Diurnal and seasonal dynamics of soil respiration at temperate Leymus chinensis meadow steppes in western Songnen Plain,China

To evaluate the diurnal and seasonal variations in soil respiration(Rs) and understand the controlling factors, we measured carbon dioxide(CO2) fluxes and their environmental variables using a LI-6400 soil CO2 flux system at a temperate Leymus chinensis meadow steppe in the western Songnen Plain of China in the growing season(May–October) in 2011 and 2012. The diurnal patterns of soil respiration could be expressed as single peak curves, reaching to the maximum at 11:00–15:00 and falling to the minimum at 21:00–23:00(or before dawn). The time-window between 7:00 and 9:00 could be used as the optimal measuring time to represent the daily mean soil CO2 efflux. In the growing season, the daily value of soil CO2 efflux was moderate in late spring(1.06–2.51 μmol/(m2·s) in May), increased sharply and presented a peak in summer(2.95–3.94 μmol/(m2·s) in July), and then decreased in autumn(0.74–0.97 μmol/(m2·s) in October). Soil temperature(Ts) exerted dominant control on the diurnal and seasonal variations of soil respiration. The temperature sensitivity of soil respiration(Q10) exhibited a large seasonal variation, ranging from 1.35 to 3.32, and decreased with an increasing soil temperature. Rs gradually increased with increasing soil water content(Ws) and tended to decrease when Ws exceeded the optimum water content(27%) of Rs. The Ts and Ws had a confounding effect on Rs, and the two-variable equations could account for 72% of the variation in soil respiration(p 0.01).     

EFFECTS OF WATER TABLE AND NITROGEN ADDITION ON CO2 EMISSION FROM WETLAND SOIL

Soil respiration is a main dynamic process of carbon cycle in wetland. It is important to contribute to global climate changes. Water table and nutritious availability are significant impact factors to influence responses of CO₂ emission from wetland soil to climate changes. Twenty-four wetland soil monoliths at 4 water-table positions and in 3 nitrogen status have been incubated to measure rates of CO₂ emission from wetland soils in this study. Three static water-table controls and a fluctuant water-table control, with 3 nitrogen additions in every water-table control, were carried out. In no nitrogen addition treatment, high CO₂ emissions were found at a static low water table (I) and a fluctuant water table (IV), averaging 306.7mg/(m²·h) and 307.89mg/(m²·h), respectively, which were 51%–57% higher than that at static high water table (II and III). After nitrogen addition, however, highest CO₂ emission was found at II and lowest emission at III. The results suggested that nutritious availability of wetland soil might be important to influence the effect of water table on the CO₂ emission from the wetland soil. Nitrogen addition led to enhancing CO₂ emissions from wetland soil, while the highest emission was found in 1N treatments other than in 2N treatments. In 3 nutritious treatments, low CO₂ emissions at high water tables and high CO₂ emissions at low water tables were also observed when water table fluctuated. Our results suggested that both water table changes and nutritious imports would effect the CO₂ emission from wetland. Foundation item: Under the auspices of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 90211003) and the Knowledge Innovation Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. KACX3-SW-332) Biography: YANG Ji-song (1978-), male, a native of Chengwu of Shandong Province, Ph.D. candidate, specialized in environmental ecology and wetland biogeochemistry. E-mail: yangjisong@neigae.ac.cn     

Dynamics of saline-alkali land and its ecological regionalization in western Songnen Plain,China

