Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Bioturbation of sediments by benthic macroinvertebrates and fish and its implication for pond ecosystems: a review

  • Published:
Aquaculture International Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Bioturbation of bottom sediments at the sediment–water interface is currently gaining more attention in studies dealing with the functioning of aquatic ecosystems. Such bioturbation can be caused by a variety of benthic macroinvertebrates or benthivorous fish that forage and burrow various bottom tubes, holes and pits. Thus, the processes involved may either be a result of direct interception by benthic animals, e.g., through bioresuspension of particles or through food ingestion and biodeposition, or of other indirect effects, e.g., changes in the physical properties of sediments or through the constructions mentioned above, along with corresponding changes in pond ecosystem functioning. The most distinct effect of benthivorous fish bioturbation activities is an increase in the turbidity of the water, which can lead to many subsequent knock-on effects, including inhibition of phytoplankton and submersed macrophyte growth with resulting alterations in physico-chemical water conditions. The importance of benthic macroinvertebrates and fish in bioturbation processes is also indicated by an increase in the numbers of resting cyanobacterial colonies recruited due to bioturbation of bottom sediments.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adámek Z, Helešic J, Maršálek B, Rulík M (2010) Aplikovaná hydrobiologie (Applied Hydrobiology). FFPW USB Vodňany

  • Aller RC (1978) Experimental studies of changes produced by deposit feeders on pore water, sediment, and overlying water chemistry. Am J Sci 278:1185–1234

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Andersson G, Graneli W, Stenson J (1988) The influence of animals on phosphorus cycling in lake ecosystems. Hydrobiologia 170:267–284

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Avnimelech Y, Kochva M, Hargreaves JA (1999) Sedimentation and resuspension in earthen fish ponds. J World Aquac Soc 30:401–409

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Biswas JK, Rana S, Bhakta JN, Jana BB (2009) Bioturbation potential of chironomid larvae for the sediment-water exchange in simulated pond systems of varied nutrient enrichment. Ecol Eng 35:1444–1453

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boyd CE (1995) Bottom soils, sediments and pond aquaculture. Chapman and Hall, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Brabrand A, Faafeng BA, Nilssen JPM (1990) Relative importance of phosphorus supply to phytoplankton production: fish excretion versus external loading. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 47:364–372

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Breukelaar AW, Lammens EHRR, Breteler JGPK, Tatrai I (1994) Effect of benthivorous bream (Abramis brama) and carp (Cyprinus carpio) on sediment resuspension and concentrations of nutrients and chlorophyll a. Freshw Biol 32:113–121

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brönmark C, Hansson L-A (2005) The biology of lakes and ponds. Oxford University Press, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Brunberg A, Blomqvist P (2003) Recruitment of Microcystis (Cyanophyceae) from lake sediments: the importance of littoral inocula. J Phycol 39:58–63

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chakrabarty D, Das SK (2007) Bioturbation-induced phosphorous release from an insoluble phosphate source. Biosystems 90:309–313

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cline JMT, East TL, Threlkeld ST (1994) Fish interactions with the sediment-water interface. Hydrobiologia 275(276):301–311

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Costa-Pierce BA, Pullin RSV (1989) Stirring ponds as a possible means of increasing aquaculture production. Aquabyte 2:5–7

    Google Scholar 

  • Croel RC, Kneitel JM (2011) Ecosystem-level effects of bioturbation by tadpole shrimp Lepidurus packardi in temporary pond mesocosms. Hydrobiologia 665:169–181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dafoe LT, Rygh AL, Yang B, Gingras MK, Pemberton SG (2011) A new technique for assessing tubificid burrowing activities, and recognition of biogenic grading formed by these oligochaetes. Palaios 26:66–80

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Haas EM, Kraak MHS, Koelmans AA, Admiraal W (2005) The impact of sediment reworking by opportunistic chironomids on specialised mayflies. Freshw Biol 50:770–780

