Trends of Changes in Minimum Lake Water Temperature in Poland

Abstract

Water temperature in lakes is their basic property that determines many processes. Changes in average values are thoroughly investigated using a long-term approach. Knowledge of extreme situations such as temperature minimums is still insufficient. This paper analyses changes in the minimum temperature in 10 lakes in Poland in the period 1972–2021. The obtained results show variability over the course of the parameter, both at the annual and monthly scale. In the first case, half of the analysed set showed statistically significant increasing trends (on average 0.10 °C per decade). In the latter case, the greatest changes occurred in the months of the warm half-year (on average 0.57 °C per decade). The reported situation is caused by the individual conditions of particular lakes, i.e., their location, morphometric parameters, or the dynamics of the occurrence of ice phenomena. A successive increase in the minimum temperature in lakes has its consequences for biotic and abiotic processes. Exceeding specific thresholds results in the evident transformation of these ecosystems.