Seasonal and spatial variations of macro-and megabenthic community characteristics in two sections of the East China Sea

In spring and summer 2011,the macro-and megabenthic fauna in two sections of the East China Sea were investigated using an Agassiz net trawl to detect the seasonal and spatial variations of benthic community characteristics and the relation to environmental variables.The total number of species increased slightly from spring(131 species)to summer(133)whereas the percentage of Mollusca decreased signifi cantly.The index of relative importance(IRI)indicated that the top fi ve important species changed completely from spring to summer.Species number,abundance and biomass in summer were signifi cantly higher than in spring,but no signifi cant dif ference was observed among areas(coastal,transitional and oceanic areas,divided basically from inshore to of fshore).Species richness(d),diversity(H′)and evenness(J′)showed no signifi cant seasonal or spatial variations.Cluster analysis and n MDS ordination identifi ed three benthic communities from inshore to of fshore,corresponding to the three areas.Analysis of Similarity(ANOSIM)indicated the overall signifi cant dif ference in community structure between seasons and among areas.K-dominance curves revealed the high intrinsic diversity in the off shore area.Canonical correspondence analysis showed that the coastal community was positively correlated to total nitrogen and total organic carbon in spring,but negatively in summer;oceanic community was positively correlated to total nitrogen and total organic carbon in both seasons.Species such as Coelorhynchus multispinulosus,Neobythites sivicola,Lepidotrigla alata,Solenocera melantho,Parapenaeus fi ssuroides,Oratosquilla gonypetes and Spiropagurus spiriger occurred exclusively in the of fshore oceanic area and their presence may refl ect the infl uence of the off shore Kuroshio Current.     

Temporal and spatial variation of fish assemblages in Dianshan Lake,Shanghai, China

Using multi-mesh gillnets and trawls, the fish communities in Dianshan Lake at 6 stations from Oct. 2009 to Jul. 2010 were investigated seasonally to reveal the biodiversity and its spatial and temporal distribution patterns. The long-term changes in their structural characteristics were then analyzed to identify the main infl uencing factors and several measures for lake restoration were put forward. Thirty six species, belonging to 9 family and 30 genera, were collected, amongst which, the order Cypriniformes accounted for 61.1% of the total species number. In terms of importance value, Cypriniformes was the predominant group, Coilia nasus the dominant species, while Cyprinus carpio and Rhinogobius giurinus were the subdominant taxa. The community types did not differ among stations, but between seasons. There were no significant differences between seasons and among stations in species diversity, but richness differed both spatially and seasonally. Along with the process of eutrophication and the drastic reduction of the area colonized by macrophytes from 1959 to 2009–2010, the fish diversity declined markedly, and species numbers of herbivores and piscivores declined proportionately more than those of invertivores, omnivores, and planktivores. The decline of potamophilus and river-lake migratory fish was more marked than those of sedentary, river-sea migratory, and estuarine fishes. Eutrophication concomitant with sharp reduction of macrophyte area and overfishing may be the main reasons for the decline in fish diversity in Dianshan Lake.     

Temporal and spatial variations in the distribution of macroalgal communities along the Yantai coast,China

To explore the impact of environmental variables on macroalgal communities, their temporal and spatial distributions were examined along the Yantai coast, China between April 2010 and March 2011. Macroalgae sampling was conducted monthly at four sites along the coast： Jiahe River estuary, Zhifu Island, Fisherman＇s Wharf, and Yangma Island. The species composition and abundance, and their relationship with environmental variables were assessed. Along the Yantai coast, 35 macroalgae species were identified, including 24 Rhodophyta spp., 7 Chlorophyta, and 4 Phaeophyta spp. Highest species numbers were recorded in the summer at all sampling sites, except in the Jiahe River estuary. Macroalgae biomass was the greatest in the summer. Year-round, the highest species number and dry biomass recorded at Fisherman＇s Wharf and Yangma Island was attributed to the substrate type. In summer, Ulva pertusa Kjellman was the dominant species identified along the Yantai coast, which indicates a risk ofmacroalgae blooms. Our results show that seawater temperature and nutrients appear to significantly affect the temporal and spatial patterns of macroalgal abundance along the Yantai coast. The effects of environmental variables on the macroalgae on the Yantai coast need further study.     

