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#nutrient limitation

3 public questions tagged with this topic.

Ecosystem Ecology & PRODUCTIVITY

Which ecosystem has low energy conversion efficiency due to nutrient limitation?

Phytoplankton ecosystems can have low conversion of incoming solar energy into stored biomass when essential nutrients are scarce. Vast regions of the open ocean receive abundant light at the surface but have low concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus, iron, or silica because stratification limits resupply from deeper water. Photosynthetic pigments may absorb light, yet carbon fixation and growth cannot proceed efficiently without nutrients needed for proteins, nucleic acids, ATP, and chlorophyll-associated machinery. Small cells partly compensate through high surface-to-volume ratios, and the

Ref: Ecology: From Individuals to Ecosystems, Begon et al., 5th Ed., Ch. 17

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ECOSYSTEM TYPES

What nutrient often limits productivity in aquatic systems?

Phosphorus frequently limits primary productivity in freshwater because photosynthetic organisms require phosphate for ATP, nucleic acids, phospholipids, and many metabolic reactions, yet biologically available phosphate is often scarce. Unlike carbon and nitrogen, phosphorus has no large gaseous reservoir that rapidly replenishes most ecosystems. It enters lakes mainly through rock weathering, soil erosion, sewage, detergents, and fertilizer runoff, and it can become adsorbed to sediments or precipitated with minerals. When the supply of phosphate is below biological demand, adding more light

Ref: Ecology: Concepts and Applications, Molles, 9th Ed., Ch. 2-3

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Ecosystem Pyramid

Which nutrient often becomes limiting once nitrogen is sufficient?

Phosphorus often becomes limiting after nitrogen limitation is relieved because organisms require both elements for growth, and supplying one shifts demand toward the other. Phosphorus is needed for nucleic acids, ATP, and phospholipids, but its geological cycle lacks a large atmospheric reservoir and replenishment can be slow. In freshwater systems and old, highly weathered soils, phosphate availability is especially low because it binds to minerals or is occluded. The sequence is context-dependent: light, micronutrients, or other macronutrients may instead become limiting. Energy and matter

Ref: Fundamentals of Ecology, Odum & Barrett, 5th Ed., Ch. 3

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