Water Analysis of a Scottish Loch

Have you done a study on when the actually "fold" of the loch takes place?

Usually, in most lake bodies of water, there is a natural process known as the folding of the water, which being, the lower sections of that given body will trade places with the upper section of a given body of water. This being in the case of deep cravas types of pools. The oxygen enriched water is actually heavier then the less, or oxygen depleated lower sections of the given body of water. Thus at one point in time, this given body will naturally fold over. Trading places per say.

If there is no noticable current flow in the body of water, there is no means of having any type of oxygenation being caused to such a body od water. Movement of air over the surface would be the only means of enriching the upper surface said waters. Thus, this would actually take longer for the fold to even accure, due to the rate of usage and replenishment of enriching the water with oxygen.

A curernt flow is essential in the oxygen enriching of any body of water. A rough and coarse under leying surface helps to create eddies in the under surface current flow, thus helping in the creation of enrichment of the water. Plant life is the next step in creating a sutiable environment for under surface life existancy in any given body of water. Being fresh water to salt water. With out plant life to help filter out the toxins of the water, which inturn help produce oxygen and a food staple for life, your body of water is dead and cannot sustain any formable, large entities.

Being the diference from micro-probes to actually having a living fish/ or acquadic population. There is a great difference from salt to fresh water bodies. And the depth of each bodies of water has a great influence on such a process. The currents of salt water oceans is a great movement in mass, due to the rotation of the globe, the rotation of the moon, and the actual triangulation of the two bodies in conjunction of the sun. When it comes to fresh water bodies of water, such as lakes and rivers, the rivers and streams will have a much higher content of oxygen over the center of a large pool of water. The ithmas of a river entering the ocean, has a great deal oxygen mixture ubave the over-all average of surrounding bodies of water. This is due to the merging of the two water forms.

At the bottom of a waterfall area, the oxygen content will be elevated due to the amount of falling water causing the over saturation of oxygen levels. Ocean bodies of water, salt enrichment has a good deal in having an elevated level of oxygen levels compaired to fresh water pools. And to actually give you a more calculated answer to your questions..........it would be good for you to actually run some experiments in coming to a more suitable results in your question. I can remember when I was a young Marine Biologyst student back in the mid 60s', growing up in Florida, USA. These were some of the experiments and long period test we had performed in the understanding of veriences in water bodies, fresh water versus salt water habitats.

Understanding the habitats of fluide creatures is an eternal endevour in your studies.

The oxygen levels change every day on both types of water bodies. Mostly due the weather conditions and secondly to the current flow of the body. There are several other factors to be calculated into the average of oxygen content in the geographic outlays of your study bodies of water. Types of plant life, types of fill, such as where does the pool get its feed? Plus, even in your loch, there can be a veriable in the rate of the current/ currents in the many depths of your loch. I do know for sure, that with out any type of natural or man-made current, the oxygen levels in any given body of water will be much less, if not, close to none with-out current movement to enrich that body of water.

In Florida, USA, mostly in the central parts of the state, there are several pools of water formed from what is common, sink holes. Some of these sink holes are very deep and do not have adiquate current rate in these deep pools of water. To help sustain a balance in these pools, the state installed large under-water aireators,(under-water fan units) in these pools of water. This did help in the balance of oxygen levels in many of these pools of water. Thus helping maintain a more natural habitat for aquatic creatures.

I do hope this brief has been, or will be an addition to your studies. Thus, you should actually set up a routine and plan for performing such sampling test of oxygenation on your loch. Remeber, the deeper you drop, the less oxygen in those areas compared to upper levels in the same vertical cylinder of your testing zones. You will also note the levels of levitation in the loch with your fish schools as well. Certain fish levitate at veriable levels in the depths of your loch. Now this is a whole different study all together.

Then you should also be concerned in the topography of the loch, the current rates that are effected from the elements and structures of the geographic lay-out, the current feed, mouth of the loch..........all these have a great deal in the levels of oxygenation. The types of plant growth and the depths of your plant growth. The actually depth of penetration from the natural lighting of the seasons. PLus, the most veriable faction, is the ultra-violet spectrum which feeds the under-water plant life. it is the same as above the water surface for plant life. The suns energy.

Good luck in your quest.......but with out actual testing in your loch, you will never have a base-line to gather your information and to have data in comparison for your papers. You must perform these experiments your self.

Maximo

The level of dissolved oxygen in water depends on a number of factors, including:

• The amount of incoming aeration over waterfalls, weirs, waves, etc.
• The amount of sub-surface flora carrying out net photosynthesis over respiration
• The amount of sub-surface fauna carrying out respiration only
• The levels of biological and chemical activity tending to reduce the oxygen content in the water ("pollution") at each location

It is not possible to compare the oxygen levels in this loch with that in seawater in a predictable way. They are only capable of being determined by local measurement.

Now that's what I call detailed response !

You didn't give any geographic data on the loch.I'm a frequent visitor to Scotland and have seen different bodies of water described as "loch" - above/below sea level , tidal/non-tidal.Bizarrely the falls of Lorna are at the mouth of a loch and depending on the time of day water can flow over them into or out of the loch.I'd guess these kind of factors may be important. Theres a big research agency about 2 miles north west of Oban but I don't recollect it's title. Loch Creran is an ecological oddity that may find of interest.