首页 | 本学科首页   官方微博 | 高级检索  
相似文献
 共查询到20条相似文献，搜索用时 78 毫秒
1.
The Mfolozi estuary, located on the east coast of South Africa, was historically directly linked to the adjacent St Lucia estuarine system, the largest estuarine system in Africa and a World Heritage Site. The Mfolozi used to be the main feeder system to maintain lake levels in St Lucia, but increased siltation from sugar cane farming in the Mfolozi floodplain led to artificial separation of the two systems in 1950. Reduced freshwater inflow due to drought conditions caused the St Lucia mouth to remain closed from June 2002 to present, coinciding with low lake levels and hypersaline conditions, except for a brief period during 2007 after the St Lucia mouth breached. These conditions led to disruption of larval recruitment into the system and major changes in biotic communities. Due to the importance of the St Lucia – Mfolozi System link, a study was initiated in 2007 on the fish community of the Mfolozi system, which was sampled using seine and gill nets. The 48 species recorded were dominated by juveniles of marine spawners, particularly Leiognathus equula and Valamugil cunnesius and the estuarine spawners Ambassis dussumieri and Ambassis natalensis. Estuarine dependent marine spawning species formed 68% of both the species numbers and CPUE, an indication of the regional importance of the Mfolozi estuary as an alternate refuge for juvenile marine fish during periods when the St Lucia system remained closed. Post-larval recruits of marine spawning species were particularly abundant, but low zoobenthic densities caused a rapid decline in numbers of benthic feeders shortly after their recruitment into the system. The importance of the Mfolozi estuary in maintaining marine brood stocks of estuarine dependent marine fish is discussed with particular reference to estuarine degradation and the ecological integrity of the St Lucia system.  相似文献   

2.
Mesozooplankton samples were collected between March 2005 and November 2008 in St Lucia, the largest estuarine lake system in South Africa. St Lucia experienced an extended period of drought before and during the present study. This drought led to natural closing of the estuary mouth as a result of flood-tide marine sediment deposition in 2002. In March 2007 the mouth was washed open by exceptionally high tidal and wave conditions. This resulted in an influx of a large volume of seawater. The mouth closed again in August 2007. Before opening of the mouth salinities in the Estuary were below 10 and large parts of North Lake dried up while South Lake retained a relatively stable waterbody with salinities between 10 and 30. When the mouth opened seawater flooded the system and salinities changed to about 35. After the mouth had closed again in August 2007 salinities increased in the lakes and decreased in the Estuary. The mesozooplankton community was dominated by copepods during all sampling sessions, especially by the estuarine calanoids Pseudodiaptomus stuhlmanni and Acartia natalensis. Mean mesozooplankton densities were significantly higher in South Lake before the mouth opened in March 2007. While zooplankton density decreased when the mouth opened species richness increased with the influx of coastal marine species, especially in the Estuary. Overall zooplankton densities declined progressively as salinity increased to hypersaline levels after mouth closure. Multivariate analyses supported significant differences between the lakes and the Estuary in terms of mesozooplankton community composition. Taxa mostly responsible for the similarities within and dissimilarity between sections of the system were the copepods P. stuhlmanni and A. natalensis with the meroplankton, crab zoeae and mollusc larvae, also contributing significantly after the mouth-opening event.  相似文献   

3.
The St. Lucia Estuary is Africa’s largest estuarine system and is currently experiencing the stress of prolonged freshwater deprivation, manifested by extremely low water levels and hypersalinity. These unprecedented conditions have raised questions regarding the trophic functioning of the ecosystem. Despite the substantial amount of research previously undertaken within this system, no studies of food web structure and function have yet been documented. This study therefore aimed to examine the food web structure of the St. Lucia estuary system through the use of carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis. Analysis of carbon isotope ratios indicates that benthic carbon sources are most utilised at sites with low water levels and generally higher salinity (Catalina Bay, Charter’s Creek). Conversely, the estuarine region of the mouth and Narrows, with its elevated water levels and lower salinity, still sustains a viable pelagic food web. Analysis of δ15N ratios indicates that the number of trophic transfers (food chain length) might be related to water levels. Overall, the study provides a greater understanding of the ecological processes of this complex estuarine lake, which may allow for future comparisons of trophic functioning under drought and normal/wet conditions to be made.  相似文献   