Spatial variations of bacterial community composition in sediments of the Jiaozhou Bay,China

Spatial variations of sediment microbes pose a great challenge for the estimation of anthropogenic influence on biogeochemical processes, yet remain very unclear in coastal ecosystems. Surface sediments in 9 stations from the eutrophic Jiaozhou Bay, China, were sampled, DNA was extracted within the sediments, and the 16 S rDNA was sequenced with the Illumina Hiseq sequencing. Results reveal considerable heterogeneity of sediment bacteria in the Jiaozhou Bay, of which Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes accounted for over 75%. Bacterial alpha-diversity indices decreased generally from the outside to the inner part of the bay and from the offshore to the nearshore area. Bacterial community structures of S3, S4, S7, and S8 clustered, those of S5, S13, and S14 grouped together, while those of S6 and S10 were distinct from each other and from those of the other stations. Major class Gammaproteobacteria were more abundant at the stations with mesoeutrophic to eutrophic levels(S4, S5, S8, and S10) and less abundant at oligotrophic stations(S6, S13, and S14), while Deltaproteobacteria had an opposite distribution pattern. Overall, bacterial community composition transitioned from being Xanthomonadales-dominant at S4 and S8 to being unidentifed_Gammaproteobacteria-dominant at S5, S6, S13, and S14, while in other stations there were comparable orders. The biogeochemical processes correspondingly changed from being nitrogen cycling-dominant at S4 and S8 to being sulfur cycling-dominant at S5, S6, S13, and S14. The bacterial distribution patterns were especially affected by the factors(dissolved organic phosphorus, DOP) in the overlying seawater due to the habitat status of P-insu fficiency in the bay. Both orders Xanthomonadales and Alteromonadales could serve as bioindicators of anthropogenic pollution to different pollution types. At last, divergent distribution patterns of individual bacterial populations in the bay were revealed, the influential environmental gradients were clarified, and the uncertainty of microbes was reduced, helping to predict environmental functions in coastal areas.     

Temporal and spatial variations in extreme temperatures in the Qilian Mountains-Hexi Corridor over the period 1960-2013

Based on daily maximum and minimum temperatures at 18 meteorological stations in the Qilian Mountains and Hexi Corridor between 1960 and 2013, temporal and spatial variations in extreme temperatures were analysed using linear trends, ten-point moving averages and the Mann-Kendall test. The results are as follows: The trends in the majority of the extreme temperature indices were statistically significant, and the changes in the extreme temperatures were more obvious than the changes in the extreme values. The trends were different for each season, and the changes in rates and intensities in summer and autumn were larger than those in spring and winter. Unlike the cold indices, the magnitudes and trends of the changes in the warm indices were larger and more significant in the Hexi Corridor than in the Qilian Mountains. Abrupt changes were detected in the majority of the extreme temperature indices, and the extreme cold indices usually occurred earlier than the changes in the extreme warm indices. The abrupt changes in the extreme temperatures in winter were the earliest among the four seasons, indicating that these temperature changes were the most sensitive to global climate change. The timing of the abrupt changes in certain indices was consistent throughout the study area, but the changes in the cold indices in the Hexi Corridor occurred approximately four years before those in the Qilian Mountains. Similarly, the changes in the warm indices in the western Hexi Corridor preceded those of the other regions.     

