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Interactions Between Grazing Birds and Macrophytes

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Part of the book series: Ecological Studies ((ECOLSTUD,volume 131))

Abstract

In the past, aquatic birds were largely overlooked by limnologists, receiving scant attention in hydrobiological journals and no more than passing mention in limnology texts. There has recently been rapid growth in interest in their roles in lake ecosystems, with the integration of bird studies into intensive limnological programs, comparative investigations over large groups of lakes, an increase in the number of experimental studies, and increasing contact with water bird biologists (Kerekes and Pollard, 1994; Faragó and Kerekes, 1997). Much of this interest stems from recent scientific focus on the factors that lead to shallow eutrophic lakes being dominated alternatively by phytoplankton or by macrophytes (Schef-fer et al., 1993) and management investment in the restoration of eutrophic lakes to a clear macrophyte-dominated state (e.g., National Research Council [USA], 1992; Broads Authority [UK], 1994; National Environmental Research Institute [Denmark], 1994). It is now clear that aquatic bird populations may, at times, be very sensitive to ecological changes in lakes and that they can also play significant roles in producing such changes.

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Mitchell, S.F., Perrow, M.R. (1998). Interactions Between Grazing Birds and Macrophytes. In: Jeppesen, E., Søndergaard, M., Søndergaard, M., Christoffersen, K. (eds) The Structuring Role of Submerged Macrophytes in Lakes. Ecological Studies, vol 131. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-0695-8_9

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