Experimental facilities

AquaScale mesocosms

Responsible: AquaScale, Robert Ptacnik

Description: 40 land-based mesososms (320 L each); water pipes for aeration and mixing; exchangeable inner walls; app. 500 m from lake; can be inoculated with water from Lake Lunz or other sites; equipped with a special port to minimize sample contact

Controlled parameters: connectivity; water temperature; light levels; nutrient levels & DOC

Research Topics: diversity-functioning research and spatial insurance in plankton communities; functional diversity of plankton communities

Accessible through transnational access of the project Aquacosm: https://www.aquacosm.eu/

LipTox mesocosms

Responsible: LipTox, Martin Kainz

Description: 24 land-based mesososms (400 L each), filled with lake water from Lake Lunz, temperature controlled, aerated, temperature sensors, remote controlled

Controlled parameters: Water temperature, air flow; DOM, nutrients

Research topics: Effects of temperature, heat waves, light, brownification on phytoplankton and zooplankton biodiversity and biochemical composition (elemental stoichiometry, fatty acids); long-term feeding experiments, ecotoxicology and xenobiotics - producer - consumer interactions

Accessible through transnational access of the project Aquacosm: https://www.aquacosm.eu/

Benthic flumes

Responsible: CarboCrobe, Katrin Attermeyer

Description: 6 streamside experimental flumes of 40m length (0.4 m wide), used in two operational modes, in flow-through mode with raw stream water to all flumes, or in recirculation mode, with separate recirculation for each flume.

Controlled Parameters: Discharge (0 to ~7,5 L/s per flume), flow velocity, water level, slope, bed structure/ sediment composition, biofilm age (often co-variable), light/shading, nutrient status, additions of nutrients, DOM, soil etc. possible. Potentially water temperature can also be modified.

Research Topics: Biofilm development, structures and processes

Accessible through transnational access of the project Aquacosm: https://www.aquacosm.eu/

Hyporheic flumes

Responsible: BIGER, Gabriele Weigelhofer

Description: 6 stream side experimental flumes of 5m length, 0.5 m width, and 1 m depth; fed by oligotrophic stream water in flow-through mode; inlets and outlets at 5 different depth allow to manipulate water levels;

Controlled Parameters: Discharge, groundwater flow velocity, hyporheic water level; bed structure/ sediment composition; additions of nutrients, and DOM possible.

Research Topics: Hyporheic biofilm development, structures and processes; effects of intermittency

Accessible through transnational access of the project Aquacosm: https://www.aquacosm.eu/

Fish lab

Responsible: LipTox, Martin Kainz

Description: 12 in-door tanks; 1000 L each, source water supply ~1 L/sec for each tank; automatic feeders; light control

Controlled parameters: light, water supply, fish feeds, fish taxa and density, feeding frequency

Research Topics: Feeding experiments on different fish feeds, somatic development of fishes, fish growth experiments, dietary energy conversion (lipids/fatty acids in fish liver, brain, eyes, muscle tissues, and eggs)

HyTec Flumes (Hydromorphology & Temperature
Experimental Channel)

Responsible: Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, University of Natural Resources and Life Science Vienna (BOKU), Stefan Schmutz 

Description: 2 channels (40 m length, 6 m width) fed by lake water, taken at different depths (temperature difference). Peak flows up to 600 l/s

Controlled Parameters: Channel size and morphology (slopes, structures substratum, etc.), flow (extremes), discharge, temperature, nutrient addition experiments

Research Topics: Effects of flow and temperature changes on different organism groups’ behavior (biofilms, macrozoobenthos, fish) and ecosystem processes

Video "Mesocosmos Lunz - and its facilities"

This video was produced throughout the Aquacosm-Plus Webinar 2020 about the topic science communication and shows two of the experimental facilities of WasseCluster Lunz. Here more information about the infrastructure of WasserCluster Lunz.

Hyporheic upflow-reactors (32)

Description: Small tubes of acryl glass (0.5 m long, 4 cm inner diameter, transparent), connected to a peristaltic multi-channel pump; can be operated in circulation mode (airtight) or flow-through mode; filled with glass beads or fine sediments

Controlled parameters: Discharge, nutrients, DOC

Research topics: Effects of nutrients, DOC, intermittency, etc. on hyporheic metabolism, biofilm structures and processes, and DOM/nutrient uptake

Soil/ sediment mesocosms (19)

Description: Large tubes of acryl glass (length 48 cm, inner diameter 14 cm), can be made air-tight for gas exchange; stainless steel collar for sampling undisturbed soils/sediment cores

Controlled parameters: Water level, nutrients, organic matter

Research topics: Effects of drying & re-wetting on nutrient and organic carbon cycling in soils/sediments; greenhouse gas emissions, isotope enrichment studies

Experimental Flumes (>30)

Description: Flumes of acryl glass (length 0.5 m, width 7 cm, height 12 cm), operated in open recirculation mode by individual aquarium pumps

Controlled parameters: light (LED stripes), nutrients/DOC, sediments

Research topics: Effects of light, nutrients, DOM and intermittency on benthic processes under light and dark conditions