Temporal and spatial variations of ET o and sensitivity coefficients in spring-summer in eastern agricultural areas of Qinghai, China

Reference crop evapotranspiration(ET 0) is a key parameter to calculate crop water requirements.In the paper,ET 0 during 1960-2005 was calculated with FAO-56 PM in eastern agricultural areas of Qinghai,China.Then the sensitivity coefficients of ET 0 to meteorological variables were estimated through the nondimensional partial derivative in FAO-56 PM.Results show that the mean annual ET 0 of the whole area is 904 mm,and ET 0 portrays a very significant decrease during the 46 years.In spatial,ET 0 decreases from southeast to northwest,firstly increases then decreases from southwest to northeast.Through sensitivity analysis,in spring the most sensitive variable is relative humidity,while in summer is temperature.The temperature,sunshine duration and wind speed sensitivity coefficients(S(TA),S(n),S(u)) are higher in middle areas as opposed to surrounding areas,while the relative humidity sensitivity coefficient(S(RH)) has an opposite distribution rule.     

Temporal variations of hydrology and light transmission at two fixed observation stations in the East China Sea

ＩＮＴＲＯＤＵＣＴＩＯＮＩｔｉｓｒｅｃｏｇｎｉｚｅｄｔｈａｔｔｈｅｒｅａｒｅｔｗｏｉｍｐｏｒｔａｎｔｐｒｏｃｅｓｓｅｓｔｈａｔａｆｆｅｃｔｔｈｅｍａｔｅｒｉａｌｆｌｕｘｅｓｉｎｔｈｅＥａｓｔＣｈｉｎａＳｅａ(ＥＣＳ):ｏｎｅｉｓｔｈｅｍａｔｅｒｉａｌｔｒａｎｓｐｏｒｔｐｒｏｃｅｓｓｅｓｒｅｌａｔｅｄｔｏｔｈｅｆｉｎｅｍａｔｅｒｉａｌ(ｍｏｄｅｒｎ)ｓｅｄｉｍｅｎｔａｔｔｈｅｃｅｎｔｅｒｏｆｔｈｅＥＣＳＣｏｌｄＥｄｄｙ,ａｎｄｔｈｅｏｔｈｅｒｉｓｔｈｅｓｕｓｐｅｎｄｅｄｍａｔｔｅｒ(ＳＭ)ｆｌｕｘｆｒｏｍ…     

Epiphytic bacterial communities on two common submerged macrophytes in Taihu Lake: diversity and host-specificity

Leaves of terrestrial and aquatic plants are home to a wide diversity of bacterial species. However, the diversity and variability of epiphytic bacteria on their submerged plant hosts remains poorly understood. We investigated the diversity and composition of epiphytic bacteria from two common submerged macrophytes: Vallisneria natans and Hydrilla verticillata in Taihu Lake, Jiangsu, China, using methods of terminal restriction fragment length polymorphisms (T-RFLP) and clone library analyses targeted at bacterial 16S rRNA genes. The results show that: (1) the libraries of the two waterweeds contain wide phylogenetic distribution of bacteria, and that the sequences of the two libraries can be separated into 93 OTUs (at 97% similar value); (2) Betaproteobacteria, including Burkholderiales, was the most abundant bacterial group on both plants. Cyanobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria were the second largest groups on V. natans and H. verticillata, respectively. Both clone libraries included some sequences related to those of methanotrophs and nitrogen-fixing bacteria; (3) Cluster analysis of the T-RFLP profiles showed two distinct clusters corresponding to the two plant populations. Both ANOSIM of the T-RFLP data and Libshuff analysis of the two clone libraries indicated a significant difference in epiphytic bacterial communities between the two plants. Therefore, the epiphytic bacterial communities on submerged macrophytes appear to be diverse and host-specific, which may aid in understanding the ecological functions of submerged macrophytes in general.     

Forecast of Flood in Chaohu Lake Basin of China Based on Grey-Markov Theory

Flood is one kind of unexpected and the most common natural disasters, which is affected by many factors and has complex mechanism. At home and abroad, there is still no mature theory and method used for the long-term forecast of natural precipitation at present. In the present paper the disadvantages of grey GM (1, 1) and Markov chain are ana- lyzed, and Grey-Markov forecast theory about flood is put forward and then the modifying model is developed by making prediction of Chaohu Lake basin. Hydrological law was conducted based on the theoretical forecasts by grey system GM (1, 1) forecast model with improved Markov chain. The above method contained Stat-analysis, embodying scientific approach, precise forecast and its reliable results.     

