Differences between the element concentrations of reed organs and the substrate along water depth gradients in Lake Balaton, Hungary

Abstract

A widely described phenomenon all over Europe is that reed decline begins from greater water depths - i.e. clumping is more expressed at the open water fringe while stands towards the lakeshore are homogeneous and intact. To understand the possible background processes, the present paper examined the differences between the element concentrations of reed organs (root, rhizome, stem and leaf), and the substrate (i.e. sediment or soil) along water depth gradients in Lake Balaton, Hungary. Differences between the mineral compositions of reed organs and the substrate and the impact of water depth on element concentration of samples were investigated. Relations between water depth and element concentrations of substrate and plant organs and interelement correlations in the samples were also considered. In addition to other results, element concentrations provided indirect evidence for increasing hypoxia (anoxia) in the sediment under greater water depths possibly contributing to reed decline. Although, the gre...