Sc. Rhode et al., The impact of ultraviolet radiation on the vertical distribution of zooplankton of the genus Daphnia, NATURE, 412(6842), 2001, pp. 69-72
The vertical migration of zooplankton into lower and darker water strata by
day is generally explained by the avoidance of visually orienting predator
s, mainly fish(1-4); however, it is unclear why daily zooplankton migration
has been maintained in fishless areas(5). In addition to predation, ultrav
iolet radiation-a hazardous factor for zooplankton in the surface layers of
marine and freshwater environments(6-8) - has been suspected as a possible
cause of daytime downward migration(9). Here we test this hypothesis by st
udying several Daphnia species, both in a controlled laboratory system and
under natural sunlight in an outdoor system. We selected Daphnia species th
at differed in their pigmentation as both melanin and carotenoids have been
shown to protect Daphnia from ultraviolet light(10,11). All Daphnia specie
s escaped into significantly deeper water layers under ultraviolet radiatio
n. The extent to which the daphnids responded to this radiation was inverse
ly linked to their pigmentation, which reduced ultraviolet transmission. Th
ese results suggest that ultraviolet avoidance is an additional factor in e
xplaining daytime downward migration. Synergistic benefits might have shape
d the evolution of this complex behaviour.