4.
The St Lucia estuarine lake in South Africa forms part of a World Heritage Site and is an important local source of biodiversity. Like many estuarine systems worldwide, St Lucia has experienced significant anthropogenic impacts over the past century. Abstractions have decreased fresh water inflows from the lake catchments by about 20%. Furthermore the Mfolozi river, which previously shared a common inlet with St Lucia and contributed additional fresh water during droughts, was diverted from the system in 1952 because of its high silt loads. The separated St Lucia mouth was subsequently kept artificially open until the onset of a dry period in 2002 when the mouth was left to close naturally. These changes and the current drought have placed the system under severe stress with unprecedented hypersaline conditions coupled with desiccation of large portions of the lake. Long-term simulations of the water and salt balance were used to estimate the occurrence and persistence of water levels and salinities for different management scenarios. The risks of desiccation and hyper-salinity were assessed for each case. The results show that the configuration of the Mfolozi/St Lucia inlets plays a key role in the physicochemical environment of the system. Without the Mfolozi link desiccation (of about 50% of the lake area) would occur for 32% of the time for an average duration of 15 months. Artificially maintaining an open mouth would decrease the chance of desiccation but salinities would exceed 65 about 17% of the time. Restoring the Mfolozi link would reduce the occurrence of both desiccation and hypersaline conditions and a mostly open mouth state would occur naturally. Integrating these modeled scenarios with observed biological responses due to changes in salinity and water depth suggests that large long-term changes in the biological structure can be expected in the different management scenarios.  相似文献   

5.
This paper reports on the composition, abundance and distribution of the larval fish assemblage in the nearshore coastal waters off the St Lucia Estuary mouth, South Africa. Ichthyoplankton samples were collected over a 12 month period from five stations located along a transect up to 2·5 km offshore, and from two stations north and south of the estuary mouth, respectively. In all, 6126 fish larvae, representing 89 families and 186 species, were collected. Larvae in the families Myctophidae and Tripterygiidae comprised 21% and 16% of the total catch, respectively. The most abundant species were an unidentified triplefin, Tripterygiid 1 and the lanternfish Benthosema fibulatum, together which contributed nearly 18% of the total catch. Larvae of marine spawners independent of estuaries dominated the catch both in terms of density (90%) and in terms of number of taxa (89%). Some larvae of estuarine-associated species were present, in addition to a few specimens of estuarine resident species. Overall the dominant environmental variable affecting larval densities was temperature, particularly for Trypterygiid 1 where temperature contributed to 9% of the variance model. Densities of fish larvae peaked in November and December 1990 (late spring and early summer) and were lowest from January to June 1991 (summer, autumn an early winter). Different taxa dominated the catch each month with reef- and shelf-associated species accounting for the peak in August and September 1990, oceanic species in November 1990 and a mixture of the two groups in December. Overall larval densities were significantly higher in bottom samples with a trend of increasing densities offshore for reef and shelf taxa. The larvae of reef and shore taxa were predominantly preflexion larvae, whilst the few estuarine spawner species that were collected were mainly postflexion. Ontogenetic patterns related to depth and distance offshore were evident for the dominant species in each estuarine-association category.The present study has shown that temporal and spatial variations in the larval fish assemblage off St Lucia are related to environmental conditions and ontogenetic behavioural patterns of certain species. The origin of many of the larvae in the assemblages off the coast of St Lucia is probably from both local spawning populations in the shelf waters off KwaZulu-Natal and spawning populations farther north in shelf waters off Mozambique. Additional studies with more detailed oceanographic measurements will further our understanding of the physical processes that supply larvae to the St Lucia region.  相似文献   