As the important reserve land resources for food production,saline-alkali land should play a significant role to ensure the national food security in the context of global food crisis. The western Songnen Plain is one of main distribution regions of saline-alkali land in China,with great potential in agricultural development. In this study,the extent,transformation,spatial distribution and temporal change of saline-alkali land in the western Songnen Plain during 1954–2005 were investigated by using remote sensing and GIS spatial analysis methods. Saline-alkali land change was detected from a temporal series of topographic maps in 1954,satellite images of Landsat MSS in 1976,Landsat TM/ETM in 1988,2000 and 2005 through artificial visual interpretation. The results indicated a significant expansion in saline-alkali land area and aggravation in salinization. The area of saline-alkali land had increased from 401.48×103 ha in 1954 to 1 097.45×103 ha in 2005. While the ratio of light,moderate and serious salinized land areas changed from 6.72︰2.92︰1.00 to 1.25︰1.06︰1.00 in the study period. Grassland,cropland,swampland and water body were the major land use and land cover types from which saline-alkali land transformed. And the secondary salinization occured mainly in Da′an City,Tongyu County,Changling County,Daqing City,Dorbod Mongolian Autonomous County and Zhaoyuan County. Finally,seven large ecoregions and 14 corresponding sub-ecoregions were delineated out based on spatio-temopral dynamic characteristics of saline-alkali land and geo-relational environmental attributes. According to the results,measures of amelioration and ways of development of saline-alkali land in the western Songnen Plain were put forward.     

Estimate of global sea-air CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> flux with sea-state-dependent parameterization

Although the annual global sea-air CO₂ flux has been estimated extensively with various wind-dependent-k parameterizations, uncertainty still exists in the estimates. The sea-state-dependent-k parameterization is expected to improve the uncertainty existing in these estimates. In the present study, the annual global sea-air CO₂ flux is estimated with the sea-state-dependent-k parameterization proposed by Woolf (2005), using NOAA/NCEP reanalysis wind speed and hindcast wave data from 1998 to 2006, and a new estimate, −2.18 Gt C year⁻¹, is obtained, which is comparable with previous estimates with biochemical methods. It is interesting to note that the averaged value of previous estimates with various wind-dependent-k parameterizations is almost identical to that of previous estimates with biochemical methods by various authors, and that the new estimate is quite consistent with these averaged estimates.     

Distributions and Relationships of CO<Subscript>2</Subscript>, O<Subscript>2</Subscript>, and Dimethylsulfide in the Changjiang (Yangtze) Estuary and Its Adjacent Waters in Summer

The distributions and relationships of O₂, CO₂, and dimethylsulfide (DMS) in the Changjiang (Yangtze) Estuary and its adjacent waters were investigated in June 2014. In surface water, mean O₂ saturation level, partial pressure of CO₂ (pCO₂), and DMS concentrations (and ranges) were 110% (89%–167%), 374 μatm (91–640 μatm), and 8.53 nmol L^?1 (1.10–27.50 nmol L^?1), respectively. The sea-to-air fluxes (and ranges) of DMS and CO₂ were 8.24 μmol m^?2 d^?1 (0.26–62.77 μmol m^?2 d^?1), and ?4.7 mmol m^?2 d^?1 (?110.8-31.7 mmol m^?2 d^?1), respectively. Dissolved O₂ was oversaturated, DMS concentrations were relatively high, and this region served as a sink of atmospheric CO₂. The pCO₂ was significantly and negatively correlated with the O₂ saturation level, while the DMS concentration showed different positive relationships with the O₂ saturation level in different water masses. In vertical profiles, a hypoxic zone existed below 20 m at a longitude of 123°E. The stratification of temperature and salinity caused by the Taiwan Warm Current suppressed seawater exchange between upper and lower layers, resulting in the formation of a hypoxic zone. Oxidative decomposition of organic detritus carried by the Changjiang River Diluted Water (CRDW) consumed abundant O₂ and produced additional CO₂. The DMS concentrations decreased because of low phytoplankton biomass in the hypoxic zone. Strong correlations appeared between the O₂ saturation level, pCO₂ and DMS concentrations in vertical profiles. Our results strongly suggested that CRDW played an important role in the distributions and relationships of O₂, CO₂, and DMS.     

