Salt-evolved zooplankton grow too slowly to block salt-induced algal blooms
Monday, December 3, 2018 - 08:30
in Earth & Climate
Small animals at the base of the freshwater food chain can rapidly adapt to salt pollution—from sources like winter road deicing, agriculture, and mining—but at a price. In a special December edition of Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B devoted to freshwater salt pollution, research shows that salt-adapted freshwater zooplankton grow 65 percent slower than regular zooplankton. Their slow growth cascades down the food chain in environments polluted with the most commonly found salt, triggering algal blooms.