Long-term changes of Copepoda community (1957-1996) in a subtropical Chinese lake stocked densely with planktivorous filter-feeding silver and bighead carp

In contrast to the relatively well documented impact of particulate-feeding fish on zooplankton communities, little attention has been devoted to the impact of filter-feeding fish. Filter-feeding silver and bighead carp are the most intensively cultured fish species in Asia and comprise much of the production of Chinese aquaculture. However, little information is known about the impact of either fish on the zooplankton community. Long-term changes in the Copepoda community (1957-1996) were studied at two sampling stations of a subtropical Chinese lake (Lake Donghu) dominated by silver and bighead carp. For both calanoids and cyclopoids, the littoral station (I) was much more resource profitable than the pelagic station (II). There has been a tremendous increase in the annual fish catch over the past 30 years due to the increased stocking with fingerlings of the two carp species. There was a notably higher fish density at Station I than at Station II. Cyclopoid abundance was notably higher at Station I than at Station II during the 1950s to the 1980s, while the reverse became true in the 1990s. This is probably because when fish abundance increased to an extremely high level, the impact of fish predation on the cyclopoids became more important than that of food resources at the littoral station. At both stations, cyclopoid abundance was relatively low in spite of the presence of abundant prey. Similarly, calanoid density did not differ significantly between the two stations in the 1950s and 1960s, but was significantly lower at Station I than at Station II during the 1980s and 1990s. Such changes are attributed to the gradient of fish predation between the stations and an increasing predation pressure by the fish. The increased fish predation also correlated with a shift in summer-dominant calanoids from larger species to smaller ones. In conclusion, the predaceous cyclopoids are affected by fish predation to a much lesser extent than the herbivorous calanoids, and therefore increased predation by filter-feeding fish results in a definite increase in the cyclopoid/calanoid ratio. Predation by filter-feeding fish has been a driving force in shaping the copepod community structure of Lake Donghu during the past decades.

The spatial pattern of the small fish community in the Biandantang Lake - a small shallow lake along the middle reach of the Yangtze River, China

The spatial pattern of the small fish community was studied seasonally in 1996 in the Biandantang Lake. Based on plant cover, the lake was divided into five habitats, arranged in the order by plant structure complexity from complex to simple: Vallisneria spiralis habitat (V habitat), Vallisneria spiralis-Myriophyllum spicatum habitat (V-M habitat), Myriophyllum spicatum habitat (M habitat), Nelunbo nucefera habitat (N habitat), and no vegetation habitat (NV habitat). A modified popnet was used for quantitative sampling of small fishes. A total of 16 fish species were collected; Hypseleotris swinhonis, Ctenogobius giurinus, Pseudorasbora parva, Carassius auratus and Paracheilognathus imberis were the five numerically dominant species. In both summer and autumn, the total density of small fishes was about 10 ind m(-2). Generally, Ctenogobius giurinus, a sedatory, benthic fish, was distributed more or less evenly among the five habitats, while the other four species had lower densities in the N habitat and NV habitat, which had the simplest structures. The distribution of the small fish species showed seasonal variations. In winter, most species concentrated in the V habitat, which had the most complex structure. In spring, the fish had low densities in the N and NV habitat, and were more or less evenly distributed in the other habitats. In summer, the fish had a low density in the NV habitat, and were evenly distributed in the other habitats. In autumn, the fish had higher densities in the V-M and M habitats than in the others. Generally, spatial overlaps between the dominant species were higher in winter than in the other seasons. It was suggested that the variations in the importance of predation risk and resource competition in habitat choice determined the seasonal changes of spatial patterns in the small fishes in the Biandantang Lake.

Changes in the plankton community following introduction of filter-feeding planktivorous fish

1. We conducted enclosure experiments in a shallow eutrophic lake, in which a biomass gradient of the filter-feeding planktivore, silver carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix Valenciennes, was created, and subsequent community changes in both zooplankton and phytoplankton were examined. 2. During a summer experiment, a bloom of Anabaena flos-aquae developed (approximate to 8000 cells mL(-1)) solely in an enclosure without silver carp. Concurrent with, or slightly preceding the Anabaena bloom, the number of rotifer species and their abundance increased from seven to twelve species (1700-14 400 organisms L-1) after the bloom in this fish-free enclosure. Protozoans and bacteria were generally insensitive to the gradient of silver carp biomass. 3. During an autumn experiment, on the other hand, large herbivorous crustaceans were more efficient than silver carp in suppressing the algae, partly because the lower water temperature (approximate to 24 degrees C) inhibited active feeding of this warm-water fish and also formation of algal colonies. Heterotrophic nanoflagellate and bacterial densities were also influenced negatively by the crustaceans. 4. Correspondence analysis (CA) was applied to the weekly community data of zooplankton and phytoplankton. A major effect detected in the zooplankton community was the presence/absence of silver carp rather than the biomass of silver carp, whereas that in the phytoplankton community was the fish biomass before the Anabaena bloom, but shifted to the presence/absence of the fish after the bloom.