Impacts of CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> enrichment on growth and photosynthesis in freshwater and marine diatoms

The physiological responses of Nitzschia palea Kvtzing, a freshwater diatom, to elevated CO2 were investigated and compared with those of a marine diatom, Chaetoceros muelleri Lemmermann previously reported. Elevated CO2 concentration to 700 μl/L increased the dissolved inorganic carbon （D!C） and lowered the pH in the cultures of N. palea, thus enhancing the growth by 4%-20% during the whole growth period. High CO2-grown N. palea cells showed lower levels of dark respiration rates and higher Ik values. Light-saturated photosynthetic rates and photosynthetic efficiencies decreased in N. palea with the doubling CO2 concentration in airflow to the bottom of cultures, although the doubling CO2 concentration in airflow to the surface cultures had few effects on these two photosynthetic parameters. N. palea cells were found to be capable of using HCO5 in addition to gaseous CO2, and the CO2 enrichment decreased their affinity for HCO5 and CO2. Although doubled CO2 level would enhance the biomass of N. patea and C. muelleri to different extents, compared with the marine diatom, it had a significant effect on the specific growth rates of N. palea. In addition, the responses of photosynthetic parameters of IV. palea to doubled CO2 concentration were almost opposite to those of C. muelleri.     

Effects of environmental conditions and aboveground biomass on CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> budget in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phragmites australis</Emphasis> wetland of Jiaozhou Bay,China

Estuarial saline wetlands have been recognized as a vital role in CO₂ cycling. However, insufficient attention has been paid to estimating CO₂ fluxes from estuarial saline wetlands. In this study, the static chamber-gas chromatography (GC) method was used to quantify CO₂ budget of an estuarial saline reed (Phragmites australis) wetland in Jiaozhou Bay in Qingdao City of Shandong Province, China during the reed growing season (May to October) in 2014. The CO₂ budget study involved net ecosystem CO₂ exchange (NEE), ecosystem respiration (R_eco) and gross primary production (GPP). Temporal variation in CO₂ budget and the impact of air/soil temperature, illumination intensity and aboveground biomass exerted on CO₂ budget were analyzed. Results indicated that the wetland was acting as a net sink of 1129.16 g/m²during the entire growing season. Moreover, the values of R_eco and GPP were 1744.89 g/m² and 2874.05 g/m², respectively; the ratio of R_eco and GPP was 0.61. Diurnal and monthly patterns of CO₂ budget varied significantly during the study period. R_eco showed exponential relationships with air temperature and soil temperature at 5 cm, 10 cm, 20 cm depths, and soil temperature at 5 cm depth was the most crucial influence factor among them. Meanwhile, temperature sensitivity (Q₁₀) of R_eco was negatively correlated with soil temperature. Light and temperature exerted strong controls over NEE and GPP. Aboveground biomass over the whole growing season showed non-linear relationships with CO₂ budget, while those during the early and peak growing season showed significant linear relationships with CO₂ budget. This research provides valuable reference for CO₂ exchange in estuarial saline wetland ecosystem.     

CHEMICAL WEATHERING PROCESSES AND ATMOSPHERIC CO2 CONSUMPTION OF HUANGHE RIVER AND CHANGJIANG RIVER BASINS

Rock weathering plays an important role in studying the long-term carbon cycles and global climatic change. According to the statistics analysis, the Huanghe (Yellow) River water chemistry was mainly controlled by evaporite and carbonate weathering, which were responsible for over 90% of total dissolved ions. As compared with the Huanghe River basin, dissolved load of the Changjiang (Yangtze) River was mainly originated from the carbonate dissolution. The chemical weathering rates were estimated to be 39.29t/(km²·a) and 61.58t/(km²·a) by deducting the HCO ₃ ⁻ derived from atmosphere in the Huanghe River and Changjiang River watersheds, respectively. The CO₂ consumption rates by rock weathering were calculated to be 120.84×10³mol/km² and 452.46×10³mol/km²annually in the two basins, respectively. The total CO₂ consumption of the two basins amounted to 918.51×10⁹mol/a, accounting for 3.83% of the world gross. In contrast to other world watersheds, the stronger evaporite reaction and infirm silicate weathering can explain such feature that CO₂ consumption rates were lower than a global average, suggesting that the sequential weathering may be go on in the two Chinese drainage basins. Foundation item: Under the auspices of Ministry of Science and Technology Project of China (No. G1999043075) Biography: LI Jing-ying (1974-), female, a native of Xinye of Henan Province, Ph.D., associate professor, specialized in environmental geochemistry. E-mail: wxxljy2001@public.qd.sd.cn     

SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE DEVELOPMENT IN SALINE—ALKALI SOIL AREA OF SONGNEN PLAIN, NORTHEAST CHINA NORTHEAST CHINA

There is great potential for agriculture in saline-alkali soil area in Songnen Plain, Northeast China. Butthe sustainable crop production in this area has been restricted by a few of main factors, such as less precipitation, higherevaporation and frequent drought, high salinity and alkalinity, high exchangeable sodium content and poor infiltration ofthe soil, and insufficiency and low availability in nutrition. It is also considered that there are a few of favorable condi-tions for agricultural development in this region, such as sufficient light and heat resources, rich ground water resources,plenty of manure produced by livestock, and so on. At the same time, scientific management and measurements havebeen employed; rational irrigation and drainage system has been established; reclamation, amendment and fertilization ofsoil, and suitable strategies of cropping practices have been made for the sustainable development of agriculture. Great progress has been made during 1996- 2000.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> and carbon fluxes across sea-air interface in the Changjiang Estuary and Hangzhou Bay

Partial pressure of CO2 （pCO2） was investigated in the Changjiang （Yangtze River） Estuary, Hangzhou Bay and their adjacent areas during a cruise in August 2004, China. The data show that pCO2 in surface waters of the studied area was higher than that in the atmosphere with only exception of a patch east of Zhoushan Archipelago. The pCO2 varied from 168 to 2 264 μatm, which fell in the low range compared with those of other estuaries in the world. The calculated sea-air CO2 fluxes decreased offshore and varied from -10.0 to 88.1 mmol m^-2 d^-1 in average of 24.4 ± 16.5 mmol m^-2 d^-1. Although the area studied was estimated only 2 × 10^4 km^2, it emitted （5.9 ± 4.0） × 10^3 tons of carbon to the atmosphere every day. The estuaries and their plumes must be further studied for better understanding the role of coastal seas playing in the global oceanic carbon cycle.     

Chemical characteristics of water environment in limnic wetlands in the western Songnen Plain, China

Duetoregionalhydrogeologicandclimaticconditions,inthewesternSongnenPlain,themostdistinctcharacteristicofwaterenvironmentinlimnicwetlandsisthatmanywaterbodieshavehighsaltcontentsandpHvalues,andsomelimnicwetlandsbelongtosaltmarshes.Thelimnicwetlandsofthisregionarespecialnaturecomplex.Itisimportantfortheutilizationofwetlandresourcesandtheintegrateddevelopmentofsaline-alkalinesoiltostudychemicalcharacteristicsofwaterenvironmentinthisregion.1NATURALENVIRONMENTCHARACTERISTICSOFTHEWE…     

Effects of ocean acidification driven by elevated CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> on larval shell growth and abnormal rates of the venerid clam, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mactra veneriformis</Emphasis>

