Decoding the spatial spread of cyanobacterial blooms in an epilimnion

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Serpico, Jacob, Choi, Kyunghan, Zambrano-Luna, B. A., Wang, Tianxu, Wang, Hao
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Serpico, Jacob
Choi, Kyunghan
Zambrano-Luna, B. A.
Wang, Tianxu
Wang, Hao
author_facet Serpico, Jacob
Choi, Kyunghan
Zambrano-Luna, B. A.
Wang, Tianxu
Wang, Hao
contents Cyanobacterial blooms (CBs) pose significant global challenges due to their harmful toxins and socio-economic impacts, with nutrient availability playing a key role in their growth, as described by ecological stoichiometry (ES). However, real-world ecosystems exhibit spatial heterogeneity, limiting the applicability of simpler, spatially uniform models. To address this, we develop a spatially explicit partial differential equation model based on ES to study cyanobacteria in the epilimnion of freshwater systems. We establish the well-posedness of the model and perform a stability analysis, showing that it admits two linearly stable steady states, leading to either extinction or saturation. We use the finite elements method to numerically solve our system on a real lake domain derived from Geographic Information System (GIS) data and realistic wind conditions extrapolated from ERA5-Land. Our numerical results highlight the importance of lake shape and size in CB monitoring, while global sensitivity analysis using Sobol Indices identifies light attenuation and intensity as primary drivers of bloom variation, with water movement influencing early bloom stages and nutrient input becoming critical over time. This model supports continuous water-quality monitoring, informing agricultural, recreational, economic, and public health strategies for mitigating CBs.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2502_12399
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Decoding the spatial spread of cyanobacterial blooms in an epilimnion
Serpico, Jacob
Choi, Kyunghan
Zambrano-Luna, B. A.
Wang, Tianxu
Wang, Hao
Analysis of PDEs
Populations and Evolution
Cyanobacterial blooms (CBs) pose significant global challenges due to their harmful toxins and socio-economic impacts, with nutrient availability playing a key role in their growth, as described by ecological stoichiometry (ES). However, real-world ecosystems exhibit spatial heterogeneity, limiting the applicability of simpler, spatially uniform models. To address this, we develop a spatially explicit partial differential equation model based on ES to study cyanobacteria in the epilimnion of freshwater systems. We establish the well-posedness of the model and perform a stability analysis, showing that it admits two linearly stable steady states, leading to either extinction or saturation. We use the finite elements method to numerically solve our system on a real lake domain derived from Geographic Information System (GIS) data and realistic wind conditions extrapolated from ERA5-Land. Our numerical results highlight the importance of lake shape and size in CB monitoring, while global sensitivity analysis using Sobol Indices identifies light attenuation and intensity as primary drivers of bloom variation, with water movement influencing early bloom stages and nutrient input becoming critical over time. This model supports continuous water-quality monitoring, informing agricultural, recreational, economic, and public health strategies for mitigating CBs.
title Decoding the spatial spread of cyanobacterial blooms in an epilimnion
topic Analysis of PDEs
Populations and Evolution
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.12399