Effects of climate change on bioaccumulation and biomagnification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the planktonic food web of a subtropical shallow eutrophic lake in China.
To date effects of climate change on bioaccumulation and biomagnification of chemical pollutants in planktonic food webs have rarely been studied. Recruitments of plankton have shifted earlier due to global warming. Global warming and precipitation patterns are projected to shift seasonally. Whether and how the shifts in plankton phenology induced by climate change will impact bioaccumulation and biomagnification of chemical pollutants, and how they will respond to climate change are largely unknown. Here, we combine data analysis of the past seven decades, high temporal resolution monitoring and model development to test this hypothesis with nine polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the planktonic food web of a subtropical shallow eutrophic lake in China. We find biphasic correlations between both bioconcentration factors and bioaccumulation factors of the PAHs and the mean temperature, which depend on the recruitment temperatures of cyanobacteria, and copepods and cladocerans. The positive correlations between bioconcentration factors, bioaccumulation factors and the mean temperature will be observed less than approximately 13-18 days by 2050-2060 due to the shifts in plankton phenology. The PAHs and their bioaccumulation and biomagnification will respond seasonally and differently to climate change. Bioaccumulation of most of the PAHs will decrease with global warming, with higher decreasing rates appearing in winter and spring. Biomagnification of most of the PAHs from phytoplankton to zooplankton will increase with global warming, with higher increasing rates appearing in winter and spring. Our study provides novel insights into bioaccumulation and biomagnification of chemical pollutants in eutrophic waters under climate change scenarios.
State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, China. Electronic address: yqtao@niglas.ac.cn.
Yuqiang
Y
Tao
State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, China.
Bin
B
Xue
Key Laboratory for Subtropical Mountain Ecology, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350007, China.
Guoliang
G
Lei
Fuzhou Environmental Monitoring Station, Fuzhou, 350011, China.
Fei
F
Liu
State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, China.
Zhen
Z
Wang
D000818:Animals; D002681:China; D057231:Climate Change; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D020387:Food Chain; D060106:Lakes / Q000737:chemistry*; D010839:Phytoplankton / Q000378:metabolism*; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D012621:Seasons; D013696:Temperature; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D015048:Zooplankton / Q000378:metabolism*
D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
Bioaccumulation and biomagnification; Climate change; Persistent organic pollutants; Plankton phenology; Subtropical shallow eutrophic lake