A Comparison of Ecological Memory of Lake Ice-Off in Eight North-Temperate Lakes

Ice-off dates on lakes are some of the longest phenological records in the field of ecology, and some of the best evidence of long-term climatic change. However, there has been little investigation as to whether the date of ice-off on a lake impacts spring and summer ecosystem dynamics. Here, I analyzed 274 years of long-term data from eight north temperate lakes in two climate zones to address whether lakes have ecological memory of ice-off in the subsequent summer. Five metrics were investigated: epilimnion temperatures, hypolimnion temperatures, hypolimnetic oxygen drawdown, water clarity, and spring primary productivity. The response of the metrics to ice-off date were variable across latitude and lake type. The northern set of lakes stratified quickly following ice-off, and early ice-off years resulted in significantly warmer hypolimnetic temperatures. Oxygen depletion in the hypolimnion was not impacted by ice-off date, likely because in late ice-off years the lakes did not fully mix. In the southern lakes, ice-off date was not correlated to the onset of stratification, with the latter being a more dominant control on hypolimnetic temperature and oxygen. The implications of these findings is that as ice-off date trends earlier in many parts of the world, the lakes that will likely experience the largest changes in spring and summer ecosystem properties are the lakes that currently have the longest duration of lake ice. In considering a future with warmer winters, these results provide a starting point for predicting how lake ecosystem properties will change with earlier ice-off.

Automated summary

The study found that the response of lake ecosystems to ice-off date varied across different latitudes and types of lakes. Northern lakes quickly stratified after ice-off, with early ice-off years resulting in significantly warmer deep water temperatures. However, in southern lakes, ice-off date was not correlated with the onset of stratification but was more influenced by control on deep water temperature and oxygen.