Distribution of diatoms and silicoflagellates in surface sediments of the Yellow Sea and offshore from the Changjiang River, China

• Published in: Chinese journal of oceanology and limnology 2016, Vol.34 (1), p.44-58
• Main Author: 王艳娜 刘东艳 邸宝平 石雅君 王玉珏
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abundance; Actinocyclus ehrenbergii; Algae; Bacillariophyceae; Biogeography; Biology; Clustering; Coastal waters; Coscinodiscus; Cyclotella stylorum; Diatoms; Dictyocha messanensis; Dispersal; Distribution; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Environmental factors; Fossils; Freshwater; Inland water environment; Isobaths; Marine; Marine microorganisms; Microorganisms; Nutrients; Oceanography; Offshore; Paralia sulcata; Phytoplankton; Podosira; River mouth; River mouths; Rivers; Salinity; Salinity effects; Sediment; Sedimentation; Sedimentation rates; Sediments; Spatial distribution; Spatial variations; Species diversity; Water depth; Water temperature; 中国; 物种多样性; 盐度变化; 硅藻类; 表层沉积物; 近海; 长江口; 黄海海域
• ISSN: 0254-4059; 2096-5508; 1993-5005; 2523-3521
• DOI: 10.1007/s00343-015-4237-0

The spatial distribution of siliceous microfossils （diatoms and silicoflagellates） in the surface sediments was mapped at 113 sites in the Yellow Sea and sea areas adjacent to the Chang~iang （Yangtze） River, China. In total, 267 diatom taxa and two silicoflagellate species were identified from the sediments. The spatial variations in abundance and diversity were classified into three distinct geographic patterns using Q mode clustering： a south-north geographic pattern, a coastal-offshore pattern and a unique pattern in the Changjiang River mouth. The south-north geographic pattern was related to the spatial variations in sea temperature. Coscinodiscus oculatus, a warm-water species, indicated these variations by a gradual decrease in abundance from the south to the north. The coastal-offshore pattern was in response to the spatiaJ variations in salinity. Cyclotella stylorum, Actinocyclus ehrenbergii and Dictyocha messanensis, the dominant brackish species in coastal waters, significantly decreased at the isobaths of approximately 30 m, where the salinity was higher than 31. Paralia sulcata and Podosira stelliger indicated the impact of the Yellow Sea Warm Current in the central Yellow Sea. The unique pattern in the Changjiang River mouth showed the highest species diversity but lower abundance, apparently because： freshwater input can significantly increase the proportion of brackish species; nutrients can supply the growth ofphytoplankton; and high sedimentation rates can dilute the mierofossil abundance in the sediments. Our results show that an integration of environmental factors （e.g., nutrient levels, sedimentation rate, sea temperature, salinity and water depth） determined the spatial characteristics of the siliceous micro fossils in the surface sediments.