Spatial distribution of archaeological sites in lakeshore of Chaohu Lake in China based on GIS

There are about 19 Neolithic Age sites and 120 Shang-Zhou dynasties sites in the western lakeshore of Chaohu Lake, Anhui Province, China. Based on sites data, topographic data, drainage maps, administrative maps and SPOT5 remote sensing data, spatial analysis methods were introduced into the archaeology of Chaohu Lake Basin with Geographic Information System (GIS). The spatial analysis methods include: 1) Point Density Analysis with density model to acquire the shift of the sites; 2) Distance Analysis to reveal the spatial structure of the sites; 3) 3D Analysis based on Digital Elevation Model to get micro-geomorphologic features of the sites; and 4) Buffer Analysis to discover the relationship between the sites and rivers. The results indicate that the archaeological sites spread from the western lakeshore of Chaohu Lake gradually to the northwest, later to the south, and then symmetrically spread. Controlled by productive forces and other factors, ancient people preferred to reside in those places near water, or in plain and fertile land, which resulted in linear and decentralized distribution of the sites, and presented such disciplines as river valley directivity, terrace directivity and soil directivity. This paper indicates that the distribution of archaeological sites was influenced earlier by natural elements and later by human elements in the study period. The research is important for the integration of GIS and archaeology.     

A niche model to predict Microcystis bloom decline in Chaohu Lake, China

Cyanobacterial blooms occur frequently in lakes due to eutrophication. Although a number of models have been proposed to forecast algal blooms, a good and applicable method is still lacking. This study explored a simple and effective mathematical-ecological model to evaluate the growth status and predict the population dynamics of Microcystis blooms. In this study, phytoplankton were collected and identified from 8 sampling sites in Chaohu Lake every month from July to October, 2010. The niche breadth and niche overlap of common species were calculated using standard equations, and the potential relative growth rates of Microcystis were calculated as a weighted-value of niche overlap. In July, the potential relative growth rate was 2.79 (a.u., arbitrary units) but then rapidly declined in the following months to -3.99 a.u. in September. A significant correlation (R=0.998, P<0.01) was found in the model between the net-increase in biomass of Microcystis in the field and the predicted values calculated by the niche model, we concluded that the niche model is suitable for forecasting the dynamics of Microcystis blooms. Redundancy analysis indicated that decreases in water temperature, dissolved oxygen and total dissolved phosphorus might be major factors underlying bloom decline. Based on the theory of community succession being caused by resource competition, the growth and decline of blooms can be predicted from a community structure. This may provide a basis for early warning and control of algal blooms.     

Assessment of heavy metal pollution in estuarine surface sediments of Tangxi River in Chaohu Lake Basin

A total of 30 surface sediments samples from the estuary wetland of the Tangxi River, Chaohu Lake Basin were obtained and tested. Enrichment factor (EF) and geoaccumulation index (I_(geo)) as well as multivariate statistical analysis methods including Factor Analysis (FA) and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) were applied for the assessment of heavy metal pollution in surface sediments. The results of EF values show that the pollution of copper (Cu) and cadmium (Cd) occurs in the estuarine sediments, and that zinc (Zn), lead (Pb) and chrome (Cr) may originate from crustal materials or natural weathering process. The mean EF values of the five heavy metals are in the decreasing order: Cu>Cd>Zn>Pb>Cr. Based on the I_(geo) of target heavy metals, the surface sediments collected from the study area can be approximately categorized as unpolluted with Zn, Pb and Cr, and moderately polluted with Cu and Cd. The degree of heavy metal pollution decreases in the order of Cu>Cd>Zn>Pb>Cr. Three groups of pollution factors are presented from FA: Zn-TOC, Cu-Cd and Cr-Pb, which respectively accounte for 27.22%, 25.20% and 21.05% of variance. By means of HCA, a total number of seven groups are distinguished from 30 sampling sites. Results indicate that Cu and Cd are the prior controlled pollutants in the estuarine sediments of the Tangxi River.     