Changes in the structure of a zooplankton community during a Ceratium (dinoflagellate) bloom in a eutrophic fishless pond

The community structure of zooplankton was studied in a eutrophic, fishless Japanese pond. The ecosystem was dominated by a dinoflagellate, Ceratium hirundinella, two filter-feeding cladocerans, Daphnia rosea and Ceriodaphnia reticulata, and an invertebrate predator, the dipteran Chaoborus flavicans. The midsummer zooplankton community showed a large change in species composition (the Daphnia population crashed) when a heavy Ceratium bloom occurred. It is shown that (i) the rapid density decline of D.rosea in mid-May was mainly caused by a shortage of edible phytoplankton, which was facilitated by the rapid increase in C.hirundinella abundance; (ii) the low density of D.rosea in June-July was considered to be mainly caused by the blooming of Ceratium hirundinella (which may inhibit the feeding process of D.rosea), while predation by C.flavicans larvae, the changing temperature, the interspecific competition and the scarcity of edible algae were not judged to be important; (iii) the high summer biomass of the planktonic C.flavicans larvae was maintained by the bloom of C.hirundinella, because >90% of the crop contents of C.flavicans larvae were C.hirundinella during this period. The present study indicates that the large-sized cells or colonies of phytoplankton are not only inedible by most cladocerans, but the selective effect of the blooming of these algae can also influence the composition and dominance of the zooplankton community, especially for the filter-feeding Cladocera, in a similar way as the selective predation by planktivorous fish. The large-sized phytoplankton can also be an important alternative food for ominivorous invertebrate predators such as Chaoborus larvae, and thus may affect the interactions between these predators and their zooplanktonic prey. In this way, such phytoplankton may play a very important role in regulating the dynamics of the aquatic food web, and become a driving force in shaping the community structure of zooplankton.

ROLE OF PHOSPHORUS CYCLING IN ALGAL METABOLISM AND ALGAL SUCCESSION IN LAKE DONGHU, CHINA

The role of phosphorus cycling in algal metabolism was studied in a shallow lake, Donghu, in Wuhan using the methods of measuring cell quota C, N and P, and calculating nutrients uptake rate by algal photosynthesis. The mean daily phosphorus uptake rate of phytoplankton varied between 0.04-0.11 and 0.027-0.053 g/m2/d in station I and station II respectively. The turnover time of phosphorus in phytoplankton metabolism ranged from 0.75-5.0 days during 1979-1986. The available P was 0.176 (+/- 0.156) g/m3 (mean +/- SD) in 1982 and 0.591 (+/- 0.24) g/m3 in 1986. The relationship between P/B ratio (Y) and TP (X: mg/l) was described by the following regression equation Y = 1.163 + 0.512logX (r = 0.731, P < 0.001). The dynamics of algal biomass and algal species succession were monitored as the indicators of environmental enrichment. The small-sized algae have replaced the blue-green algae as the dominant species during 1979-1986. The small-sized algae include Merismopedia glauca, Cryptomonas ovata, Cryptomonas erosa, several species Cyclotella. There has been drastic decrease in algal biomass and an obvious increase in P/B ratio. A nutrient competition hypothesis is proposed to explain the reason of the disappearance of blue-green algae bloom. The drastic change in algal size and the results in high P/B ratio (reaching a maximum mean daily ratio of 1.09 in 1986) may suggest a transition of algal species from K-selection to r-selection in Lake Donghu.

土丘陵沟壑区植被恢复过程中的土壤抗蚀与细沟侵蚀演变

对黄土丘陵沟壑区安塞纸坊沟和县南沟、延安燕沟3个流域不同恢复年限的植物群落的土壤抗蚀性和侵蚀程度进行了研究。对12个土壤抗蚀性指标进行主成分分析表明,土壤抗蚀性(主成分综合指数)强弱为灌木群落阶段>多年生草本和蒿类群落阶段>一二年生草本群落阶段,与一二年生草本群落阶段相比,灌木群落阶段与多年生草本和蒿类群落阶段的土壤抗蚀性分别增加了362.29%～673.33%和574.71%～930.00%;野外调查结果分析表明,随着植被的恢复演替,土壤侵蚀量呈现明显的下降趋势,灌木群落阶段的土壤侵蚀量仅为演替初期的1.42%～5.59%;通过回归分析,土壤侵蚀量和水稳性团聚类因子,以及有机质含量之间分别存在极显著与显著相关关系,鉴于土壤分析的易获性,可选择>0.5mm水稳性团聚体与有机质含量作为反映土壤侵蚀程度的指标。

