Variations of morphology and photosynthetic performances of Ulva prolifera during the whole green tide blooming process in the Yellow Sea.
Since 2007, the world's largest macroalgal blooms have occurred along the coastal area of the Yellow Sea for 6 consecutive years. In 2012, shipboard surveying and satellite remote sensing were used to monitor the whole blooming process. The blooms originated in Rudong sea area of the South Yellow Sea where bloom patches were of dark green and filamentous thalli were the dominant morphology. The scale of the blooms reached its peak size in Rizhao sea area of the North Yellow Sea, and decreased promptly and became insignificant in Qingdao coast where the blooms turned yellow, mostly with air sac blades. Meanwhile, vegetative cells of the green tide algae changed into cytocysts gradually from which germ cells were released as the blooms drifted northward. Additionally, chlorophyll contents and fluorescence activity of free-floating thalli in the North Yellow Sea were both significantly lower than that in the South Yellow Sea. Those studies presented here contributed to increasing our understanding about how the green tide declined gradually in the North Yellow Sea.
College of Fisheries and Life Sciences, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China; Marine Scientific Research Institute, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China.
Jian Heng
JH
Zhang
Yuan Zi
YZ
Huo
Zheng Long
ZL
Zhang
Ke Feng
KF
Yu
Qing
Q
He
Lin Hui
LH
Zhang
Li Li
LL
Yang
Ren
R
Xu
Pei Min
PM
He
D002734:Chlorophyll / Q000378:metabolism; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D005068:Eutrophication / Q000502:physiology; D005453:Fluorescence; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D010788:Photosynthesis; D058998:Remote Sensing Technology; D044445:Ulva / Q000502:physiology*
D002734:Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll; Eutrophication; Green tide; Morphological characteristic; Photosynthetic; Ulva prolifera; Yellow Sea