The venerid clam (Mactra veneriformis Reeve 1854) is one of the main cultured bivalve species in intertidal and shallow subtidal ecosystems along the west coast of Korea. To understand the effects of ocean acidification on the early life stages of Korean clams, we investigated shell growth and abnormality rates and types in the D-shaped, umbonate veliger, and pediveliger stages of the venerid clam M. veneriformis during exposure to elevated seawater pCO₂. In particular, we examined abnormal types of larval shell morphology categorized as shell deformations, shell distortions, and shell fissures. Specimens were incubated in seawater equilibrated with bubbled CO₂-enriched air at (400±25)×10^-6 (ambient control), (800±25)×10^-6 (high pCO₂), or (1 200±28)×10^-6 (extremely high pCO₂), the atmospheric CO₂ concentrations predicted for the years 2014, 2084, and 2154 (70-year intervals; two human generations), respectively, in the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 8.5 scenario. The mean shell lengths of larvae were significantly decreased in the high and extremely high pCO₂ groups compared with the ambient control groups. Furthermore, under high and extremely high pCO₂ conditions, the cultures exhibited significantly increased abundances of abnormal larvae and increased severity of abnormalities compared with the ambient control. In the umbonate veliger stage of the experimental larvae, the most common abnormalities were shell deformations, distortions, and fissures; on the other hand, convex hinges and mantle protuberances were absent. These results suggest that elevated CO₂ exerts an additional burden on the health of M. veneriformis larvae by impairing early development.     

Restoration and rational use of degraded saline reed wetlands: A case study in western Songnen Plain, China

The protection, restoration and sustainable use are key issues of all the wetlands worldwide. Ecological, agronomic, and engineering techniques have been integrated in the development of a structurally sound, ecologically beneficial engineering restoration method for restoring and utilizing a degraded saline wetland in the western Songnen Plain of China. Hydrological restoration was performed by developing a system of biannual irrigation and drainage using civil engineering measures to bring wetlands into contact with river water and improve the irrigation and drainage system in the wetlands. Agronomic measures such as plowing the reed fields, reed rhizome transplantation, and fertilization were used to restore the reed vegetation. Biological measures, including the release of crab and fish fry and natural proliferation, were used to restore the aquatic communities. The results of the restoration were clear and positive. By the year 2009, the reed yield had increased by 20.9 times. Remarkable ecological benefits occurred simultaneously. Vegetation primary-production capacity increased, local climate regulation and water purification enhanced, and biodiversity increased. This demonstration of engineering techniques illustrates the basic route for the restoration of degraded wetlands, that the biodiversity should be reconstructed by the comprehensive application of engineering, biological, and agronomic measures based on habitat restoration under the guidance of process-oriented strategies. The complex ecological system including reeds, fish and crabs is based on the biological principles of coexistence and material recycling and provides a reasonable ecological engineering model suitable for the sustainable utilization of degraded saline reed wetlands.     

Corrosion behavior of anodic oxidized TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> film in seawater

TiO₂ films were formed on metallic titanium substrates by the anodic oxidation method in H₂SO₄ solution under the 80V D.C.. Phase component and microstructure were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Water contact angles on titanium oxide film surface were measured under both dark and sunlight illumination conditions. Corrosion tests were carried out in seawater under different illumination conditions by electrochemistry impedance spectrum (EIS) and polarization curves. The result showed that the TiO₂ film prepared by the anodic oxidation method was anatase with a uniform structure and without obvious pores or cracks on its surface. The average water contact angle of the film was 116.4° in dark, in contrast to an angle of 42.7° under the UV illumination for 2 hours, which demonstrates good hydrophobic property. The anti-corrosion behavior of the TiO₂ film was declining with the extended immersion time. Under dark conditions, however, the hydrophobic TiO₂ film retarded the water infiltrating into the substrate. The impedance changed slowly and the corrosion current density was 2 orders of magnitude lower than that with the film illuminated by sunlight. All of those mentioned above indicate that the TiO₂ film possesses much better performance under dark condition, and it can be applied as an engineering material under dark seawater environment.     

