Seasonal variation in community structure and body length of dominant copepods around artificial reefs in Xiaoshi Island,China

This study aims to investigate the seasonal variations in copepod community structure and prosome length of dominant species from March 2009 to January 2010 around artificial reefs in Xiaoshi Island, Yellow Sea, Weihai, China. Samples were collected using two types of plankton net （Model I and Model II） for different-sized copepods. The number of taxon was calculated from the data of both the net types, while the copepod abundance was done using the samples from Model II only. Sixteen species of planktonic copepods, including 5 dominant species, were recorded. Results reveal that Oithona similis was the first dominant species from March to June, and was replaced by Paracalanus parvus in September; both dominated the copepod community in January. Acartia hongi was the second dominant species from March to September. Centropages abdominalis was the third dominant species from March to June, and was replaced by O. sirnilis in September and Corycaeus aJfinis in January. C. affinis was the fourth dominant species in September. Population density of the dominant copepods was compared with that of other similar regions. We found that the dominant species were mostly small copepods （〈1 mm） except for adult Centrapages abdominalis. Seasonal variation in prosome length of O. similis, C. abdominalis, and C. affinis, and their copepodites were studied for the first time in China. For P. parvus and A. hongi, seasonal trends in prosome length variation were similar with those in Jiaozhou Bay, Yellow Sea, Qingdao, China, in a similar temperate domain. The results are helpful for future calculation of copepod biomass and production, and for investigation of the relationship between copepods and fish resources.

Seasonal change in body length of important small copepods and relationship with environmental factors in Jiaozhou Bay, China

Differences among species in prosome length and in species' response to environmental factors do exist. Therefore, it is useful to examine prosome length for different copepod species in variable environments. Seasonal variations in prosome length of four small copepods and their copepodite stages in the Jiaozhou Bay were compared and the relative influence of temperature, salinity, and chlorophyll concentration were examined. Two peaks were found in the mean prosome length of Paracalanus parvus (in early winter and May). For Acartia bifilosa, the maximum values of all copepodites occurred mainly from February to April, and decreased to the bottom in July. Prosome length of Acartia pacifica peaked when it first appeared in June, then reached to the minimum in July. Parvocalanus crassirostris only appeared from late summer to autumn and the mean prosome length showed no clear changes. Correlations of adult prosome length with environmental factors were evaluated. For the four species, temperature was negatively correlated to prosome length except for P. crassirostris. But the different species varied markedly in their responds to temperature. A. bifilosa showed a more definite trend of size variation with temperature than P. parvus and A. pacifica. Correlations of prosome length with salinity were significantly positive for almost all the small copepods. The relationship between chlorophyll concentration and prosome length was complicated for these copepods, but for P. parvus, chlorophyll concentration was also an important affecting factor. Furthermore, investigation needs to be done on food quality for some copepod. These results are essential to estimate the biomass and the production, and to understand these small copepods' population dynamics in this human-affected bay.

Accelerated recruitment of copepod Calanus hyperboreus in pelagic slope waters of the western Arctic Ocean

Shelf-basin advection is essential to subsistence of the Arctic copepod Calanus hyperboreus population in high basin area. Its abundance, population structure and body size in pelagic layer were investigated with samples collected over a large range in the western Arctic Ocean during summer 2003, to evaluate the geographical variation in recruitment pattern. Calanus hyperboreus was absent from the shallow areas of the Chukchi Sea and most abundant in the slope area between the Chukchi Sea and Chukchi Abyssal Plain（CS-slope）. Total abundance varied between 1 110.0 and 5 815.0 ind./m^2 in the CS-slope area and ranged from 40.0 to 950.0 ind./m^2 in the other areas. Early stages（CI–IV） dominated in the CS-slope area, whereas CV and adult females were frequently recorded only in deep basin areas. Geographical difference of prosome length was most evident in CIII,with average ranging from 2.48 to 2.61 mm at the CS-slope stations and 2.16–2.37 mm at the others. Abundance of early developmental stages（CI–CIV） correlated positively with Chl a concentration, but negative correlation was observed in late stages（CV–adult）. Our results indicated that C. hyperboreus can benefit from primary production increase through accelerated development in the first growth season and the productive CS-slope area is a potential source for slope-basin replenishment.