Phytoplankton Communities’ Response to Thermal Stratification and Changing Environmental Conditions in a Deep-Water Reservoir: Stochastic and Deterministic Processes

Hongtian Wang, Yixuan Li (), Yuying Li (), Han Liu, Wanping Wang, Pengcheng Zhang, Nicola Fohrer, Bai-Lian Li and Yixin Zhang
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Hongtian Wang: College of Water Resource and Environment Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China
Yixuan Li: College of Water Resource and Environment Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China
Yuying Li: College of Water Resource and Environment Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China
Han Liu: College of Water Resource and Environment Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China
Wanping Wang: College of Water Resource and Environment Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China
Pengcheng Zhang: College of Water Resource and Environment Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China
Nicola Fohrer: College of Water Resource and Environment Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China
Bai-Lian Li: College of Water Resource and Environment Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China
Yixin Zhang: Landscape Protection and Ecological Restoration Research Center, China-Portugal Joint Laboratory of Cultural Heritage Conservation Science Supported by the Belt and Road Initiative, Gold Mantis School of Architecture, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 7, 1-19

Abstract: Thermal stratification has become more extensive and prolonged because of global warming, and this change has had a significant impact on the distribution patterns of the phytoplankton communities. However, the response of phytoplankton community structures and assembly processes to thermal stratification is not fully understood. We predicted that the structure and assembly processes of phytoplankton communities would be affected by thermal stratification among water layers associated with environmental condition changes, reflecting certain patterns in temporal and spatial scales. Phytoplankton from Danjiangkou Reservoir were collected from October 2021 to July 2022 to verify this prediction. During the sampling period, Danjiangkou Reservoir remained thermally stratified with stability. The composition of the phytoplankton community in the surface layer significantly differed from that in both the thermocline and bottom layer. The phenomenon of thermal stratification affected the pattern of nitrogen and phosphorus distribution and, thus, the processes of the phytoplankton community structures. Deterministic processes had a greater influence on the assembly of the phytoplankton communities in the surface and bottom layers. In contrast, stochastic processes were more prevalent in the assembly of the thermocline phytoplankton community. The phytoplankton community within the thermocline layer exhibited a broader niche range than that in the surface and bottom layers, showing notable dissimilarity from that of the bottom layer. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) revealed that the vertical distributions of the phytoplankton communities were significantly correlated with NH 4 + -N, pH, and water temperature (WT). In summary, this study explained the distribution patterns of phytoplankton community structures and assembly processes in deep-water reservoirs during the stratification period. Additionally, the study explored the potential of using the distribution patterns of phytoplankton in stratified-state deep-water reservoirs under a subtropical–warm temperate climate as climate indicators in the context of global warming.

Keywords: South-to-North Water Diversion; Danjiangkou Reservoir; water quality; thermocline; phytoplankton community structure; correlation analysis; alpha diversity index (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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