Large and deep perialpine lakes: a paleolimnological perspective for the advance of ecosystem science
2018
Tolotti, Monica | Dubois, Nathalie | Milan, Manuela | Perga, Marie-Elodie | Straile, Dietmar | Lami, Andrea | Fondazione Edmund Mach - Edmund Mach Foundation [Italie] (FEM) | Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule - Swiss Federal Institute of Technology [Zürich] (ETH Zürich) | Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology [Dübendorf] (EAWAG) | University of Konstanz | Centre Alpin de Recherche sur les Réseaux Trophiques et Ecosystèmes Limniques (CARRTEL) ; Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Université Savoie Mont Blanc (USMB [Université de Savoie] [Université de Chambéry]) | Institut Earth Surface Dynamic ; Université de Lausanne = University of Lausanne (UNIL) | Independent
International audience
Show more [+] Less [-]English. The present paper aims at reviewing general knowledge of large European perialpine lakes as provided by sediment studies, and at outlining the contribution, from several lines of evidence, of modern paleolimnology in both interpreting past lake ecological evolution and forecasting lake responses to future human impacts. A literature survey mainly based on papers published in international journals indexed on ISI-Wos and Scopus from 1975 to April 2017 has been conducted on the 20 perialpine lakes with z(max)100m and lake area10km(2), and on 4 shallower perialpine lakes representing hotspots of extensive neo- and paleo-limnological research. By pinpointing temporal and spatial differences in paleolimnological studies conducted in the Alpine countries, the review identifies knowledge gaps in the perialpine area, and shows how sediment-based reconstructions represent a powerful tool, in mutual support with limnological surveys, to help predicting future scenarios through the past-forward principle, which consists in reconstructing past lake responses to conditions comparable to those to come. The most recent methodological developments of sediment studies show the potential to cope with the increasing ecosystem variability induced by climate change, and to produce innovative and crucial information for tuning future management and sustainable use of Alpine waters.
Show more [+] Less [-]Bibliographic information
This bibliographic record has been provided by Institut national de la recherche agronomique