Zooplankton functional groups on the continental shelf of the yellow sea

doi:10.1016/j.dsr2.2010.02.002

	Zooplankton functional groups on the continental shelf of the yellow sea
	Sun, Song1,3 ; Huo, Yuanzi 1,2; Yang, Bo 1
	2010-06-01
发表期刊	DEEP-SEA RESEARCH PART II-TOPICAL STUDIES IN OCEANOGRAPHY
ISSN	0967-0645
卷号	57 期号:11-12 页码:1006-1016
文章类型	Article
摘要	Zooplankton plays a vital role in marine ecosystems. Variations in the zooplankton species composition, biomass, and secondary production will change the structure and function of the ecosystem. How to describe this process and make it easier to be modeled in the Yellow Sea ecosystem is the main purpose of this paper. The zooplankton functional groups approach, which is considered a good method of linking the structure of food webs and the energy flow in the ecosystems, is used to describe the main contributors of secondary produciton of the Yellow Sea ecosystem. The zooplankton can be classified into six functional groups: giant crustaceans, large copepods, small copepods, chaetognaths, medusae, and salps. The giant crustaceans, large copepods, and small copepods groups, which are the main food resources for fish, are defined depending on the size spectrum. Medusae and chaetognaths are the two gelatinous carnivorous groups, which compete with fish for food. The salps group, acting as passive filter-feeders, competes with other species feeding on phytoplankton, but their energy could not be efficiently transferred to higher trophic levels. From the viewpoint of biomass, which is the basis of the food web, and feeding activities, the contributions of each functional group to the ecosystem were evaluated; the seasonal variations, geographical distribution patterns, and species composition of each functional group were analyzed. The average zooplankton biomass was 2.1 g dry wt m(-2) in spring, to which the giant crustaceans, large copepods, and small copepods contributed 19, 44, and 26%, respectively. High biomasses of the large copepods and small copepods were distributed at the coastal waters, while the giant crustaceans were mainly located at offshore area. In summer, the mean biomass was 3.1 g dry wt m(-2), which was mostly contributed by the giant crustaceans (73%), and high biomasses of the giant crustaceans, large copepods, and small copepods were all distributed in the central part of the Yellow Sea. During autumn, the mean biomass was 1.8 g dry wt m(-2), which was similarly constituted by the giant crustaceans, large copepods, and small copepods (36, 33, and 23%, respectively), and high biomasses of the giant crustaceans and large copepods occurred in the central part of the Yellow Sea, while the small copepods were mainly located at offshore stations. The giant crustaceans and large copepods dominated the zooplankton biomass (2.9 g dry wt m(-2)) in winter, contributing respectively 57 and 27%, and they, as well as the small copepods, were all mainly located in the central part of the Yellow Sea. The chaetognaths group was mainly located in the northern part of the Yellow Sea during all seasons, but contributed less to the biomass compared with the other groups. The medusae and salps groups were distributed unevenly, with sporadic dynamics, mainly along the coastline and at the northern part of the Yellow Sea. No more than 10 species belonging to the respective functional groups dominated the zooplankton biomass and controlled the dynamics of the zooplankton community. The clear picture of the seasonal and spatial variations of each zooplankton functional group makes the complicated Yellow Sea ecosystem easier to be understood and modeled. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.; Zooplankton plays a vital role in marine ecosystems. Variations in the zooplankton species composition, biomass, and secondary production will change the structure and function of the ecosystem. How to describe this process and make it easier to be modeled in the Yellow Sea ecosystem is the main purpose of this paper. The zooplankton functional groups approach, which is considered a good method of linking the structure of food webs and the energy flow in the ecosystems, is used to describe the main contributors of secondary produciton of the Yellow Sea ecosystem. The zooplankton can be classified into six functional groups: giant crustaceans, large copepods, small copepods, chaetognaths, medusae, and salps. The giant crustaceans, large copepods, and small copepods groups, which are the main food resources for fish, are defined depending on the size spectrum. Medusae and chaetognaths are the two gelatinous carnivorous groups, which compete with fish for food. The salps group, acting as passive filter-feeders, competes with other species feeding on phytoplankton, but their energy could not be efficiently transferred to higher trophic levels. From the viewpoint of biomass, which is the basis of the food web, and feeding activities, the contributions of each functional group to the ecosystem were evaluated; the seasonal variations, geographical distribution patterns, and species composition of each functional group were analyzed. The average zooplankton biomass was 2.1 g dry wt m(-2) in spring, to which the giant crustaceans, large copepods, and small copepods contributed 19, 44, and 26%, respectively. High biomasses of the large copepods and small copepods were distributed at the coastal waters, while the giant crustaceans were mainly located at offshore area. In summer, the mean biomass was 3.1 g dry wt m(-2), which was mostly contributed by the giant crustaceans (73%), and high biomasses of the giant crustaceans, large copepods, and small copepods were all distributed in the central part of the Yellow Sea. During autumn, the mean biomass was 1.8 g dry wt m(-2), which was similarly constituted by the giant crustaceans, large copepods, and small copepods (36, 33, and 23%, respectively), and high biomasses of the giant crustaceans and large copepods occurred in the central part of the Yellow Sea, while the small copepods were mainly located at offshore stations. The giant crustaceans and large copepods dominated the zooplankton biomass (2.9 g dry wt m(-2)) in winter, contributing respectively 57 and 27%, and they, as well as the small copepods, were all mainly located in the central part of the Yellow Sea. The chaetognaths group was mainly located in the northern part of the Yellow Sea during all seasons, but contributed less to the biomass compared with the other groups. The medusae and salps groups were distributed unevenly, with sporadic dynamics, mainly along the coastline and at the northern part of the Yellow Sea. No more than 10 species belonging to the respective functional groups dominated the zooplankton biomass and controlled the dynamics of the zooplankton community. The clear picture of the seasonal and spatial variations of each zooplankton functional group makes the complicated Yellow Sea ecosystem easier to be understood and modeled. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
关键词	Biomass Functional Groups Seasonal Variations Geographical Distribution Zooplankton Yellow Sea
学科领域	Oceanography
DOI	10.1016/j.dsr2.2010.02.002
URL	查看原文
收录类别	SCI
语种	英语
WOS记录号	WOS:000278759800004
引用统计	被引频次：56[WOS] [WOS记录] [WOS相关记录]
文献类型	期刊论文
条目标识符	http://ir.qdio.ac.cn/handle/337002/5458
专题	海洋生态与环境科学重点实验室
作者单位	1.Chinese Acad Sci, Inst Oceanol, Key Lab Marine Ecol & Environm Sci, Qingdao 266071, Peoples R China 2.Shanghai Ocean Univ, Coll Fisheries & Life, Shanghai 201306, Peoples R China 3.Chinese Acad Sci, Jiaozhou Bay Marine Ecosyst Res Stn, Qingdao 266071, Peoples R China
第一作者单位	中国科学院海洋研究所
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	Sun, Song,Huo, Yuanzi,Yang, Bo. Zooplankton functional groups on the continental shelf of the yellow sea[J]. DEEP-SEA RESEARCH PART II-TOPICAL STUDIES IN OCEANOGRAPHY,2010,57(11-12):1006-1016.
APA	Sun, Song,Huo, Yuanzi,&Yang, Bo.(2010).Zooplankton functional groups on the continental shelf of the yellow sea.DEEP-SEA RESEARCH PART II-TOPICAL STUDIES IN OCEANOGRAPHY,57(11-12),1006-1016.
MLA	Sun, Song,et al."Zooplankton functional groups on the continental shelf of the yellow sea".DEEP-SEA RESEARCH PART II-TOPICAL STUDIES IN OCEANOGRAPHY 57.11-12(2010):1006-1016.

条目包含的文件
文件名称/大小	文献类型	版本类型	开放类型	使用许可
sun-Zooplankton func（1871KB）			限制开放	--	浏览