Spatiotemporal Variations and Influencing Factors Analysis of PM<Subscript>2.5</Subscript> Concentrations in Jilin Province,Northeast China

High PM_2.5 concentrations and frequent air pollution episodes during late autumn and winter in Jilin Province have attracted attention in recent years. To describe the spatial and temporal variations of PM_2.5 concentrations and identify the decisive influencing factors, a large amount of continuous daily PM_2.5 concentration data collected from 33 monitoring stations over 2-year period from 2015 to 2016 were analyzed. Meanwhile, the relationships were investigated between PM_2.5 concentrations and the land cover, socioeconomic and meteorological factors from the macroscopic perspective using multiple linear regressions (MLR) approach. PM_2.5 concentrations across Jilin Province averaged 49 μg/m³, nearly 1.5 times of the Chinese annual average standard, and exhibited seasonal patterns with generally higher levels during late autumn and over the long winter than the other seasons. Jilin Province could be divided into three kinds of sub-regions according to 2-year average PM_2.5 concentration of each city. Most of the spatial variation in PM_2.5 levels could be explained by forest land area, cultivated land area, urban greening rate, coal consumption and soot emissions of cement manufacturing. In addition, daily PM_2.5 concentrations had negative correlation with daily precipitation and positive correlation with air pressure for each city, and the spread and dilution effect of wind speed on PM_2.5 was more obvious at mountainous area in Jilin Province. These results indicated that coal consumption, cement manufacturing and straw burning were the most important emission sources for the high PM_2.5 levels, while afforestation and urban greening could mitigate particulate air pollution. Meanwhile, the individual meteorological factors such as precipitation, air pressure, wind speed and temperature could influence local PM_2.5 concentration indirectly.     

Source tectonic dynamics features of Jiuzhaigou <Emphasis Type="Italic">M</Emphasis><Subscript>s</Subscript> 7.0 earthquake in Sichuan Province,China

On August 8, 2017, a M_s 7.0 earthquake occurred 5 km to the west of Jiuzhaigou National Park, causing 25 deaths and injuring 525. The objective of this study was to explore the seismogenic fault of the earthquake and tectonic dynamics of the source rupture. Field investigations, radon activity tests, remote sensing interpretations, and geophysical data analyses were carried out immediately after the earthquake. The Jiuzhaigou earthquake occurred at the intersection of the northern margin of the Minshan uplift belt and the south part of the Wenxian–Maqin fault in the south margin of the West Qinling geosyncline. There are two surface rupture zones trending northwest (NW), which are ground coseismic ruptures caused by concealed earthquake faults. The rupture on the southwest is the structure triggering the earthquake, along the Jiuzhaitiantang–Epicenter–Wuhuahai. The other one on the northeast (Shangsizhai–Zhongcha–Bimang) is a reactivation and extension of the secondary fault trending NW. The source rupture of this earthquake is a strike-slip shear fracture associated with the fault plane trending NW 331° and steeply dipping 75°, which is continuously expanding at both ends. The tectonic dynamics process of the source rupture is that the “Jiuzhaigou protrusion” is left-lateral sheared along the seismogenic fault in the NW direction. Finally, the Maqin fault and the arc fault system at the top of the “Wenxian protrusion” will be gradually broken through sometime in far future, as well as earthquaketriggered landslides will be further occurred along the narrow corridor between the seismogenic faults. The research results revealed the basic geological data and tectonic dynamic mechanism in this earthquake.     

Spatial Distributions and Potential Sources of Long Chain (C<Subscript>30</Subscript>, C<Subscript>32</Subscript> 1,15-) Alkyl Diols in Surface Sediments from Eastern China Marginal Seas

Long chain alkyl diols have shown important potential for the reconstruction of sea surface temperature, productivities and upwelling conditions in marine or lacustrine environments. However, little is known about the distribution and sources of the diols in eastern China marginal seas (CMS), which are areas of important organic carbon sink. Here the contents of C₃₀ and C₃₂ 1,15-diols were analyzed in 181 surface sediments from eastern CMS. The similar distribution pattern and strong linear correlation between C₃₀ and C₃₂ diols indicated that they had similar biological source, with a dominance of C₃₀ diol. Their contents ranged from 7–2726 ng g^?1 for C₃₀ diol and 5–669 ng g^?1 for C₃₂ diol, and both showed higher values mainly in the mud area of the Yellow Sea, while the TOC normalized contents showed a more obvious seaward increasing trend. The similar distribution pattern and significant positive correlation between diols and the other marine biomarkers (brassicasterol, dinosterol, C₃₇ alkenones) indicated C₃₀ and C₃₂ diols in eastern CMS were mainly from marine algae. This conclusion was also supported by principal component analysis (PCA). Our results also showed that sediment diol contents were generally related to marine productivity, suggesting that diols could be applied for marine productivity reconstruction in eastern CMS.     