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fukuhara H, Sakamoto M (1987) Enhancement of inorganic nitrogen and phosphate release from lake sediment by tubificids worms and chironomid larvae. Oikos 48:312–320

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gallepp GW (1979) Chironomid influence on phosphorus release in sediment-water microcosms. Ecology 60:547–556

    Google Scholar 

  • Gleason RA, Euliss NH Jr, Hubbard DE, Duffy WG (2003) Effects of sediment load on emergence of aquatic invertebrates and plants from wetland soil egg and seed banks. Wetlands 23:26–34

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gosselin A, Hare I (2003) Burrowing behavior of Chaoborus flavicans larvae and its ecological significance. J N Am Benthol Soc 22:575–581

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Graf G, Rosenberg R (1997) Bioresuspension and biodeposition: a review. J Mar Syst 11:269–278

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Graneli W (1979) The influence of Chironomus plumosus larvae on the oxygen uptake of sediment. Arch Hydrobiol 87:385–407

    Google Scholar 

  • Gyllstrom M, Lakowitz T, Bronmark C, Hansson LA (2008) Bioturbation as driver of zooplankton recruitment, biodiversity and community composition in aquatic ecosystems. Ecosystems 11:1120–1132

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Håkansson L, Jansson M (1983) Principles of lake sedimentology. Springer, Berlin

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Hansen KS, Mouridsen S, Kristensen E (1998) The impact of Chironomus plumosus larvae on organic matter decay and nutrient (N, P) exchange in a shallow eutrophic lake sediment following a phytoplankton sedimentation. Hydrobiologia 364:65–74

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hellström T (1991) The effect of resuspension on algal production in a shallow lake. Hydrobiologia 213:183–190

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Henry R, Santos CM (2008) The importance of excretion by Chironomus larvae on the internal loads of nitrogen and phosphorus in a small eutrophic urban reservoir. Braz J Biol 68:349–357

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Holdren GC, Armstrong DE (1980) Factors affecting phosphorus release from intact lake sediment cores. Environ Sci Technol 14:79–87

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hrbáček J, Procházková L (1975) Release of nitrogenous substances from bottom sediments under laboratory conditions. Verh Intern Ver Limnol 19:1899–1906

    Google Scholar 

  • Jana BB, Das SK (1992) Bioturbation induced changes of fertilizer value of phosphate rock in relation to alkaline phosphatase activity. Aquaculture 103:321–330

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jana BB, Sahu SN (1993) Relative performance of three bottom grazing fishes (Cyprinus carpio, Cirrhinus mrigala, Heteropneustes fossilis) in increasing the fertilizer value of phosphate rock. Aquaculture 115:19–29

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jana BB, Das SK, Chakrabarty D (1992) Use of common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.) in increasing the fertilizer value of phosphate rock. J Appl Ichthyol 8:222–227

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jepessen E, Jensen JP, Sondergaard M, Lauridsen T, Moller FP, Sandby K (1998) Changes in nitrogen retention in shallow eutrophic lakes following a decline in density of cyprinids. Arch Hydrobiol 142:129–151

    Google Scholar 

  • Jiang PH, Ji L, Xiao WJ, Huang DZ, Liu YB, Song CL, Cao XY, Zhou YY (2010) Bioturbation of two chironomid species on nutrient release at sediment-water interface in a Chinese shallow eutrophic lake. Fresenius Environ Bull 19:902–910

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jonasson PM (1972) Ecology and production of the profundal benthos in relation to phytoplankton in Lake Esrom. Oikos Suppl 14:1–148

    Google Scholar 

  • Joyni MJ, Kurup BM, Avnimelech Y (2011) Bioturbation as a possible means for increasing production and improving pond soil characteristics in shrimp-fish brackish water ponds. Aquaculture 318:464–470

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kadir A, Kundu RS, Milstein A, Wahab MA (2006) Effects of silver carp and small indigenous species on pond ecology and carp polycultures in Bangladesh. Aquaculture 261:1065–1076

