Feizhou Chen

Microbial eukaryotic community in response to Microcystis spp. bloom, as assessed by an enclosure experiment in Lake Taihu, China

Mesocosm experiments were carried out to examine the potential impacts of Microcystis blooms on microbial eukaryotic community composition (MECC). Four treatment additions of differing Microcystis spp. biomass were performed in enclosures, as indicated by chlorophyll a concentrations from 15 to 3217 μg L(-1) in the water column. Dialysis bags were used in enclosures to measure MECC dynamics without influence from predation and irradiance. Samples were taken on days 0, 1 and 4 for MECC analysis, based on changes in the chemical parameters during simultaneous monitoring. The MECC were determined by terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP), followed by cloning and sequencing of 18S rRNA genes of selected samples. T-RFLP and clone library analysis revealed that MECC in enclosures and dialysis bags shifted strongly during Microcystis spp. decomposition. Members belonging to fungi became the dominant organisms in enclosures with a high biomass of Microcystis spp. Canonical correspondence analysis indicated that temporal changes in MECC were mostly related to changes in the pH and concentrations of dissolved oxygen and dissolved organic carbon, which were induced by the addition of Microcystis spp. The experiment suggests that accumulation of Microcystis biomass can strongly impact MECC, and there might be a saprophytic association between fungi and the decomposition of Microcystis biomass.

Restoration of a subtropical eutrophic shallow lake in China: effects on nutrient concentrations and biological communities

While numerous reports exist on the results of lake restoration initiatives in temperate regions, only a few exist from subtropical lakes. We present results of the lake restoration of shallow, subtropical Lake Wuli, China, conducted between 1999 and 2010. After restoration, annual average concentrations of total nitrogen, total phosphorus (TP), and chlorophyll a and the chemical oxygen demand declined significantly, though summer TP remained high. Suspended solids increased significantly over the years, whereas transparency decreased, though not significantly so. The contribution of cryptophytes to total phytoplankton biomass decreased, while the proportion of cyanobacteria, especially potentially N2-fixing species, increased. Rotifers were superseded by crustaceans as the dominant taxon of the zooplankton community. Enhanced abundance of Daphnia spp., appearance of Leptodora kindti, and increased biomass ratios of zooplankton to phytoplankton, calanoids to cyclopoids, and nauplii to copepods in the post-restoration period indicate reduced fish predation and stronger top-down control of phytoplankton. However, the increase in non-algal turbidity, probably caused by the higher biomass of benthivorous fish, apparently prevented the re-establishment of submerged macrophyte communities. We conclude that removal of fish, particularly benthivorous species, will further improve water quality in this and other subtropical shallow lakes.

The fate of cyanobacterial detritus in the food web of Lake Taihu: a mesocosm study using 13C and 15N labeling

The ecosystem of the highly eutrophic Lake Taihu (China) is seriously affected by recurrent cyanobacterial blooms, but little is known about the contribution made by cyanobacteria to the food web. In this study, we investigated the fate of detritus of the cyanobacterium Microcystis in the food web of Lake Taihu through a 19-day mesocosm experiment using stable-isotopic tracers of carbon (13C) and nitrogen (15N). 13C- and 15N-labeled Microcystis detritus was added to the mesocosm tanks and tracked through different elements of the food web. We found clear enrichment with both 13C and 15N in some zooplankton species, including Daphnia, Diaphanosoma, and Sinocalanus, which suggests that these zooplankters can utilize cyanobacterial detritus as a food source. Benthic animals, chironomid larvae and Limnodrilus, also showed pronounced increases in 13C and 15N, but the isotope increase was relatively smaller in the gastropods, Radix sp. and Bellamya sp., implying that they either exploited this food source differently or responded slower than the zooplankton, which apparently grew faster than the snails. Our study suggests that cyanobacterial detritus, originating almost wholly from the bloom-forming Microcystis, is an important food source for both planktonic and benthic food webs in eutrophic lakes such as Lake Taihu.

