Zooplankton production and limnological variables in boreal lakes in Quebec

A major outstanding question in plankton ecology is whether the regulation of zooplankton production at the community level follows the same patterns that have been observed for individual populations. We used a novel biochemical approach that allowed us to determine integrated in situ rates of crustacean zooplankton production in 83 lakes that span large environmental and geographic gradients across the boreal biome of Québec. Our results show that the relationship of zooplankton community production to average community body size, total biomass and temperature is comparable to what has been observed for individual populations. At the community level, however, there are additional drivers, including lake morphometry, and catchment properties, which further influence zooplankton production.