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.

Response of coastal marine eco-environment to river fluxes into the sea: A case study of the Huanghe (Yellow) River mouth and adjacent waters

The impact of the Huanghe (Yellow) River outflows on its estuary was investigated with river gauging and shipboard hydrographic observations. The river flux has been decreasing dramatically; the discharges of water and sediment in the 1990s dropped to 27.4% and 31.9% of those in the 1950s, respectively, resulting in frequent and lengthy events of downstream channel dry-up since the 1970s. There were accumulatively 897 zero-flow days during the 1990s in the river course below the Lijin Hydrological Station, 100 km upstream from the river mouth, which is 82.4% of that in 1972. As freshwater input decreases, river-borne nutrients to the estuarine increased significantly. Concentration of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) in the 1990s was four times of that in 1950s. Changes in amount and content of the riverine inputs have greatly affected the estuarine ecosystem. Over the past several decades, sea surface temperature and salinity in the estuary and its adjacent waters increased and their distribution pattern altered in response to the reduction of freshwater inflow. The distribution of and seasonal succession in nutrient concentrations in the surface layer have also changed with a shift of river outlet and the decrease in riverine nutrient loads. Furthermore, deterioration of estuarine ecosystem by less river input has decreased primary productivity in the deltaic region waters, and in turn depressed the fishery. (C) 2008 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

长期施用氮、磷和有机肥对不同种植体系土壤有效硫累积的影响

以22年定位试验为基础,研究了长期施用氮、磷和有机肥(NPM)对不同种植体系土壤有效硫在剖面上分布与累积状况。结果表明,在60—80 cm土层各处理出现第一个累积峰,累积峰值为粮饲轮作31.3,玉米连作29.2,小麦连作27.9,粮豆轮作25.6,苜蓿连作24.0 mg/kg;在140—180 cm土层各处理又出现有效硫的第二个累积峰,累积峰值为粮饲轮作44.7,粮豆轮作43.1,小麦连作41.0,玉米连作39.7,苜蓿连作36.5 mg/kg。第二累积峰值均大于第一累积峰值。0—200 cm土层有效硫总累积量粮饲轮作高达746.3 kg/hm~2,其次为玉米连作640.6,粮豆轮作为638.3,小麦连作为622.4,苜蓿连作最小为557.3 kg/hm~2。长期施用磷肥和有机肥是有效硫在土壤中累积的主要因素,有效硫在土壤剖面上有向深层迁移的趋势。不同作物对硫的吸收利用差异和不同种植方式对有效硫的累积与分布产生影响。

六盘山森林土壤种子库与植被演替过程

以六盘山森林植被为研究对象,通过20多年的森林土壤种子库变化与植被演替过程的试验研究,分析了8种森林群落类型的不同生长年限、生长坡位、枯枝落叶层和土壤深度对土壤种子库形成过程的影响。结果表明:六盘山森林群落不同生长坡位,土壤种子库的储量坡中部>坡下部>坡上部;不同层次土壤种子库,枯枝落叶层远高于0-15 cm深土层,8种森林群落类型排序为华北落叶松林>油松林>华山松林>辽东栎林>山杨林>白桦林>灌丛>草地;土壤种子库储量高峰期,不同群落有显著差异,华山松林和油松林在林龄的30~40年,华北落叶松林在20年,辽东栎林、山杨林、白桦林在15~20年,灌丛和草地在10~20年,其森林群落生长年限与土壤种子库储量变化趋势呈拟合曲线,符合指数方程,相关性极为显著;土壤种子库物种组成丰富,草本和灌木植物远高于乔木树种,乔木树种仅有3~5种,但多数为外来入侵种,而在每一类型中出现频率最高的草地植物多为蒿类,灌木植物为柔毛绣线菊和沙棘,乔木为辽东栎树种。因此,在六盘山林区植被自然更新与合理演替的驱动种和先锋种草地植物为蒿类,灌木植物为柔毛绣线菊和沙棘,乔木为辽东栎,其次是华北落叶松、油松和华山松。

封育对云雾山本氏针茅草地群落的影响

以云雾山封育与未封区为对象,采用样线法进行调查,重点分析二者群落特征和地上生物量的变化,以期为退化草地植被恢复提供依据。结果表明:封育后本氏针茅(Stipa bungeana)群落发生较大变化,物种数显著增加、演替差异明显,由未封区的本氏针茅+大针茅(S. gigantea)群落演替为封育后的大针茅+本氏针茅群落;未封区本氏针茅种群的优势地位明显加强,重要值明显大于封育区;封育与未封区群落的相似性系数为0.419;物种丰富度指数和多样性指数(修正的Simpson指数、Shannon-winner指数、Audair和Groff指数)均表现为封育区>未封区,而均匀度指数则相反;封育区地上生物量明显增加,其中禾本科、蔷薇科和杂类草占总生物量的比例均表现为封育>未封区,而菊科则相反。

Impacts of two biomanipulation fishes stocked in a large pen on the plankton abundance and water quality during a period of phytoplankton seasonal succession

Silver and bighead carp were stocked in a large pen to control the nuisance cyanobacterial blooms in Meiliang Bay of Lake Taihu. Plankton abundance and water quality were investigated about once a week from 9 May to 7 July in 2005. Biomass of both total crustacean zooplankton and cladocerans was significantly suppressed by the predation of pen-cultured fishes. There was a significant negative correlation between the N:P weight ratio and phytoplankton biomass. The size-selective predation by the two carps had no effect on the biomass of green alga Ulothrix sp. It may be attributed to the low fish stocking density (less than 40 g m(-3)) before June. When Microcystis dominated in the water of fish pen, the pen-cultured carps effectively suppressed the biomass of Microcystis, as indicated by the significant decline of chlorophyll a in the >38 mu m fractions of the fish pen. Based on the results of our experiment and previous other studies, we conclude that silver and bighead carp are two efficient biomanipulation tools to control cyanobacterial (Microcystis) blooms in the tropical/subtropical eutrophic waters. Moreover, we should maintain an enough stocking density for an effective control of phytoplankton biomass. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved

