Abstract

While there is a general sense that lakes can act as sentinels of climate change, their efficacy has not been thoroughly analyzed. We identified the key response variables within a lake that act as indicators of the effects of climate change on both the lake and the catchment. These variables reflect a wide range of physical, chemical, and biological responses to climate. However, the efficacy of the different indicators is affected by regional response to climate change, characteristics of the catchment, and lake mixing regimes. Thus, particular indicators or combinations of indicators are more effective for different lake types and geographic regions. The extraction of climate signals can be further complicated by the influence of other environmental changes, such as eutrophication or acidification, and the equivalent reverse phenomena, in addition to other land-use influences. In many cases, however, confounding factors can be addressed through analytical tools such as detrending or filtering. Lakes are effective sentinels for climate change because they are sensitive to climate, respond rapidly to change, and integrate information about changes in the catchment.

Published in

Limnology and Oceanography
2009, Volume: 54, number: 6, pages: 2283-2297

SLU Authors

• Weyhenmeyer, Gesa

  • Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

Sustainable Development Goals

Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts


UKÄ Subject classification

Fish and Aquacultural Science
Environmental Sciences
Oceanography, Hydrology, Water Resources


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4319/lo.2009.54.6_part_2.2283

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/27885