Data from: Nutrient release from moose bioturbation in aquatic ecosystems

While the ecological importance of bioturbation is well recognized and the
prevalence of aquatic foraging by terrestrial ungulates is increasingly
appreciated, research linking how terrestrial ungulates function as
disturbance mechanisms via bioturbation in freshwater systems is lacking.
The purpose of this study was to quantify potential nutrient pulses
released from benthic sediments into the water column when moose Alces
alces feed on aquatic plants. We also determined if we could
experimentally mimic the benthic disturbance and the expected nutrient
pulse created when moose feed aquatically. When moose foraged aquatically,
significant releases of both total and dissolved phosphorus (P) and
nitrogen (N) resulted in the waters that were disturbed in foraging areas
compared to adjacent undisturbed waters. Nutrient concentrations for total
P and N ranged from 42.5 × and 2.7 × greater in disturbed than
undisturbed, respectively. Dissolved P and N were 26.8 × and 1.5 ×
greater, respectively, in disturbed versus undisturbed waters. Our
experimental mimic created increases of total and dissolved P and N that
were equivalent to pulses created by moose. This indicates that it is
possible to experimentally test by proxy the potential impact of moose
bioturbation on other ecosystem processes. This study is the first
quantification of moose foraging as a consumer mechanism that influences
the release of limiting nutrients in aquatic systems, thereby emphasizing
the potential cascading importance for nutrient uptake and productivity of
plants and microbes.