6.
The salinity tolerances of four South African species of limpet in the genus Siphonaria were experimentally tested, in the context that one of them, S. compressa, is South Africa's most endangered marine mollusc and is restricted to two lagoonal localities that normally experience little variation in salinity. Its habitat is additionally restricted in that it occurs only on the eelgrass Zostera capensis. The other three species, S. capensis, S. concinna and S. serrata, are abundant and widespread on temperate rocky shores. We hypothesised that S. compressa would have limited tolerance to low salinities, contributing to its absence from otherwise suitable estuaries that experience regular fluctuations of salinity. The percentage survival of the limpets was recorded in salinities ranging from 2 to 35 over that period. Both salinity and species significantly affected the survival of the limpets over the 96 hours. Survival was highest in salinities close to those of normal seawater, and greatly reduced in the hypo saline waters. S. compressa had the lowest salinity tolerance of the four species, its time-to-50% mortality in hyposaline waters being significantly less than that for the other three species, which differed in a manner that could be correlated with their zonation patterns. Restriction to eelgrass, coupled with low salinity tolerance, probably explains why S. compressa is found at only two localities, both of which normally experience salinities close to that of seawater. Even there, mass mortalities of S. compressa have been recorded in association with die-backs of eelgrass after abnormal freshwater flooding or sedimentation—further emphasising the vulnerability of S. compressa to extinction.  相似文献   

7.
The macrobenthic fauna and communities of the Vellar Estuary located at the southeast cost of India (11°30′ N, 79°45′ E) and the adjacent marine and river habitats are described on the basis of original data (70 samples over 10 transects). The fauna consists of 115 macrobenthic species and 79 species in estuarine habitats. We described 14 types of macrobenthic communities with different compositions of the dominant species. The leading ecological factors of the distribution of the communities are the salinity, depth, and bottom type. The Vellar estuary consists of two longitudinal zones of macrobenthos. The polyhalinic area is populated by the marine species, but it is related not to a salinity decrease but to the protection from waves and silt on the bottom in this area. The polyhalinic communities are most abundant in terms of the biomass and species richness. The mesohalinic area is inhabited by brackish water species and communities with low abundance. The sublittoral estuarine area is dominated by filter-feeders—the bivalves Crassostrea madrasensis, Meretrix casta, Modiolus metcalfei, and Scapharca inaequivalves—and the littoral zone is dominated by the gastropods Cerithidea cingulata, some crabs, and polychaetes. The ecosystem function of the Vellar estuary can be defined as a filter for the fine organic particles transported by the river.  相似文献   

8.
The St. Lucia estuarine lake on the north coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, is one of the largest estuarine systems in Africa and of unique importance for the adjacent marine and terrestrial ecosystems. The area regularly experiences periods of drought, resulting in hypersaline conditions in its shallow lakes and the closure of the estuarine mouth. This study aimed to assess the primary production rates of phytoplankton and microphytobenthos throughout an annual cycle of this drought phase. Primary production rates were assessed at representative sites, namely the Mouth, Narrows, South and North Lakes from June 2006 to May 2007. Because of the drought, the salinity gradient from the mouth to the head of the estuary was reversed by comparison to estuarine systems with a steady freshwater inflow and regular marine exchange. In March 2007, during the study, the mouth opened as a result of rough seas, and the marine influence broke the existing reversed gradient, producing a marine salinity throughout the system. Microphytobenthic primary productivity varied between 0 and 34 mg C m−2 h−1 and showed strong correlations with salinity, DIN:DIP ratios and irradiance. Benthic productivity was high across the system after breaching of the mouth. Pelagic primary productivity (between 0 and 180 mg C m−2 h−1), showed a correlation with temperature and irradiance and was highest across the system in February 2007 when the mouth was still closed. There was no significant correlation between production rates and biomass (chl-a) in either the benthic or pelagic habitats. The negative correlation between DIN:DIP ratio and benthic primary productivity indicated that phosphorus was the limiting nutrient. This study shows that salinity, along with seasonally dependent parameters such as temperature and irradiance, correlates with the rate of microalgal production. Hence, in these shallow lakes, the largest primary productivity can occur in either the pelagic or benthic subsystems, depending on prevailing conditions at the time.  相似文献   

