US EPA

7640300 

Journal Article 

The effects of water-level changes on periphytic alga assemblages in Poyang Lake 

Qian, K; Dokulil, M; Lei, Wan; Chen, Y; , 

2021 

Yes 

Fundamental and Applied Limnology
ISSN: 1863-9135
EISSN: 2363-7110 

E SCHWEIZERBARTSCHE VERLAGSBUCHHANDLUNG 

STUTTGART 

194 

4 

311-320 

10.1127/fal/2020/1349 

WOS:000620599700003 

http://www.schweizerbart.de/papers/fal/detail/194/96828/The_effects_of_water_level_changes_on_periphytic_a?af=crossref
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Poyang Lake, which is the largest freshwater lake in China, has a seasonal flooding cycle that significantly changes the water level every year. The aim of this study was to research the effects of water-level changes on periphytic algal assemblages in Poyang Lake. Dynamic shift of periphytic algal biomass were studied from November 2016 to July 2019. Periphytic algal biomass and species composition were analyzed microscopically, and physicochemical conditions were measured. There were significant seasonal variations in the community distribution of periphytic algae. The biomass of the periphyton ranged from 8 to 22,636 mg m-2. Periphytic algal biomass ranged from 30 to 622 mg m-2 with the average of 204 mg m-2 in the LWL phase; periphytic algal biomass ranged from 8 to 21,839 mg m-2, with the average of 3,399 mg m-2 in the IWL phase. It ranged from 166 to 22,636 mg m-2, with the average 4,320 mg m-2 in the HWL phase and from 16 to 3,231 mg m-2 with the average of 585 mg m-2 in the DWL phase. There were temporal variations in periphytic algal community structure in Poyang Lake. Cryptophyceae dominated in algal periphyton from November 2016 to February 2017. Bacillariophyceae dominated from March to July 2017 (increasing water-level phases). Pynephyceae and Euglenophyceae were dominant from August and September (high-water-level phase) in 2017. Bacillariophyceae dominated through 2018 with occasional dominance of Cryptophyceae from January to June and the occasional dominance of Chlorophyceae from July to December. Chlorophyceae dominated from January to July in 2019 with occasional dominance of Bacillariophyceae. The water-level variations led to environmental heterogeneity in Poyang Lake, creating heterogeneous habitats for algal periphyton. Our study revealed the primary importance of water level, water temperature, conductivity, total nitrogen, nitrite and total phosphorus as abiotic local factors structuring the periphytic algal community in Poyang Lake. The water-level changes did not prevent growth of periphytic algae, but it did change the periphytic algal community assemblages. This research provides data on the periphytic algae in Poyang Lake and will be useful for establishing biological indicators of environmental changes and protecting Poyang Lake in the future. 

periphytic algal assemblages; water-level changes; Poyang Lake