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karlsson-Elfgren I, Brunberg AK (2004) The importance of shallow sediments in the recruitment of Anabaena and Aphanizomenon (Cyanophyceae). J Phycol 40:831–836

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kearns CM, Hairston GJ, Kesler DH (1996) Particle transport by benthic invertebrates: Its role in egg bank dynamics. Hydrobiologia 332:63–70

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Keen WH, Gagliardi J (1981) Effect of brown bullheads on release of phosphorus in sediment and water systems. Progr Fish Cult 43:183–185

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kloskowski J (2011) Differential effects of age-structured common carp (Cyprinus carpio) stocks on pond invertebrate communities: implications for recreational and wildlife use of farm ponds. Aquacult Int 19:1151–1164

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kořínek V, Fott J, Fuksa J, Lellák J, Pražáková M (1987) Carp ponds of central Europe. In: Michael RG (ed) Managed aquatic ecosystems. Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam, pp 29–62

    Google Scholar 

  • Krantzberg G (1985) The influence of bioturbation on physical, chemical and biological parameters in aquatic environments: a review. Environ Pollut Ser A 39:99–122

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lagauzere S, Pischedda L, Cuny P, Gilbert F, Stora G, Bonzom J-M (2009) Influence of Chironomus riparius (Diptera, Chironomidae) and Tubifex tubifex (Annelida, Oligochaeta) on oxygen uptake by sediments. Consequences for uranium contamination. Environ Pollut 157:1234–1242

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lagauzere S, Moreira S, Koschorreck M (2011) Influence of bioturbation on the biochemistry of littoral sediments of an acidic post-mining pit lake. Biogeosciences 8:339–352

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lamarra VA (1975) Digestive activities of carp as a major contributor to the nutrient loading of lakes. Verh Intern Ver Limnol 19:2461–2468

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewandowski J, Hupfer M (2005) Effect of macrozoobenthos on two-dimensional small-scale heterogeneity of pore water phosphorus concentrations in lake sediments: a laboratory study. Limnol Oceanogr 50:1106–1118

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lewandowski J, Laskov C, Hupfer M (2007) The relationship between Chironomus plumosus burrows and the spatial distribution of pore-water phosphate, iron and ammonium in lake sediments. Freshw Biol 52:331–343

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Marcus NH, Schmidt-Gengenbach J (1986) Recruitment of individuals into the plankton: The importance of bioturbation. Limnol Oceanogr 31:206–210

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matisoff G, Fisher JB, Matis S (1985) Effects of benthic macroinvertebrates on the exchange of solutes between sediments and freshwater. Hydrobiologia 122:19–33

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Matsuzaki SS, Usio N, Takamura N, Washitani I (2007) Effects of common carp on nutrient dynamics and littoral community composition: roles of excretion and bioturbation. Fundam Appl Limnol 168:27–38

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Meijer LE, Avnimelech Y (1999) On the use of micro-electrodes in fish pond sediments. Aquacult Eng 21:71–83

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mermillod-Blondin F, des Chatelliers MC, Gerino M, Gaudet JP (2000) Testing the effect of Limnodrilus sp. (Oligochaeta, Tubificidae) on organic matter and nutrient processing in the hyporheic zone: a microcosm method. Arch Hydrobiol 149:467–487

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mermillod-Blondin F, Lemoine D, Boisson JC, Malet E, Montuelle B (2008) Relative influences of submersed macrophytes and bioturbating fauna on biogeochemical processes and microbial activities in freshwater sediments. Freshw Biol 53:1969–1982

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Meysman FJR, Galaktionov OS, Gribsholt B, Middelburg J (2006) Bioirrigation in permeable sediments: advective pore-water transport induced by burrow ventilation. Limnol Oceanogr 51:142–156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller SA, Crowl TA (2006) Effects of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) on macrophytes and invertebrate communities in a shallow lake. Freshw Biol 51:85–94

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Misson B, Sabart M, Amblard C, Latour D (2011) Involvement of microcystins and colony size in benthic recruitment of the cyanobacterium Microcystis (Cyanophyceae). J Phycol 47:42–51