9.
Mangrove ecosystems are sites with high biodiversity of benthic fauna, and fiddler crabs (genus Uca) are common benthic fauna in mangroves. The North Sulawesi in Indonesia has a good condition of mangrove while the information of the fiddler crabs is still limited. Manual samplings were conducted in wet, dry and transient seasons at a mangrove in Kema, North Sulawesi to investigate the species composition, density and distribution pattern of fiddler crabs. A total of 168 individuals, subjected to eight species of genus Uca crabs were collected at the mangrove, with U. triangularis having the highest abundance and U. annulipes having the lowest abundance. The densities of fiddle crabs were 27.56 ind./m2, 32.89 ind./m2 and 14.22 ind./m2 at the seaward, middle and landward zones, respectively, and the density was higher in dry and wet seasons than in transient season.  相似文献   

10.
Despite the fact that Co is an essential trace element for the growth of marine phytoplankton, there is very limited information on the cycling of this trace metal in the marine environment. We report here the distribution of dissolved (<0.4 μm) and particulate (>0.4 μm) Co in surface waters of the Hudson River Estuary (HRE) and San Francisco Bay (SFB). Samples were collected during several cruises (from 1990 to 1995 in SFB and from 1995 to 1997 in the HRE) along the whole salinity gradient. Dissolved Co concentrations (mean±1 standard deviation) were nearly identical in magnitude in both estuaries despite differences in climate, hydrography, riverine-flow conditions and land-usage (HRE=0.91±0.61 nM; SFB=1.12±0.69 nM). Dissolved Co levels in each system showed non-conservative distributions when plotted as a function of salinity, with increasing concentrations downstream from the riverine end-members. Desorption from suspended particulates and sewage inputs, therefore, seems to be the major processes responsible for the non-conservative behavior of Co observed. Mass balance estimates also indicated that most of the estuarine Co is exported out of both estuaries, indicating that they and other estuarine systems are principal sources of this essential trace element to the open ocean.  相似文献   

11.
Lake St Lucia, the largest estuarine lake in Africa has been subjected to hypersaline conditions and low lake levels over the past eight years following the closure of its mouth due to drought in the region. This paper documents the physical changes through which the lake has passed and summarises the main findings of research undertaken on the three major biotic components that have been subjected to these conditions. A review of the anthropogenic impacts which have affected the system is provided. These indicate that in combination with drought conditions greater pressure is placed on the system that was the case in the historical past. Available data indicate that the current situation is not only impacting on the lake and its fauna but also on the adjacent nearshore marine environment, It is considered that the Meta area is potentially also under threat. Medium to long term relief possibilities that are under consideration are discussed in relation to the restructuring of something resembling the historically combined uMfolozi–St Lucia ecosystem that existed in the past. It is concluded that in the short term only two options are available to potentially provide relief for the system, the first is to breach the connection between the mouth and the sea. The second is to re-establish some form of more permanent connection, between uMfolozi and St Lucia.  相似文献   

