Phosphorus limits diazotrophic cyanobacteria whereas other phytoplankton are co-limited by nitrogen and phosphorus in the lowland Murray River, Australia

Terence A. Rogers; Jordan A. Facey; Huy Andrew Luong; Jarrod E. Walton; Tsuyoshi Kobayashi; Nicholas Williamson; Justin R. Seymour; Simon M. Mitrovic

doi:10.1071/MF24203

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

Next Contents Vol 76(12)

Phosphorus limits diazotrophic cyanobacteria whereas other phytoplankton are co-limited by nitrogen and phosphorus in the lowland Murray River, Australia

Terence A. Rogers

^A ^* , Jordan A. Facey ^A ^B , Huy Andrew Luong ^A , Jarrod E. Walton ^A , Tsuyoshi Kobayashi ^C ^D , Nicholas Williamson ^E , Justin R. Seymour ^F and Simon M. Mitrovic ^A

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A School of Life Sciences, University of Technology Sydney, PO Box 123, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia.

^B Department of Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany.

^C Science and Insights Division, NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, PO Box 29, Lidcombe, NSW 1825, Australia.

^D Gulbali Institute for Agriculture, Water and Environment, Charles Sturt University, PO Box 789, Albury, NSW 2640, Australia.

^E School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

^F Climate Change Cluster, University of Technology Sydney, PO Box 123, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia.

^* Correspondence to: terence.rogers@uts.edu.au

Handling Editor: Daniel Roelke

Marine and Freshwater Research 76, MF24203 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF24203

Submitted: 13 November 2024 Accepted: 9 July 2025 Published: 1 August 2025

© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Context

Balances in the availability of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are particularly important in controlling the competitive dynamics between diazotrophic and non-diazotrophic cyanobacteria in riverine environments. In the Murray River, this has not been greatly studied despite frequent cyanobacterial blooms.

Aims

To assess the influence of N and P concentrations on cyanobacterial and eukaryotic phytoplankton communities.

Methods

We conducted six in situ nutrient amendment experiments across five riverine sites along the Murray River, Australia. Substantial diazotrophic cyanobacterial biomass was present at four sites on experimental onset.

Results

Chlorophyll-a measures indicated co-limitation of N and P at Corowa_21 and Kulnine_21, whereas P alone was the key limiting nutrient at Torrumbarry_20, Mildura_20 and Mildura_21. Phytoplankton populations responded differently to nutrient addition, with diazotrophic cyanobacteria being more often limited by P alone whereas algal groups such as chlorophytes were consistently co-limited. Low ambient dissolved inorganic nitrogen concentrations supported a competitive advantage for some diazotrophic species but not for non-diazotrophic species.

Conclusions

We conclude that within the Murray River, P is the key limiting factor for diazotrophic cyanobacterial growth, and the broader phytoplankton community is co-limited by P and N.

Implications

Reductions in the levels of P input will potentially be the most effective nutrient-based control method in reducing cyanobacterial biomass in this and analogous river systems.

Keywords: chlorophyll-a, diazotrophic cyanobacteria, eukaryotic phytoplankton, Murray River, nitrogen, non-diazotrophic cyanobacteria, nutrient limitation, phosphorus.

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