Plankton distribution patterns and the relationship with environmental gradients and hydrological connectivity of wetlands in the Yellow River Delta
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-1-2020
Abstract
In order to discover the plankton distribution patterns and its relationship with environment gradients and hydrological connectivity in wetlands, samples from Yellow River Delta that span gradients in salinity and hydrological connectivity were analyzed in this study. Plankton community composition, abundance and biomass were determined and correlated with water variables and hydrological connectivity indexes to gain information about the forces that structure the plankton community in this dynamic environment. Phytoplankton with a total of 88 species and zooplankton with a total of 49 species were observed at an average abundance of 4.11 × 107 cells/L and 951.27 ind./L, respectively. Predominant species were Merismopedia minima G.Beck/Merismopedia elegans A. Braun ex Kützing (Cyanobacteria) and Trichocerca pusilla (Jennings) (Rotifera), accounting for over 10% of the total abundance of phytoplankton and zooplankton, respectively. The dominant species of phytoplankton communities were shifted from freshwater Chlorophyta (e.g., Oocystis sp.) to brackish Cyanobacteria (e.g., Merismopedia minima and Merismopedia elegans) and then to marine cyanobacterium (e.g., Oscillatoria sp. and Pseudoanabaena sp.); That shift in zooplankton community was from freshwater rotifers Trichocerca pusilla and Polyarthra trigla (Ehrenberg) to brackish rotifer Brachionus urceus (Linnaeus) and copepod Thermocyclops spp. and then to marine copepods Sinocalanus spp. and Microsetella spp. toward the river mouth. However, abundance, biomass and community similarity of plankton decreased with increasing water salinity and decreasing hydrological connectivity from upper reaches to river mouth. Salinity gradient could be major force for the shift of plankton community while the increasing hydrological connectivity between freshwater and saline habitats promoted the similarity of plankton distribution patterns within the wetland network.
Publication Source (Journal or Book title)
Ecohydrology and Hydrobiology
First Page
584
Last Page
596
Recommended Citation
Xiao, R., Wang, Q., Zhang, M., Pan, W., & Wang, J. (2020). Plankton distribution patterns and the relationship with environmental gradients and hydrological connectivity of wetlands in the Yellow River Delta. Ecohydrology and Hydrobiology, 20 (4), 584-596. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecohyd.2020.01.002