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Seasonal variations of group-specific phytoplankton cell death in Xiamen Bay, China

  • Biology
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Abstract

The importance of phytoplankton cell death is being increasingly recognized, however, there are still no published reports on this in Xiamen Bay. In this study, the proportion of dead phytoplankton cells associated with environmental factors was assessed at a station in Xiamen Bay from December 2012 to December 2013, using a cell digestion assay, which is an effective method to analyze dead/ living cells in complex natural phytoplankton communities. The percentages of dead cells (% DC) in the total phytoplankton in summer (16%±6%) were lower than those in winter (27%±16%). Six groups of phytoplankton (G1–G6) were categorized by flow cytometry. These phytoplankton communities with diverse seasonal variations in % DC had different responses to environmental constraints. The main factors affecting mortality were temperature and salinity, while nutrient concentration showed little influence on phytoplankton death. Additionally, our results provide evidence that chlorophyll a concentrations had an inverse relationship with total phytoplankton % DC and viable cell abundance was more meaningful than total cells to explain variations in environmental parameters (such as Chl a). Moreover, the lowest mean % DC in total phytoplankton was 16%±6% at our sample site, which is in a subtropical area with high water temperatures, full solar radiation, and rich nutrients. This indicates that phytoplankton cell death is a process that cannot be ignored. In summary, phytoplankton cell death is important in understanding the dynamics of phytoplankton communities and the functioning of subtropical ecosystems.

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Acknowledgments

We sincerely thank K. L. Liu for help with nutrient determination.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Coastal Ecology and Environmental Studies, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China

    Xiaozhou Huang  (黄晓舟), Xin Liu  (柳欣), Jixin Chen  (陈纪新), Wupeng Xiao  (肖武鹏), Zhen Cao  (曹振) & Bangqin Huang  (黄邦钦)

  2. Key Laboratory of Coastal and Wetland Ecosystems, Ministry of Education, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China

    Xiaozhou Huang  (黄晓舟), Xin Liu  (柳欣), Jixin Chen  (陈纪新), Wupeng Xiao  (肖武鹏), Zhen Cao  (曹振) & Bangqin Huang  (黄邦钦)

  3. College of Oceanography and Food Science, Quanzhou Normal University, Quanzhou, 362000, China

    Xiaozhou Huang  (黄晓舟)

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  1. Xiaozhou Huang  (黄晓舟)
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  2. Xin Liu  (柳欣)
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  3. Jixin Chen  (陈纪新)
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  4. Wupeng Xiao  (肖武鹏)
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Correspondence to Bangqin Huang  (黄邦钦).

Additional information

Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 41330961, 41406143), the Chinese Academy of Sciences Special Pilot Program (No. XDA10020103), the SOA Ocean Research Project, China (No. 201105021-03), and the Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education (No. 20130121110031)

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Huang, X., Liu, X., Chen, J. et al. Seasonal variations of group-specific phytoplankton cell death in Xiamen Bay, China. Chin. J. Ocean. Limnol. 35, 324–335 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00343-016-5270-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00343-016-5270-3

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