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Macrobenthic assemblage characteristics under stressed waters and ecological health assessment using AMBI and M-AMBI: a case study at the Xin’an River Estuary, Yantai, China

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Abstract

To understand the ecological status and macrobenthic assemblages of the Xin’an River Estuary and its adjacent waters, a survey was conducted for environmental variables and macrobenthic assemblage structure in September 2012 (Yantai, China). Several methods are adopted in the data analysis process: dominance index, diversity indices, cluster analysis, non-metric multi-dimentional scaling ordination, AMBI and M-AMBI. The dissolved inorganic nitrogen and soluble reactive phosphorus of six out of eight sampling stations were in a good condition with low concentration. The average value of DO ((2.89±0.60) mg/L) and pH (4.28±0.43) indicated that the research area faced with the risk of ocean acidification and underlying hypoxia. A total of 62 species were identified, of which the dominant species group was polychaetes. The average abundance and biomass was 577.50 ind./m2 and 6.01 g/m2, respectively. Compared with historical data, the macrobenthic assemblage structure at waters around the Xin’an River Estuary was in a relatively stable status from 2009 to 2012. Contaminant indicator species Capitella capitata appeared at Sta. Y1, indicating the animals here suffered from hypoxia and acidification. AMBI and M-AMBI results showed that most sampling stations were slightly disturbed, which were coincided with the abiotic measurement on evaluating the health conditions. Macrobenthic communities suffered pressures from ocean acidification and hypoxia at the research waters, particularly those at Stas Y1, Y2 and Y5, which displays negative results in benthic health evaluation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Coastal Biology and Bioresource Utilization, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai, 264003, China

    Zhengquan Zhou, Xiaojing Li, Linlin Chen, Baoquan Li, Tiantian Liu, Binghua Ai, Lufei Yang & Bo Liu

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Zhengquan Zhou & Xiaojing Li

  3. Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, 316022, China

    Tiantian Liu

  4. Ocean School of Yantai University, Yantai, 264003, China

    Lufei Yang & Bo Liu

  5. Shandong University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, 266590, China

    Qiao Chen

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  1. Zhengquan Zhou
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  2. Xiaojing Li
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  3. Linlin Chen
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  4. Baoquan Li
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Correspondence to Baoquan Li.

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Foundation item: The Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences under contract Nos XDA11020403 and XDA1102702; the Key Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences under contract No. KZZD-EW-14; the NSFC-NOW “Water Ways, Harbours, Estuaries and Coastal Engineering” Scheme co-supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under contract No. NSFC41061130543; the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research under contract No. 843.10.003; the International Cooperation, CAS, Chinese-Foreign Cooperation in Key Projects under contract No. 133337KYSB20160002.

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Zhou, Z., Li, X., Chen, L. et al. Macrobenthic assemblage characteristics under stressed waters and ecological health assessment using AMBI and M-AMBI: a case study at the Xin’an River Estuary, Yantai, China. Acta Oceanol. Sin. 37, 77–86 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-018-1180-x

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