Ecosystem Dynamics in an Extreme Environment: Lake Fryxell, Taylor Valley, Antarctica.

The McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica constitute a large and significantly ice free area of Antarctica at 78 degrees south latitude. Over the past 19 years data have been gathered on the lakes located in Taylor Valley, Antarctica as part of the McMurdo Valley Long-Term Ecological Research program (MCM-LTER). This study is part of a larger study that seeks to understand the impact of climate on the biological processes in all the ecosystems within Taylor Valley, including the lakes. These lakes are stratified, closed-basin systems and are permanently covered with ice. The work presented here focuses on one of the three main lakes in Taylor Valley, Lake Fryxell, which is fed by 13 streams. We use a statistical approach to link the physical, chemical, and biological processes within the lake and the streams that feed it. In our statistical approach we use light, phosphorus, nitrogen, and other lake parameters as explanatory variables for biological production and biomass profiles, and attempt to link the physiochemical properties of the lake to biological changes within the lake.ShellNo embarg