Elevated pCO 2 changes community structure and function by affecting phytoplankton group-specific mortality

The rise of atmospheric pCO has created a number of problems for marine ecosystem. In this study, we initially quantified the effects of elevated pCO on the group-specific mortality of phytoplankton in a natural community based on the results of mesocosm experiments. Diatoms dominated the phytoplank...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inMarine pollution bulletin Vol. 175; p. 113362
Main Authors Wang, Peixuan, Laws, Edward, Wang, Yongzhi, Chen, Jixin, Song, Xue, Huang, Ruiping, Wang, Tifeng, Yi, Xiangqi, Sun, Jiazhen, Guo, Xianghui, Liu, Xin, Gao, Kunshan, Huang, Bangqin
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England 01.02.2022
Subjects
Carbon Dioxide
Chlorophyll A
Diatoms
Ecosystem
Phytoplankton
Mortality
Elevated pCO
Small diatoms
Phytoplankton community structure
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Summary:The rise of atmospheric pCO has created a number of problems for marine ecosystem. In this study, we initially quantified the effects of elevated pCO on the group-specific mortality of phytoplankton in a natural community based on the results of mesocosm experiments. Diatoms dominated the phytoplankton community, and the concentration of chlorophyll a was significantly higher in the high-pCO treatment than the low-pCO treatment. Phytoplankton mortality (percentage of dead cells) decreased during the exponential growth phase. Although the mortality of dinoflagellates did not differ significantly between the two pCO treatments, that of diatoms was lower in the high-pCO treatment. Small diatoms dominated the diatom community. Although the mortality of large diatoms did not differ significantly between the two treatments, that of small diatoms was lower in the high-pCO treatment. These results suggested that elevated pCO might enhance dominance by small diatoms and thereby change the community structure of coastal ecosystems.
ISSN:1879-3363