Manila clam(Ruditapes philippinarum) was monthly sampled from its benthic aquaculture area in Jiaozhou Bay from May 2009 to June 2010. The annual variations of major elemental composition, organic content, fatness and element ratio of Manila clam were examined. The element removal effect of clam farming in Jiaozhou Bay was analyzed based on natural mortality and clam harvest. The results indicated that the variation trend of carbon content in shell(Cshell) was similar to that in clam(Cclam). Such a variation was higher in summer and autumn than in other seasons, which ranged from 9.10 ± 0.13 to 10.38 ± 0.09 mmol g-1 and from 11.28 ± 0.29 to 12.36 ± 0.06 mmol g-1, respectively. Carbon content of flesh(Cflesh) showed an opposite variation trend to that of shell in most months, varying from 29.42 ± 0.05 to 33.64 ± 0.62 mmol g-1. Nitrogen content of shell(Nshell) and flesh(Nflesh) changed seasonally, which was relatively low in spring and summer. Nshell and Nflesh varied from 0.07 ± 0.009 to 0.14 ± 0.009 mmol g-1 and from 5.46 ± 0.12 to 7.39 ± 0.43 mmol g-1, respectively. Total nitrogen content of clam ranged from 0.50 ± 0.003 to 0.76 ± 0.10 mmol g-1 with a falling tend except for a high value in March 2010. Phosphorus content of clam(Nclam) fluctuated largely, while phosphorus content of shell(Pshell) was less varied than that of flesh(Pflesh). Pshell varied from 0.006 ± 0.001 to 0.016 ± 0.001 mmol g-1; while Pflesh fluctuated between 0.058 ± 0.017 and 0.293 ± 0.029 mmol g-1. Pclam ranged from 0.015 ± 0.002 to 0.041 ± 0.006 mmol g-1. Carbon and nitrogen content were slightly affected by shell length, width or height. Elemental contents were closely related to the reproduction cycle. The removal amounts of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus from clam harvest and natural death in Jiaozhou Bay were 2.92×104 t, 1420 t and 145 t, respectively. The nutrient removal may aid to reduce the concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus, the main causes of eutrophication, and to maintain the ecosystem health of Jia
Spatial-seasonal patterns in fish diversity in Haizhou Bay were studied based on stratified random surveys conducted in 2011.Principal component analysis was conducted to distinguish different diversity components,and the relationships among 11 diversity indices were explored.Generalized additive models were constructed to examine the environmental effects on diversity indices.Eleven diversity indices were grouped into four components:(1) species numbers and richness,(2) heterogeneous indices,(3) evenness,and(4) taxonomic relatedness.The results show that diversity indices among different components are complementary.Spatial patterns show that fish diversity was higher in coastal areas,which was affected by complex bottom topography and spatial variations of water mass and currents.Seasonal trends could be best explained by the seasonal migration of dominant fish species.Fish diversity generally declined with increasing depth except for taxonomic distinctness,which increased with latitude.In addition,bottom temperature had a significant effect on diversity index of richness.These results indicate that substrate complexity and environmental gradients had important influences on fish diversity patterns,and these factors should be considered in fishery resource management and conservation.Furthermore,diversity in two functional groups(demersal/pelagic fishes) was influenced by different environmental factors.Therefore,the distribution of individual species or new indicators in diversity should be applied to examine spatio-seasonal variations in fish diversity.
Trophic structure of fish communities is fundamental for ecosystem-based fisheries management, and trophic spectrum classifies fishes by their positions in food web, which provides a simple summary on the trophic structure and ecosystem function. In this study, both fish biomass and abundance trophic spectra were constructed to study the spatial and seasonal variations in the trophic structure of demersal fish assemblages in Jiaozhou Bay, China. Data were collected from four seasonal bottom trawl surveys in Jiaozhou Bay from February to November in 2011. Trophic levels(TLs) of fishes were determined by nitrogen stable isotope analysis. This study indicated that most of these trophic spectra had a single peak at trophic level(TL) of 3.4–3.7, suggesting that demersal fish assemblages of Jiaozhou Bay were dominated by secondary consumers(eg. Pholis fangi and Amblychaeturichthys hexanema). The spatial and seasonal variations of trophic spectra of Jiaozhou Bay reflected the influence of fish reproduction, fishing pressure and migration of fishes. Two-way analysis of variance(ANOVA) showed that seasonal variations in trophic spectra in Jiaozhou Bay were significant(P <0.05), but variations among different areas were not significant( P >0.05). The trophic spectrum has been proved to be a useful tool to monitor the trophic structure of fish assemblages. This study highlighted the comprehensive application of fish biomass and abundance trophic spectra in the study on trophic structure of fish assemblages.