12.
根据2014年8月和10月、2015年2月和5月使用单船底拖网进行的4个航次调查数据,对山东半岛近岸海区的莱州湾及渤海南部、山东半岛北部和山东半岛南部等3个海域蟹类种类组成、时空分布、优势种、群落结构稳定性等群落结构特征进行了研究。结果显示,4次调查共捕获蟹类20种,隶属于10科17属,其中日本蟳（Charybdis japonica）和三疣梭子蟹（Portunus trituberculatus）是主要经济种类,其余均为小型饵料型蟹类;海区内主要的优势种为双斑蟳（Charybdis bimaculata）、日本蟳（Charybdis japonica）和三疣梭子蟹（Portunus trituberculatus）,3个海域优势种季节更替均十分明显;莱州湾及渤海南部和山东半岛南部2个海域生物量季节变化明显,春季较低,在夏季达到峰值,夏季到冬季呈降低趋势,山东半岛北部海域生物量季节变化不明显。3个海域蟹类群落物种多样性指数（H'）、丰富度指数（D）及均匀度指数（J'）均处于较低水平,并有一定的季节变化;水深、水温和盐度是影响蟹类群落结构的重要因子,渤莱沿岸流、黄海暖流和黄海冷水团通过影响海域内水温与盐度影响蟹类群落结构。研究表明山东半岛近岸海区蟹类以小型饵料型蟹类为主,蟹类多样性水平较低,优势种更替明显,群落季节更替指数较高,季节间迁移频繁,蟹类群落不稳定。  相似文献   

13.
The life cycle of the semiterrestrial mangrove crab Ucides cordatus includes pelagic larvae that are released into estuarine waters during the wet season and who may thus encounter potentially stressful low and variable salinity conditions. The effect of salinity on the survival of the zoea larvae, the number of zoeal stages and the duration of development from hatching to megalopa was experimentally studied by rearing larvae from the Caeté estuary, Northern Brazil, in seven salinity treatments (0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30). For a better interpretation of the laboratory results, estuarine salinities were measured over five consecutive years during the species' reproductive season. The survival of the zoea larvae varied significantly with salinity, while the number of stages and the duration of their development remained constant. Development to megalopa took 20.77 ± 1.57 days and comprised five zoeal stages with ZI and ZII being euryhaline and later stages stenohaline. The newly hatched larvae stayed alive for up to 6 days in freshwater (average 4.32 ± 0.82 days), but did not moult to the second zoeal stage. ZII larvae first occurred from salinity 5 onwards and later zoeal stages at all tested salinities ≥10. However, the larvae only survived to megalopa at salinities ≥15, with highest numbers at salinity 30 (72%) and lowest at 15 (16%). Lethal salinities ≤10 occurred frequently in the estuary during the reproductive season. This suggests a need for larval export to offshore and thus more saline waters to allow for significant larval survival and maintenance of viable populations of this commercially important species. A regional rather than local approach for management is suggested due to the likelihood of long distance larval dispersal by offshore currents.  相似文献   

14.
Vertical and horizontal distributions are described for megalopae of 11 brachyuran taxa common to the lower Chesapeake Bay and adjacent shelf. Three distribution patterns are apparent from horizontal distribution.
1. (1) More than 75% of the megalopae of estuarine adults, such as Hexapanopeus angustifrons, Neopanope sayi, Panopeus herbstii, Rhithropanopeus harrisii and Pinnotheres ostreum, are retained in estuarine waters.
2. (2) The megalopae of three estuarine taxa, Callinectes sapidus, Uca spp. and Pinnixa sp., are most abundant on the shelf.
3. (3) More than 90% of the megalopae of the shelf species, Portunus sp., Cancer irroratus and Libinia spp. remained in shelf waters.
Vertical distributions indicate the megalopae of a majority of estuarine crabs are epibenthic when waters are stratified. Exceptions include the megalopae of both Rhithropanopeus which are found slightly shallower in well mixed waters and Callinectes sapidus which are generally most abundant in the neuston. The megalopae of two shelf species, Portunus sp. and Cancer irroratus, reach highest densities in surface waters, while those of Libinia spp. are common in the epibenthos.Megalopal distributions analyzed with respect to water column stratification show megalopae never reached highest densities within the layer of the pycnocline. The megalopae of five species show significant shifts in vertical distributions between stratified and homogeneous water columns.  相似文献   

