Benthic macroinvertebrate fauna of two alpine lakes over the last century: The value of historical data for interpreting environmental changes

Data on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages of two alpine lakes in the Tatra Mts (Slovakia) collected in 1914, 1933, 1979–1982, 1993–1997, and 2000 were collated and analysed in an attempt to define their relationship to major environmental events affecting these alpine lakes over the last century. The oldest data were considered an important background before the onset of acidification in one of the lakes in the 1950s, while the most current contain possible information on biological recovery. Results show that data from the 1910s are insufficient to characterize the macroinvertebrate fauna. Deep zone assemblages of both studied lakes have remained stable since the 1930s. Changes in the density of dominant species over time were found in the acidified lake, suggesting a connection between an increase in phosphorus and chlorophyll-a concentration. The composition of the littoral assemblages in the acidified lake in the 1930s indicates that the lake was not strongly acidified at that time. A stable composition since the 1980s reflects the ongoing acid stress. Incomplete species data on the non-acidified lake did not allow us to detect possible changes in the littoral fauna related to acidification. Single findings of species indicating a recovery process need longer-term data to confirm such a trend. Results from this study suggest that historical datasets consist of valuable information that can supplement palaeolimnological analyses in the reconstruction of lake ontogeny.