A survey of the physiochemical characteristics and the zooplankton communities in an ephemeral karst lake

Abstract

Chaney Lake State Nature Preserve is a 68 ha ephemeral karst lake in southern Warren County, Kentucky (USA). Chaney typically fills with water in the winter as groundwater levels rise and then slowly dries via evaporation and drainage back into the subsurface over the summer months. The lake contains several habitat types, identifiable by the dominant plant communities, which may have different physiochemical characteristics. Since these differences may result in an increase in habitat heterogeneity and niches available for colonization by resident zooplankton, a suite of physiochemical and nutrient parameters was monitored in these habitats from January 1997–August 1998. Zooplankton densities and community structure were assessed from January 1997 through May 1998. There were few significant differences among the habitats but there were significantly higher concentrations of NOx and higher specific conductivities associated with some of the groundwater inlet areas in the lake. Zooplankton were abundant, but there were no differences in zooplankton densities among the areas sampled. These results suggest that the physiochemical properties in the lake are heavily influenced by the groundwater inputs and that land use patterns around Chaney Lake may be having an impact on the preserve.