Nutrient limitation of freshwater cyanobacteria : tools to monitor phosphorus limitation at the individual level

Abstract

Changes in species composition that are often observed in phytoplankton communities result from a complex interplay between physical and chemical properties of the aquatic environment on the one hand and the responsiveness of the individual species on the other hand. The potential role of nutrient limitation in accommodating these changes in species composition has since long been recognized. However, the interpretation of results, to the benefit of understanding nutrient competition between species in phytoplankton communities, is very much hampered by the limited knowledge that is gained by chemical assay methods for measurements of actual nutrient concentrations in surface waters.