15.
The present study examines traditional paradigms regarding the differences between faunas in estuaries vs coastal waters. The ecological characteristics of the free-living nematode faunas of nearshore, subtidal sediments in downstream and upstream areas of the large, microtidal Swan River Estuary are compared with those similarly recorded seasonally in subtidal sediments along an adjacent part of the coast of temperate south-western Australia. Overall, the nematode species richness recorded in the upstream (38) and downstream estuarine areas (58) and from throughout the estuary (61) were substantially less than in marine waters (75). In addition, the value for Simpson’s diversity index was marginally less in the estuary and the dominance of the most abundant species greater. In contrast, the mean nematode species richness and diversity in individual cores followed the reverse trend, reflecting a combination of less variability among the species compositions and far greater densities in the cores from estuarine sediments. Furthermore, the mean density (numbers 10 cm−2) was far higher in both upstream (341) and downstream (903) areas of the estuary than in marine waters (87). Although the compositions of the assemblages in upstream and downstream estuarine areas differed markedly from each other at the species, genus and family levels, these differences were less pronounced than those between either of these areas and marine waters. The trophic compositions at the moderately sheltered and fully exposed marine sites differed from that in both areas of the estuary, whereas that at the most sheltered marine site was similar to that in the downstream estuarine area, with both containing substantial proportions of epistrate-grazing species. The variations among the species richness, diversity, densities and taxonomic and trophic compositions of nematode assemblages in the sediments of the two estuarine areas and nearby marine waters appear to reflect differences in 1) salinity regimes, 2) extents of exposure to wave action and its related effects and 3) amounts and types of food available to nematodes.  相似文献   

16.
长江口区底栖生物及三峡工程对其影响的预测   总被引：4，自引：0，他引：4  
在“三峡工程对长江河口区生态与环境的影响和对策”的研究课题中,底栖生物的研究包括两部分内容。对活动性较大的经济无脊椎动物,是与游泳生物结合进行底拖网试捕调查,将另文论述。本文主要研究底栖生物中的底内动物(infauna)的生态特点。 本文研究根据的是1985年6月-1986年1月和1986年3-6月逐月调查所得的318个定量样品。海上取样以取样面积为0.1㎡的采泥器毎站取样两次作为一个样品,通过0.5mm的筛网冲洗,挑出标本并称重计数。  相似文献   

17.
St Lucia is one of the largest estuarine systems in Africa, and attracts thousands of anglers each year. Catchcard data from the National Marine Linefish System for the years 1986–1999 were analysed to determine catch composition, catch per unit effort (cpue) and seasonality of catches by recreational anglers. Because not all anglers completed catch cards, estimates of total catch were made using additional data on the number of private boat outings, the number of boat trailers at boat slipways and the number of boats recorded entering the campsite gates during 1992 and 1993. In all, 27 fish families, constituting 55 species, were recorded by recreational anglers. Dusky kob Argyrosomus japonicus, spotted grunter Pomadasys commersonnii, perch Acanthopagrus berda, Natal stumpnose Rhabdosargus sarba, springer Elops machnata and mini-kob Johnius dorsalis were the most prominent species caught in terms of numbers and mass. Catch rates expressed numerically (fish angler?1 h?1) peaked during the summer and early winter. However, in terms of mass, catch rates peaked during late winter and spring, when there were increased landings of large dusky kob. Fluctuations in cpue were linked to salinity and estuary mouth conditions (i.e. mouth closure). Despite annual fluctuations in cpue, regression analysis revealed an overall downward trend for the dominant species (dusky kob and spotted grunter) and a gradual increase for stumpnose, perch and springer, but with the exception of stumpnose, these trends were not significant. Socio-economic aspects of the fishery were also investigated by conducting an independent boat-angler survey. The value of the recreational fishery, in terms of accommodation and direct angler expenditure, was estimated to be in the region of R9 million during 1992. Angler attitudes towards fishing regulations were positive and anglers generally had a good knowledge of the regulations for target species. Based on this assessment, a number of suggestions are made regarding the future management of the recreational fishery at St Lucia.  相似文献   