Submerged macrophytes facilitate dominance of omnivorous fish in a subtropical shallow lake: implications for lake restoration

Biomanipulation based on removal of coarse fish, piscivorous fish stocking and sometimes also planting of submerged macrophytes has been used to restore temperate eutrophic shallow lakes. However, in warmer lakes, omnivorous fish are more abundant and apparently less well controlled by the piscivores. We investigated the food web structure and energy pathways of fish in the restored part of subtropical Lake Wuli, China, using gut contents analysis (GCA) and the IsoSource model based on stable isotope analysis (SIA) data. We found that omnivores dominated the fish community in terms of numbers. GCA showed that cyclopoid copepods constituted the main food item for the planktivores, while all adult omnivorous fish fed mainly on macrophytes. The IsoSource SIA model supported these results. Furthermore, piscivores consumed shrimps rather than juvenile omnivores, and the SIA analysis revealed no trophic links between piscivores and adult omnivores or zooplanktivores. We conclude that macrophytes constituted an important food item for omnivores, potentially promoting population growth of omnivores as control by piscivores was weak. This may yield a high predation pressure on both zooplankton and on macrophytes, possibly preventing the establishment of a stable macrophyte state following restoration of eutrophic lakes unless the fish density is regularly controlled.

Response of the cladoceran community to eutrophication, fish introductions and degradation of the macrophyte vegetation in Lake Dianchi, a large, shallow plateau lake in southwestern China

A paleolimnological evaluation was made in order to analyze the effects of increasing nutrient load, macrophyte degradation and fish introductions on the cladoceran community of a large, shallow plateau lake in southwestern China. The trophic state of Lake Dianchi has increased rapidly during recent decades, its macrophyte vegetation has suffered severe degradation, and fish introductions in the late 1950s and early 1980s have had a marked effect on the structure of the fish community. Our results show an increase in abundance of cladoceran species with a preference for eutrophic conditions over the last few decades, while species preferring oligotrophic conditions have decreased or disappeared. These changes correspond to the eutrophication in Lake Dianchi. The loss of the cladocerans Kurzia latissima and Disparalonarostrata is likely to be a reflection of the degradation of the macrophyte community. An increase in Daphnia body size indicated by the ephippia length since the early 1990s is associated with the decline of planktivorous species.

Dynamics and drivers of phytoplankton richness and composition along productivity gradient

The shape of the productivity-richness relationship (PRR) for phytoplankton has been suggested to be unimodal, that is, the richness peaks at intermediate productivity levels. However, the mechanistic understanding for this pattern is still widely debated. In this study, we observed a unimodal PRR within 71 lakes along the Yangtze River encompassing an altitude range of 0-2700m, and an over 2200km distance from the upper reaches to the lower reaches. At low productivity, the competition for resources and regulatory processes jointly affected phytoplankton richness and composition, and their explanatory power depend on the gradient scale of driving factors. The variation of temperature attributing to altitudinal difference explained the majority of the variations of phytoplankton. If the altitude variation in temperature was eliminated, the explanatory power of temperature decreased from 31.7 to 7.6, and the independent effect of each resource and regulatory variable were limited and not decisive. At high productivity, the negative feedback of increased productivity (light limitation) affected the phytoplankton species richness and composition. The light-sensitive species disappeared, low-light-adapted species was retained and the phytoplankton composition gradually became similar with an increase in productivity. The findings contribute to an increased understanding of the mechanisms resulting in a hump-shaped PRR for phytoplankton.

Stocks and dynamics of particulate and dissolved organic matter in a large, shallow eutrophic lake (Taihu, China) with dense cyanobacterial blooms