Emissions of biogenic sulfur gases (H<Subscript>2</Subscript>S,COS) from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phragmites australis</Emphasis> coastal marsh in the Yellow River estuary of China

Emissions of biogenic sulfur gases (hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) and carbonyl sulfide (COS)) from Phragmites australis coastal marsh in the Yellow River estuary of China were determined during April to December in 2014 using static chamber-gas chromatography technique with monthly sampling. The results showed that the fluxes of H₂S and COS both had distinct seasonal and diurnal variations. The H₂S fluxes ranged from 0.09 μg/(m²·h) to 7.65 μg/(m²·h), and the COS fluxes ranged from–1.10 μg/(m²·h) to 3.32 μg/(m²·h). The mean fluxes of H₂S and COS from the P. australis coastal marsh were 2.28 μg/(m²·h), and 1.05 μg/(m²·h), respectively. The P. australis coastal marsh was the emission source of both H₂S and COS over the whole year. Fluxes of H₂S and COS were both higher in plant growing season than in the non-growing season. Temperature had a dramatic effect on the H₂S emission flux, while the correlations between COS flux and the environmental factors were not found during sampling periods. More in-depth and comprehensive research on other related factors, such as vegetation, sediment substrates, and tidal action is needed to discover and further understand the key factors and the release mechanism of sulfur gases.     

Influence of albumen on aggregation and O<Subscript>2</Subscript> evolution of protoplasm from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bryopsis hypnoides</Emphasis> Lamourou

The extruded protoplasm from the coenocytic green alga, Bryopsis hypnoides Lamouroux, was able to reform a cell wall and develop further into a mature alga in seawater. In this paper, the influence of albumen on the ability of aggregation and on the photosynthesis of protoplasm was examined. Results show that the protoplasm of B. hypnoides could aggregate in either albumen or chicken egg, which is similar to that in seawater. However unlike in seawater, the aggregation from B. hypnoides in albumen and chicken egg failed to develop into a mature individual. Interestingly, the protoplasm of B. hypnoides could maintain its photosynthetic O2 evolution in albumen and chicken egg, while the time in chicken egg was longer than that in albumen.     

Effects of elevated seawater pCO<Subscript>2</Subscript> on early development of scallop <Emphasis Type="Italic">Argopecten irradias</Emphasis> (Lamarck, 1819)

To investigate the effects of elevated seawater pCO₂ on the early developmental stages of marine benthic calcifying organisms, we exposed the eggs and larvae of Argopecten irradias, an important bivalve species in Chinese aquaculture, in seawater equilibrated with CO₂-enriched (1000 ppm) gas mixtures. We demonstrated that elevated seawater pCO₂ significantly interfered with fertilization and larval development and resulted in an increased aberration rate. Fertilization in the treatment (pH 7.6) was 74.3% ± 3.8%, which was 9.7% lower than that in the control (pH 8.3) (84.0% ±3.0%). Hatching success decreased by 23.7%, and aberration rate increased by 30.3% under acidic condition. Larvae in acidified seawater still developed a shell during the post-embryonic phase. However, the shell length and height in the treatment were smaller than those in the control. The development of embryos differed significantly at 12 h after fertilization between the two experimental groups. Embryos developed slower in acidified seawater. Nearly half of the embryos in the control developed into D-shaped larvae at 48 h after fertilization, which were considerably more than those in the treatment (11.7%). Results suggest that future ocean acidification (OA) would cause detrimental effects on the early development of A. irradias.