18.
The estuarine brachyuran crab Neohelice granulata export their larvae from the parental intertidal population of the Mar Chiquita coastal lagoon, and probably other populations, to marine waters. The degree of larval dispersion or self-recruitment of populations is unknown. We evaluated the presence of all larval stages of N. granulata in coastal waters of Argentina between 37.9° and 35.8° S, at two different spatial scales: a broad scale of tens to hundreds of kilometers from the Río de la Plata estuary in the north, to Mar Chiquita lagoon in the south, and a small scale of hundreds of meters to some kilometers around the mouth of Mar Chiquita, during spring and summer. Additionally, we registered the larval composition and density at San Clemente creek population, in Samborombon Bay (Río de la Plata estuary), every 3 h along a 30-hour period. Evidence indicates that larval release of N. granulata is temporally synchronized with nocturnal ebb tides and all development from Zoea I to Zoea IV occur in areas close to the parental population, even with very different oceanographic characteristics. A possible mechanism based on salinity selection and wind-driven transport is proposed for such behavior, and some considerations related to the connectivity of present populations are made.  相似文献   

19.
Lake St Lucia in South Africa is part of a UNESCO World Heritage site and a Ramsar wetland of international importance. Like many coastal wetlands worldwide, anthropogenic activities including catchment land-use changes, water diversions/abstractions, and manipulation of the mouth state have significantly affected its functioning over the past century. Questions concerning its sustainability have motivated a re-evaluation of management decisions made in the past and of options for the future. A model for the water and salt budgets has therefore been used to investigate “what if” scenarios in terms of past anthropogenic interventions. In particular, simulations allow us to evaluate the effects of diverting the Mfolozi river from St Lucia on the functioning of the system and on the occurrence of various water level/salinity states that drive the biological functioning of the ecosystem. In the past, when the St Lucia estuary and the Mfolozi river had a combined inlet, the mouth was predominantly open. The lake had relatively stable water levels but variable salinities that increased during dry conditions due to evaporative losses and saltwater inflows from the sea. If the mouth closed, the Mfolozi flow was diverted into the lake which reduced salinities and maintained or increased water levels. Simulations indicate that without a link to the Mfolozi the lake system would naturally have a mainly closed inlet with lower average salinities but more variable water levels. During dry conditions water levels would reduce and result in desiccation of large areas of the lake as has recently occurred. We conclude that the artificial separation of the St Lucia and Mfolozi inlets underpins the most significant impacts on the water & salt budget of the lake and that its reversal is key to the sustainability of the system.  相似文献   

20.
Bivalves feed on a combination of phytoplankton and zooplankton and have the potential to impact considerably the planktonic biomass, especially when they occur in high densities, such as in oyster and mussel beds. The brackwater mussel Brachidontes virgiliae is numerically dominant during wet phases within Africa’s largest estuarine lake, St Lucia, in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park on the east coast of South Africa. The ingestion rates and potential grazing impact of this small mussel (maximum shell length = 2.5 cm) were estimated for both the wet and dry seasons using an in situ gut fluorescence technique. Ingestion rates were higher during the wet season (5.78 µg pigment ind.?1 d?1) than during the dry season (4.44 µg pigment ind.?1 d?1). This might be explained by the increased water temperature and food availability during the wet season. Because of the patchy distribution of mussel populations, there could be higher localised grazing impact near mussel aggregations. Results showed a potential grazing impact of up to 20 times the available phytoplankton biomass at specific sites. These high grazing impacts have the potential to deplete phytoplankton stocks in the lake, especially during wet phases in the northern reaches, where mussel densities are highest. This needs to be factored into ecological models of Lake St Lucia, because the system might function differently during increased flood events.  相似文献   

设为首页 | 免责声明 | 关于勤云 | 加入收藏

Copyright©北京勤云科技发展有限公司  京ICP备09084417号