Abstract
THE success of future water quality standards and management programmes depends on an accurate assessment of factors determining the relative abundances of algal species. Physical and chemical factors are often considered1; biological controls are less commonly assessed although their potential importance is recognized2–4. Planktonic crustacea exhibit selective feeding behaviour ranging from passive size selection in Daphnia5 to raptorial feeding in cyclopoid copepods6. Some algae are actively rejected7,8 and others are poorly digested8–11 by grazers.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Scientific Fundamentals of Eutrophication (edit. by Vollenweider, R.), 159 (OECD Publication Ex 40105, Paris, 1970).
Edmondson, W. T., in Nutrients and Eutrophication (edit. by Likens, G.), 172 (Limnol. Oceanogr. Special Symposium), 1 (1972).
Lund, J. W. G., Biol. Rev., 40, 231 (1965).
Hutchinson, G. E., Amer. Sci., 3, 269 (1973).
Burns, C., Limnol. Oceanogr., 13, 675 (1968).
Fryer, G., Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 129, 1 (1957).
Burns, C., Int. Rev. Ges. Hydrobiol., 53, 83 (1968).
Edmondson, W. T., Trans. Am. Microscop. Soc., 76, 225 (1957).
Provasoli, L., Conklin, D., and D'Angostino, A. S., Helgolander wiss. Meeresunters, 20, 443 (1970).
Fryer, G., J. Anim. Ecol., 26, 263 (1957).
Gibor, A., Biol. Bull., 111, 230 (1956).
Porter, K. G., Limnol. Oceanogr., 17, 913 (1972).
Sokal, R., and Rohlf, F., Biometry (Friedman, San Francisco, 1969).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
PORTER, K. Selective Grazing and Differential Digestion of Algae by Zooplankton. Nature 244, 179–180 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1038/244179a0
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/244179a0
This article is cited by
-
Predator mass mortality events restructure food webs through trophic decoupling
Nature (2024)
-
Impact of zooplankton grazing on phytoplankton in north temperate coastal lakes: changes along gradients in salinity and nutrients
Hydrobiologia (2023)
-
Winter severity shapes spring plankton succession in a small, eutrophic lake
Hydrobiologia (2022)
-
The evolution of convex trade-offs enables the transition towards multicellularity
Nature Communications (2021)
-
Zooplankton community size-structure change and mesh size selection under the thermal stress caused by a power plant in a semi-enclosed bay
Acta Oceanologica Sinica (2020)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
