Zooplankton to phytoplankton biomass ratios in shallow Florida lakes: an evaluation of seasonality and hypotheses about factors controlling variability

We examined crustacean zooplankton data (excluding nauplii) from 15 shallow lakes in south and central Florida, spanning a range of sizes and Chlorophyll-a concentrations. Each dataset was comprised of monthly samples from 2 years (6 lakes), or monthly to quarterly samples from 10 or 12 years (9 lakes). We quantified relationships between the zooplankton to phytoplankton biomass ratio (BZ:BP) and measurements of BZ and BP at three levels of resolution: (1) sampling events; (2) seasonal means; and (3) period-of-record means and medians. For individual sampling events, variations in ZB explained most of the variation in BZ:BP and ratios were little affected by changes in BP. Seasonal declines in BZ:BP corresponded with declines in BZ, were not related to declines in biomass of edible algae, and happened in spring-summer when earlier studies indicated high densities of planktivorous fish. Period-of-record means and medians did not identify any relationships between the biomass ratio and either BZ or BP, suggesting that processes affecting the ratio operate at shorter time scales than multiple years. Short-term and seasonal changes in BZ:BP in Florida may be controlled by predation. Testing this hypothesis will require coincident sampling of plankton and fish over a number of years or experimental studies.