Effects of seasonal succession and water pollution on the protozoan community structure in an eutrophic lake

The purpose of the research is to study the seasonal succession of protozoa community and the effect of water quality on the protozoa community to characterize biochemical processes occurring at a eutrophic Lake Donghu, a large shallow lake in Wuhan City, China. Samples of protozoa communities were obtained monthly at three stations by PFU (polyurethane foam unit) method over a year. Synchronously, water samples also were taken from the stations for the water chemical quality analysis. Six major variables were examined in a principal component analysis (PCA), which indicate the fast changes of water quality in this station I and less within-year variation and a comparatively stable water quality in stations II and III. The community data were analyzed using multivariate techniques, and we show that clusters are rather mixed and poorly separated, suggesting that the community structure is changing gradually, giving a slight merging of clusters form the summer to the autumn and the autumn to the winter. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) was used to infer the relationship between water quality variables and phytoplankton community structure, which changed substantially over the survey period. From the analysis of cluster and CCA, coupled by community pollution value (CPV), it is concluded that the key factors driving the change in protozoa community composition in Lake Donghu was water qualities rather than seasons. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Nitrogen-15 signals of leaf-litter-soil continuum as a possible indicator of ecosystem nitrogen saturation by forest succession and N loads

National Key Research and Development Program [2010CB833502]; National Natural Science Foundation of China [30600071, 40601097, 30590381]; Chinese Academy of Sciences [KZCX2-YW-432, O7V70080SZ, LENOM07LS-01]; GUCAS [O85101PM03]

Diatom community succession in the recent history of a eutrophic Yunnan Plateau lake, Lake Dianchi, in subtropical China

Fish introduction, eutrophication and disappearance of aquatic vegetation are important disturbances of aquatic ecosystems, especially in plateau lakes, which are generally considered to be very vulnerable. Fish were introduced to Lake Dianchi, a eutrophic plateau lake in southwest China, in the late 1950s and 1970s. After the introduction, invasive fish became the dominant species, and the total fish yield increased. Meanwhile, the trophic level of Lake Dianchi had a tendency to increase in the past decades because of the increases in human activities in the watershed area. In addition, the area of aquatic vegetation decreased from more than 90 to 1.8% of the lake area from the 1950s to 2000. This study investigated the effects of fish introduction, eutrophication and aquatic vegetation on the diatom community of Lake Dianchi by examining the changes of microfossil diatom assemblage and abundance. Results showed that the absolute abundance and diatom assemblages changed after fish were introduced. The endemic species, Cyclotella rohomboideo-elliptica, disappeared with the introduction of fish and increasing trophic levels after 1958. Fragilaria crotonensis entered into the lake with the introduction of fish and gradually thrived in the lake after 1958. Diatom species numbers also decreased gradually from 21 to 9 from the past to present. Epiphytic diatoms disappeared with the decrease of aquatic vegetation after 1985. Our study indicated that eutrophication was the most important process determining diatom abundance, and fish introduction was a secondary process determining diatom abundance, while aquatic vegetation had a more important role in structuring the diatom community in this eutrophic plateau lake.

Temporal and Spatial Distributions of Rotifers in Xiangxi Bay of the Three Gorges Reservoir, China

From July 2003 to June 2005, investigations of rotifer temporal and spatial distributions were carried out in a bay of the Three Gorges Reservoir, Xiangxi Bay, which is the downstream segment of the Xiangxi River and the nearest bay to the Three Gorges Reservoir dam in Hubei Province, China. Thirteen sampling sites were selected. The results revealed a high species diversity, with 76 species, and 14 dominant species; i.e., Polyarthra vulgaris, Keratella cochlearis, Keratella valga, Synchaeta tremula, Synchaeta stylata, Trichocerca lophoessa, Trichocerca pusilla, Brachionus angularis, Brachionus calyciflorus, Brachionus forficula forficula, Ascomorpha ovalis, Conochilus unicornis, Ploesoma truncatum and Anuraeopsis fissa. After the first year of the reservoir impoundment, the rotifer community was dominated by ten species; one year later it was dominated by eight species. The community in 2003/2004 was dissimilar to that in 2004/2005, which resulted from the succession of the dominant species. The rotifer community exhibited a patchy distribution, with significant heterogeneity observed along the longitudinal axis. All rotifer communities could be divided into three groups, corresponding to the riverine, the transition and the lacustrine zone, respectively.

Plankton Community Succession in Artificial Systems Subjected to Cyanobacterial Blooms Removal using Chitosan-Modified Soils

Using artificial systems to simulate natural lake environments with cyanobacterial blooms, we investigated plankton community succession by polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) fingerprinting and morphological method. With this approach, we explored potential ecological effects of a newly developed cyanobacterial blooms removal method using chitosan-modified soils. Results of PCR-DGGE and morphological identification showed that plankton communities in the four test systems were nearly identical at the beginning of the experiment. After applying the newly developed and standard removal methods, there was a shift in community composition, but neither chemical conditions nor plankton succession were significantly affected by the cyanobacteria removal process. The planted Vallisneria natans successfully recovered after cyanobacteria removal, whereas that in the box without removal process did not. Additionally, canonical correspondence analysis indicated that other than for zooplankton abundance, total phosphorus was the most important environmental predictor of planktonic composition. The present study and others suggest that dealing with cyanobacteria removal using chitosan-modified soils can play an important role in controlling cyanobacterial blooms in eutrophicated freshwater systems.