Effect of Brown Bullheads on Release of Phosphorus, in Sediment and Water Systems

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Abstract
The release of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) was examined in laboratory systems containing different combinations of lake sediment and brown bullhead catfish (Ictalurus nebulosus). In sediment-water systems with no fish, SRP concentrations barely exceeded those of the original water over the 33- and 34-day experiments. In sediment-water systems containing fish, the levels of SRP were consistently higher than in comparable systems with no fish; the highest levels were found in systems with fish and no sediment, where the level of SRP apparently resulted from physiological processes of the fish. The relatively low concentrations of SRP in systems with fish and sediment are attributed to sorption of physiologically produced phosphorus onto suspended and settling particles, a process that might be facilitated by the burrowing in and mixing of sediments by brown bullheads.

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