Benthic Algal Community in Relationship to Perturbation in the Tiko Mangrove Estuary Cameroon

Mangrove forests are among the most productive natural ecosystems in the world and offer invaluable ecological functions, yet are seriously threatened. Anthropogenic activities within mangroves can cause alteration of physicochemical parameters of sediments which in turn affect the assemblage of biological communities. This study was designed to assess the impact of anthropogenic disturbances within the Tiko mangroves on the benthic algal community. Perturbations were assessed through questionnaires. Two sets of composite sediment samples were collected for physicochemical and algal analyses from seven sites within the mangroves following standard methods. Seven drivers of change were identified (agriculture, human settlement, logging, fuel wood collection, fishing, fish smoking and petty trading) as the main perturbations of the ecosystem. A total of 141 benthic species were identified at the different sites. The Bacillariophyta were the most abundant with 60 algal species followed by Chlorophyta with 38 algal species. The most dominant species were Chlorobotrys regularis (50) and Microcytis sp (38). Site 3 (settlement site) was the most diversed with 72 species. The mean abundance of benthic algae ranged from 0.59 ± 0.17 to 2.08 ± 0.58. High concentrations of nutrients and the presence of Bacillariophyta and Microcystis suggest pollution. There is a need to monitor activities carried out around the mangrove ecosystem with respect to quantity and quality of waste discharged into the environment since this is a highly sensitive environment.

Algal community composition and abundance near the confluence of the Jialing and Yangtze Rivers and in Shuanglong Lake in Chongqing,P.R.China

To understand the potential impact of the Three Gorges Reservoir on the aquatic ecosystem after the damming of the Yangtze River,we studied the community composition and temporal abundance distribution of algae in two types of water bodies:a segment of the Jialing River near its confluence with the Yangtze River as an example of the river-lake type,and Shuanglong Lake in Chongqing as an example of the lake type.In total,107 species belonging to 58 genera of 7 phyla were identified in the study area of the Jialing River,dominated by three groups with 49.5% diatoms,29.0% chlorophytes,and 11.4% cyanobacteria in the community composition.There were 122 species belonging to 66 genera of 8 phyla in Shuanglong Lake,dominated by the same three groups with 19.7% diatoms,48.4% chlorophytes,and 22.2% cyanobacteria.The densities of total algae and individual dominant groups were all much higher in the lake.More species of diatoms were found in the river-lake segment;whereas more chlorophyte species and cyanobacteriaum species were in the lake.There were 17 dominant species including 8 diatoms,4 chlorophytes,3 cyanobacteria and 2 cryptophytes in the river-lake segment,and 21 species in the lake,including 2 diatoms,9 chlorophytes,6 cyanobacteria,3 cryptophytes and a dinoflagellate.In eutrophic conditions,chlorophytes and cyanobacteria may proliferate in a lake-type area and diatoms may cause algal bloom in a relatively faster-flow lake-river type area.

Response of Arctic marine microalgae to changes of salinity

An algal assemblage collected from the bottom of floe in the Greenland Sea was batchcultured at 1±1℃ and 10 salinity gradients varied from 4 0 to 90 8 for 19 d.The growth for both the algal community and individual populations was characterized by an initial lag phase of six days followed by positive growth.Maximum growth rates were obtained as 0 19/d for the algal community and 0 32 to 0 39 d -1 for individual populations for the whole experiment period,which mostly occurred at the lower salinities.The competition between the algal species and the evolution of the algal assemblages under the salinity changes was checked.After 14 d culture,the dominating algae in the lower salinities were centric diatoms,pennate diatoms and phytoflagellates,while ones in the higher salinities almost belonged to pennate diatoms.It is suggested that the sea ice algal community from the Greenland Sea prefer lower salinities to higher ones,and the decrease in salinity in small ranges could stimulate the growth of sea ice algae.

Biogeographic distribution patterns of algal community in different urban lakes in China: Insights into the dynamics and co-existence

Urban lake ecosystems are significant for social development,but currently we know little about the geographical distribution of algal community in urban lakes at a large-scale.In this study,we investigated the algal community structure in different areas of urban lakes in China and evaluated the influence of water quality parameters and geographical location on the algal community.The results showed that obvious differences in water quality and algal communities were observed among urban lakes in different geographical areas.Chlorophyta was the dominant phylum,followed by cyanobacteria in all areas.The network analysis indicated that algal community composition in urban lakes of the western and southern area showed more variations than the eastern and northern areas,respectively.Redundancy analysis and structural equation model revealed that nutrients and p H were dominant environmental factors that affected the algal community,and they showed higher influence than that of iron,manganese and COD Mn concentration.Importantly,algal community and density exhibited longitude and latitude relationship.In general,these results provided an ecological insight into large-scale geographical distributions of algal community in urban lakes,thereby having potential applications for management of the lakes.

Temporal patterns of algae in different urban lakes and their correlations with environmental variables in Xi’an,China

Urban lakes were critical in aquatic ecology environments,but how environmental factors affected the distribution and change characteristics of algal communities in urban lakes of Xi’an city was not clearly.Here,we investigated the algal community structure of six urban lakes in Xi’an and evaluated the effects of water quality parameters on algae.The results indicated that the significant differences on physicochemical parameters existed in different urban lakes.The maximum concentration of total phosphorus in urban lakes was(0.18±0.01)mg/L and there was a phenomenon of phosphorus limitation.In addition,51 genera of algae were identified and Chlorella sp.was the dominant algal species,which was affiliated with Chlorophyta.Network analysis elucidated that each lake had a unique algal community network and the positive correlation was dominant in the interaction between algae species,illustrating that mature microbial communities existed or occupied similar niches.Redundancy analysis illustrated that environmental factors explained 47.35% variance of algal species-water quality correlation collectively,indicating that water quality conditions had a significant influence on the temporal variations of algae.Structural equation model further verified that algal community structure was directly or indirectly regulated by different water quality conditions.Our study shows that temporal patterns of algal communities can reveal the dynamics and interactions of different urban ecosystem types,providing a theoretical basis for assessing eutrophication levels and for water quality management.