Present status of submerged macrophyte growth in Lake Biwa : Recent recovery following a summer decline in the water level

Whole-lake areal distribution of submerged macrophyte growth in Lake Biwa was surveyed using aerial photographs in 1994 and 2000, when unusual declines in the water level of approximately 1 m occurred in the dry summers. The estimated total areas of the submerged macrophyte communities were 1441 ha for 1994 and 2825 ha for 2000. In the shallow and eutrophic southern basin, the bottom area covered by vegetation gradually increased year by year after 1994, and the ratio of this area to the total surface area of the basin in 2000 amounted to 52%. The dominant species were two natives, Hydrilla verticillata and Myriophyllum spicatum, and one exotic, Egeria densa. Changes in physical conditions and water quality associated with the decline in the water level, as well as the reactions of submerged plants to aquatic environments and ecosystem dynamics, are discussed.