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mitraszewski P, Uchmanski J (1989) A numerical model of phosphorus exchange between the sediments and the near bottom water in a lake. Ekologia Polska 36:317–346

    Google Scholar 

  • Mulsow S, Boudreau BP, Smith JA (1998) Bioturbation and porosity gradients. Limnol Oceanogr 43:1–8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Northcote TG (1988) Fish in the structure and function of freshwater ecosystems: a top-down view. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 45:361–379

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ozbay H (2008) An enclosure experiment to test the effects of common carp on the water quality in a shallow Turkish soda lake. Fresenius Environ Bull 17:2078–2082

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Panek FM (1987) Biology and ecology of carp. In: Cooper EL (ed) Carp in North America. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, pp 1–15

    Google Scholar 

  • Parkos JJIII, Santucci VJ Jr, Wahl DH (2003) Effects of adult common carp (Cyprinus carpio) on multiple trophic levels in shallow mesocosms. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 60:182–192

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Persson A, Nilsson E (2007) Foraging behavior of benthic fish as an indicator of ecosystem state in shallow lakes. Israel J Ecol Evol 53:407–421

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Persson A, Svensson JM (2006) Effects of benthivorous fish on biogeochemical processes in lake sediments. Freshw Biol 51:1298–1309

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Petr T (1977) Bioturbation and exchange of chemicals in the mud-water interface. In: Golterman HL (ed) Interactions between sediments and freshwater. Dr.W.J.Junk, The Hague, pp 216–226

    Google Scholar 

  • Phan-Van M, Rousseau DPL, De Pauw N (2008) Effects of fish bioturbation on the vertical distribution of water temperature and dissolved oxygen in a fish culture-integrated waste stabilization pond system in Vietnam. Aquaculture 281:28–33

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Qin JG, Threlkeld ST (1990) Experimental comparison of the effects of benthivorous fish and planktivorous fish on plankton community structure. Arch Hydrobiol 119:121–141

    Google Scholar 

  • Rengefors K, Gustafsson S, Stahl-Delbanco A (2004) Factors regulating the recruitment of cyanobacterial and eukaryotic phytoplankton from littoral and profundal sediments. Aquat Microb Ecol 36:213–226

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Revsbech NP, Sörensen J, Blackburn TH, Lomholt JP (1980) Distribution of oxygen in marine sediments measured with microelectrodes. Limnol Oceanogr 25:403–411

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Riise JC, Roos N (1997) Benthic metabolism and the effects of bioturbation in a fertilized polyculture fish pond in northeast Thailand. Aquaculture 150:45–62

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Risnoveanu G, Postolache C, Vadineanu A (2002) The role of tubificid communities in phosphorous budget in shallow eutrophic lakes of the Danube Delta. Int Assoc Danub Res 34:689–696

    Google Scholar 

  • Risnoveanu G, Postolache C, Vadineanu A (2004) Ecological significance of nitrogen cycling by tubificid communities in shallow eutrophic lakes of the Danube delta. Hydrobiologia 524:193–202

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ritvo G, Kochba M, Avnimelech Y (2004) The effects of common carp bioturbation on fishpond bottom soil. Aquaculture 242:345–356

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Roberts J, Chick A, Oswald L, Thompson R (1995) Effect of carp, Cyprinus carpio, an exotic benthivorous fish, on aquatic plants and water quality in experimental ponds. Mar Freshw Res 46:1171–1180

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scheffer M (1998) Ecology of shallow lakes. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, Boston, London

  • Sidorkewicj NS, Lopez Cazorla AC, Fernandez OA, Möckel GC, Burgos MA (1999) Effects of Cyprinus carpio on Potamogeton pectinatus in experimental culture: the incidence of the periphyton. Hydrobiologia 415:13–19

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stahl-Delbanco A, Hansson L-A (2002) Effects of bioturbation on recruitment of algal cells from the “seed bank” of lake sediments. Limnol Oceanogr 47(6):1836–1843