黄土丘陵区退耕地先锋群落演替过程中细根特征的变化

采用空间序列取代时间序列的方法,对退耕时间分别为2、4、6和8年的退耕地群落细根特征进行了分析,以探讨退耕地植被演替过程中细根特征在土壤剖面上的变化及其在演替过程中的作用.结果表明:(1)群落细根根长密度和根面积密度随植被演替显著增加;比根长、比根面积和地下/地上生物量也有增加趋势;细根平均直径随植被演替波动,但有减少趋势;(2)在土壤剖面上根长密度、根面积密度和根系生物量均随土壤深度的增加而降低.其中超过63%的根长、61%的根面积和72%的生物量分布在0～20cm的表层土壤中;(3)根径级统计表明,多数细根直径在0～0.5和0.5～1.0mm之间,这两级细根长度占细根总长度的80%以上;(4)逐步回归分析表明,植被演替过程中细根特征的变化主要与土壤有效氮(第2年)、有效磷(第2～8年)和土壤水分(第8年)的含量有关,且随着植被演替,2～6年退耕地中细根特征与土壤资源正相关,而第8年中二者呈负相关.这可能与植物生长对资源的需求与土壤提供资源的能力之间的平衡有关.研究表明,退耕地植被演替过程对土壤资源有一定影响,尤其是土壤水分含量显著减少;而土壤水分等土壤资源的变化又对群落产生影响,导致茵陈蒿先锋群落向地带性...

黄土高原植被演替不同阶段植物系数的变化与适应性评价

用4年长期定位试验资料,利用植物系数、蒸散量、土壤含水量和土壤水分对植物的有效性等指标,研究了黄土高原植被群落不同演替阶段(草本群落→灌木群落→早期森林群落→顶级群落)的耗水特性与生态适应性。结果表明:不同演替阶段,群落实际蒸散量主要受降水控制,群落间差异不显著(P>0.05);土壤含水量是早期森林群落明显高于其它群落,草本群落明显高于灌木群落(P<0.05);植物系数是灌木群落>草本群落>乔木群落,而顶级群落大于早期森林群落;土壤水分对植物的有效性是早期森林和顶级群落明显高于草本和灌木群落(P<0.05)。因此,进行植被建设不但要考虑植物系数还要考虑土壤水分对不同植物的有效性。

云雾山本氏针茅草地群落恢复演替过程中的物种多样性变化动态

采用样方法对云雾山干草原区本氏针茅草地群落进行长期定位监测,对未封育样地和封育5,10,15,20和25年样地群落的平均高度、盖度、多度和地上生物量以及植物多样性进行实地调查分析,以研究围栏封育对草地植物群落特征动态变化的影响。结果表明,围封10年样地群落的高度、多度以及地上生物量最大,而群落的盖度则随封育年限的增加呈显著增加趋势,在封育25年达到最大;围栏封育的不同年限也显著影响了群落的物种多样性,在围封10年样地群落具有最高的多样性指数,围封15年样地具有最高的丰富度指数,而均匀度指数则是在未封育群落中表现为最高值,最低值是在物种丰富度最高时出现。由此可见,围栏封育在一定时间范围内可以显著改善群落的特征,增加群落的生产力,对于本研究地本氏针茅群落的最佳封育期限为10~15年,但围封时间过长在草地退化方面有一定程度的影响。

黄土丘陵区植被次生演替灌木种群的土壤养分效应

研究黄土丘陵区植被次生演替灌木群落形成过程中土壤养分的变化情况。【方法】以白羊草群落为对照,选取杠柳、狼牙刺、丁香、虎榛子和柠条5种乡土树种为研究对象,测定其土壤养分含量,计算灌木群落形成变化过程中的土壤养分指数(Soil Nutrient Index,SNI),分析了各养分因子间的线性相关关系。【结果】不同灌木初期对土壤养分的适应能力大小顺序为:柠条(0.072)>狼牙刺(0.114)>杠柳(0.163)>丁香(0.172)>虎榛子(0.292)。不同植被物种群落土壤SNI值大小顺序为:虎榛子群落(0.979)>狼牙刺群落(0.535)>柠条群落(0.457)>丁香群落(0.341)>杠柳群落(0.333)>白羊草群落(0.145)。从不同灌木群落形成过程所产生的土壤养分改善效应来看,各参试群落相对于白羊草群落土壤养分的增幅分别为:虎榛子(4.740倍)、狼牙刺(2.909倍)、柠条(2.661倍)、杠柳(1.169倍)和丁香(1.168倍)。各土壤养分因子间除土壤全磷与有效磷和有效钾的相关性不显著外,其余各土壤养分因子间均表现出极显著的线性相关关系(P<0.01)。【结论】不同灌木种群所需的适宜土...

黄土丘陵区植被次生演替灌木初期土壤物理性质特征

研究了黄土丘陵区植被次生演替草灌过渡灌木初期的土壤物理性质特征。结果表明:当植被次生演替进展到草灌过渡灌木初期,除土壤含水量外,土壤容重、孔隙度、稳定入渗和水稳性团聚体都好于对照白羊草地,表明灌木树种定居的土壤物理条件一般要高于草本群落。植被演替的过程是植被与土壤相互作用复杂变化的过程,它们的相互反馈也是生态恢复的重要标志。随着植物群落的变化土壤也发生着不同程度变化。其中,土壤物理性质各个因子之间的变化是相互影响和相互联系的。土壤稳定入渗速率与土壤容重、土壤总孔隙度、土壤毛管孔隙度和土壤团聚体之间有显著的相关关系;土壤毛管孔隙度与土壤非毛管孔隙度线性显著负相关;土壤容重与土壤总孔隙度极显著负相关。