Temporal and spatial distribution of virioplankton in large shallow freshwater lakes

Virioplankton dynamics at seven sample sites (from two freshwater lakes) with different trophic states were monitored over the period of a year. Water was sampled monthly from August 2004 to July 2005, and the abundances of viruses and bacteria were measured using direct epifluorescence microscopy counting. Results indicated that both natural and anthropogenic factors could influence the distribution of virioplankton. Temporally, viral abundance was significantly correlated to bacterial density and water temperature. Spatially, viral abundance was significantly correlated to trophic state. This in turn indicated that viral abundance was directly dependant on host abundance in eutrophic lakes, while trophic state and temperature could drive the distribution of virioplankton. The virus-bacteria ratio was significantly lower in less productive water-bodies. The result implied that the control of virioplankton on their hosts may change according to the host density.     

Effects of seasonal variations on soil microbial community composition of two typical zonal vegetation types in the Wuyi Mountains

Seasonal shifts play an important role in soil microbial community composition. This study examined the hypothesis that soil microbial community structure would vary with seasonal shifts in the Wuyi Mountains in Southeast China, and that two representative tree species (Castanopisi carlesii and Cunninghamia lanceolata) may have different soil microbial community composition. Phospholipids fatty acid analysis (PLFA) was used to assess the effect of seasonal shifts and vegetation types on soil microbial community structure. A total of 22 different PLFAs were identified from all the soil samples. The bacterial PLFAs accounted for 62.37% of the total PLFAs, followed by fungi (28.94%), and the minimum was actinomycetes (6.41%). Overall, the level of PLFAs in C. carlesii soil was greater than those in C. lanceolata soil, and significant differences were observed in some seasons. The amounts of total, bacteria, actinomycic and fungal PLFAs significantly changed with the seasons and followed a sequence order (summer > autumn > spring > winter). The bacteria/fungi PLFAs and G (+) /G (-) PLFAs of two vegetation types also changed with the seasons and the ratios in summer and autumn were higher than those in spring and winter. The correlation analysis of microbial PLFAs and soil physicochemical properties showed that the total, bacteria, fungal, actinomycic, G (+) and G (-) PLFAs were significantly positive correlation with TOC, TN, TP, TK and moisture content. We concluded that the seasonal shifts and vegetation types affect soil microbial community composition by changing the soil physicochemical properties.     

Characteristics and variations of the picophytoplankton community in the Arctic Ocean

Picophytoplankton are responsible for much of the carbon fixation process in the Arctic Ocean, and they play an im- portant role in active microbial food webs. The climate of the Arctic Ocean has changed in recent years, and picophytoplankton, as the most vulnerable part of the high-latitude pelagic ecosystem, have been the focus of an increasing number of scientific studies. This paper reviews and summarizes research on the characteristics of picophytoplankton in the Arctic Ocean, including their abundance, biomass, spatial distribution, seasonal variation, commtmity structure, and factors influencing their growth. The impact of climate change on the Arctic Ocean picophytoplankton community is discussed, and future research directions are considered.     

Partial function prediction of sulfate-reducing bacterial community from the rhizospheres of two typical coastal wetland plants in China

Sulfate-reducing bacteria(SRB) are ubiquitous anaerobic microorganisms that play significant roles in the global biogeochemical cycle.Coastal wetlands,one of the major habitats of SRB,exhibit high sulfate-reducing activity and thus play significant roles in organic carbon remineralization,benthic geochemical action,and plant-microbe interactions.Recent studies have provided credible evidence that the functional rather than the taxonomic composition of microbes responds more closely to environmental factors.Therefore.in this study,functional gene prediction based on PacBio single molecular real-time sequencing of 16 S rDNA was applied to deterrmine the sulfate-reducing and organic substrate-decomposing activities of SRB in the rhizospheres of two typical coastal wetland plants in North and South China:Zostera japonica and Scirpus mariqueter.To this end,some physicochemical characteristics of the sediments as well as the phylogenetic structure,community composition,diversity,and proportions of several functional genes of the SRB in the two plant rhizosphere s were analyzed.The Z.japonica meadow had a higher dis similatory sulfate reduction capability than the S.mariqueter-comprising saltmarsh,owing to its larger proportion of SRB in the microbial community,larger proportions of functional genes involved in dissimilatory sulfate reduction,and the stronger ability of the SRB to degrade organic substrates completely.This study confirmed the feasibility of applying microbial community function prediction in research on the metabolic features of SRB,which will be helpful for gaining new knowledge of the biogeochemical and ecological roles of these bacteria in coastal wetlands.     

Inference of reference conditions for nutrient concentrations of Chaohu Lake based on model extrapolation

In the mid-eastern China,there are few or no lakes which are in the absence of anthropogenic disturbances,or their sediments remain undisturbed.As a result,the reference lakes distribution and paleolimnological reconstruction approaches usually are inappropriate to estimate lake reference conditions for nutrients.This yields the necessity of using the extrapolation methods to estimate the lake reference conditions for nutrients within those regions.The lake reference conditions for nutrients could be inferred inversely from the law of mass conservation,current lake nutrient concentration,and the loadings from watershed.Considering the scarcity of hydrological and water quality data associated with lakes and watersheds in China,as well as the low requirement of the watershed nutrient loadings models for these data,the soil conservation service(SCS) distributed hydrological model and the universal soil loss equation(USLE) were applied.The SCS model simulates the runoff process of the watershed,thereby calculating dissolved nutrients annually.The USLE estimates the soil erosion and particulate nutrients annually in a watershed.Then,with the loadings from atmospheric deposition and point source,the previous annual average nutrient concentrations could be acquired given the current nutrient concentrations in a lake.Therefore,the nutrient reference conditions minimally impacted by human activities could be estimated.Based on the proposed model,the reference conditions for total nitrogen and total phosphorus of Chaohu Lake,Anhui Province,China are 0.031 mg/L and 0.640 mg/L,respectively.The proposed reference conditions estimation model is of clear physical concept,and less data required.Thus,the proposed approach can be used in other lakes with similar circumstances.     

Rotifer community structure and assessment of water quality in Yangcheng Lake

Rotifer community structure was investigated in Yangcheng Lake in 2008. Dominant species and species diversity indices were determined and QB/T was used to assess water quality. The annual average density and biomass of the rotifers in Yangcheng Lake was 2 894 ± 1 006 ind./L and 12.47 ± 10.28 mg/L, respectively. The highest densities were observed in the western portion of the lake in March, but the highest biomass occurred in inflowing creeks in September. Within a year of monitoring in Yangcheng Lake, 93 species were identified and the dominant species were found to be Polyarthra trigla, Brachionus angularis, Keratella cochlearis, Keratella valga, Brachionus calyciflorus, and Filinia major. Of the species recorded, 75 were pollution indicator species. Density and biomass exhibited significant positive correlations with water temperature (R = 0.209, P = 0.003; R = 0.446, P = 0.000), but the peak density showed two lags in response to chl a. According to the Jaccard similarity index (SJ), the greatest similarity among dominant species occurred between creeks and the eastern part of the lake. The annual average Shannon-Wiener diversity index H’, Margalef richness index D and Pielou evenness index J were 1.96 ± 0.34, 1.61 ± 0.50 and 0.77 ± 0.10, respectively. In all four areas of Yangcheng Lake, β- mesosaprobic species comprised the largest share of pollution indicator species. These data suggest that Yangcheng Lake is mesosaprobic.