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Starkel WM (1985) Predicting the effect of macrobenthos on the sediment/water flux of metals and phosphorus. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 42:95–100

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stief P, de Beer D (2002) Bioturbation effects of Chironomus riparius on the benthic N-cycle as measured using microsensors and microbiological assays. Aquat Microb Ecol 27:175–185

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stief P, de Beer D (2006) Probing the environment of freshwater sediment macrofauna implications of deposit-feeding and bioirrigation for nitrogen cycling. Limnol Oceanogr 51:2538–2546

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stockner JG, Lund JWG (1970) Live algae in postglacial lake deposits. Limnol Oceanogr 15:41–58

    Google Scholar 

  • Svensson JM (1997) Influence of Chironomus plumosus larvae on ammonium flux and denitrification (measured by the acetylene blockage- and the isotope pairing-technique) in eutrophic lake sediment. Hydrobiologia 346:157–168

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Svensson JM (1998) Emission of NO2, nitrification and denitrification in a eutrophic lake sediment bioturbed by Chironomus plumosus. Aquat Microb Ecol 14:289–299

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Svensson JM, Bergman E, Andersson G (1999) Impact of cyprinid reduction on the benthic macroinvertebrate community and implications for increased nitrogen retention. Hydrobiologia 404:99–112

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tarvainen M, Ventela AM, Helminen H, Sarvala J (2005) Nutrient release and resuspension generated by ruffe (Gymnocephalus cernuus) and chironomids. Freshw Biol 50:447–458

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Topçu A, Pultasü S (2008) The effect of dissolved oxygen on sediment-water phosphorus exchange in Mogan Lake. In: Proceedings of the EIFAC symposium on interactions between social, economic and ecological objectives of inland commercial and recreational fisheries and aquaculture, EIFAC Occasional Paper No.44: 87–92

  • Verspagen JMH, Snelder EOFM, Visser PM, Huisman J, Mur LR (2004) Recruitment of benthic Microcystis (Cyanophyceae) to the water column: internal buoyancy changes or resuspension? J Phycol 40:260–270

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weber MJ, Brown ML (2009) Effects of common carp on aquatic ecosystems 80 years after “Carp as a dominant”: ecological insights for fisheries management. Rev Fish Sci 17:524–537

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wisniewski RJ, Planter M (1985) Exchange of phosphorus across sediment-water interface (with special attention to the influence of biotic factors) in several lakes of different trophic status. Verh Intern Ver Limnol 22:3345–3349

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Woodruff SL, House MEC, Leadbeater SC (1999) The effects of biofilms on chemical processes in surficial sediments. Freshw Biol 41:73–89

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yamamoto Y (2010) Contribution of bioturbation by the red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii to the recruitment of bloom forming cyanobacteria from sediment. J Limnol 69:102–111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang L, Gu XZ, Fan CX, Shang JG, Shen QS, Wang ZD, Shen J (2010) Impact of different benthic animals on phosphorus dynamics across the sediment-water interface. J Environ Sci–China 22:1674–1682

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The study was supported by the South Bohemian Research Centre of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses CENAKVA CZ.1.05/2.1.00/01.0024 and projects GA JU 047/2010/7, AVOZ60050516 and FR-TI3/196.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. South Bohemian Research Centre of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses and Research Institute of Fish Culture and Hydrobiology, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Zátiší 728/II, 389 25, Vodňany, Czech Republic

    Zdeněk Adámek

  2. Department of Experimental Phycology and Ecotoxicology, Institute of Botany, Czech Academy of Sciences, Průhonice, Czech Republic

    Blahoslav Maršálek

Authors
  1. Zdeněk Adámek
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Blahoslav Maršálek
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zdeněk Adámek.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Adámek, Z., Maršálek, B. Bioturbation of sediments by benthic macroinvertebrates and fish and its implication for pond ecosystems: a review. Aquacult Int 21, 1–17 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-012-9527-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-012-9527-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation