates, respiration was negatively correlated with nitrate and weakly negatively correlated with DIN; breakdown was similarly only weakly negatively correlated with DIN. Our results indicate that differences that local stressors and in-stream conditions can exert strong effects on microbial processing potentially overshadowing the effects of nutrient stimulation.

  • Nutrients
  • Microbial ecology
  • Ecosystem

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Presenters/Authors

Emily Huff (), West Liberty University, ethuff@westliberty.edu;


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James Wood (), West Liberty University, James.Wood@westliberty.edu;


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