Cyanobacterial blooms occur in eutrophic lakes worldwide, and greatly impair these ecosystems. To explore influences of cyanobacterial blooms on dynamics of both particulate organic matter (POM) and dissolved organic matter (DOM), which are at the base of the food chain, an investigation was conducted from December 2014 to November 2015 that included various stages of the seasonal cyanobacterial blooms (dominated by Microcystis ) in a large-shallow eutrophic Chinese lake (Taihu Lake). Data from eight sites of the lake are compiled into a representative seasonal cycle to assess general patterns of POM and DOM dynamics. Compared to December, 5-fold and 3.5-fold increases were observed in July for particulate organic carbon (POC, 3.05–15.37 mg/L) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC, 5.48–19.25 mg/L), respectively, with chlorophyll a (Chl a ) concentrations varying from 8.2 to 97.7 μg/L. Approximately 40% to 76% of total organic carbon was partitioned into DOC. All C, N, and P in POM and DOC were significantly correlated with Chl a. POC:Chl a ratios were low, whereas proportions of the estimated phytoplankton-derived organic matter in total POM were high during bloom seasons. These results suggested that contributions of cyanobacterial blooms to POM and DOC varied seasonally. Seasonal average C:P ratios in POM and DOM varied from 79 to 187 and 299 to 2 175, respectively. Both peaked in July and then sharply decreased. Redundancy analysis revealed that Chl a explained most of the variations of C:N:P ratios in POM, whereas temperature was the most explanatory factor for DOM. These findings suggest that dense cyanobacterial blooms caused both C-rich POM and DOM, thereby providing clues for understanding their influence on ecosystems.

Effect of suspended solids on interaction between filter-feeding fish Aristichthys nobilis and zooplankton in a shallow lake using a mesocosm experiment

ABSTRACT Suspended solids (SS) resulting from sediment resuspension (SR) can impact ecosystems through direct and indirect effects on freshwater organisms and their interactions. This study was conducted to determine whether the SS can affect the interaction between filter-feeding fish (Aristichthys nobilis) and zooplankton using a mesocosm experiment with sediments from Lake Taihu, a large shallow lake in China. SR using pump was divided into three intensities: strong, weak and no SR representing different concentrations of SS. Zooplankton abundance was significantly higher in the no-fish treatments than in the fish treatments under all three SR conditions. SR intensity had significantly negative effect on zooplankton abundance. There were interactions between fish and SR intensity on abundances of copepod, rotifer, total zooplankton and dominant zooplankton species except cladoceran abundance. The results indicate that SS had a lesser effect on zooplankton predation by filter-feeding fish, which suggests that zooplankton communities in shallow lakes can be affected by the filter-feeding fish even under high level of SS condition.

Compositional differences among planktonic ciliate communities in four subtropical eutrophic lakes in China

Ciliate community composition was investigated in four subtropical eutrophic lakes with cyanobacterial blooms in three seasons during 2009–2010 using the quantitative protargol staining approach. Among the four lakes, Lake Taihu and Chaohu are situated in the mid-lower Yangtze Plain near sea level, and Lake Dianchi and Xingyunhu are located on the Yunnan–Kweichow Plateau. A total of 102 ciliate species, representing 15 orders and 66 genera, were studied. Ciliate communities in Lake Taihu and Chaohu were characterized by abundant algivorous and mixotrophic oligotrichs and prostomatids, while Lake Dianchi and Xingyunhu ciliate communities were primarily characterized by voracious bacterivorous scuticociliates and peritrichids. Cluster analysis based on the transformed square root of ciliate abundance showed that samples from Lake Taihu and Chaohu composed one group whereas samples from Lake Dianchi and Xingyunhu composed another group in each season. Our results indicated that all dominant ciliate species are ubiquitous and that species dominance is regulated by different factors in different subtropical eutrophic lakes.

Effect of Temperature and Food on Development and Growth of Daphnia similoides (Cladocera: Daphniidae) from Lake Donghu

ABSTRACT Growth, reproduction, and life history parameters of Daphnia similoides from a subtropical eutrophic Chinese lake (Lake Donghu) were measured at four temperatures (10, 15, 25 and 35°C) and two food concentrations (0.2 and 2 mg carbon L−1 of a green alga) in the laboratory. D. similoides had five juvenile instars and up to 28 adult instars. The number of adult instars was greater at the low food level than at the high food level. The number of adult instars with maximal number of offspring, the cumulative number of offspring per female, development time, and body lengths of females and offspring were higher or longer at the low temperatures than at the high temperatures. Body length of females was significantly correlated with offspring number per adult instar at all combinations of temperature and food. Innate capacities of increase (0.13–1.01) linearly increased with temperature.