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Physicochemical Parameters Govern Winter Pelagic Microbial Food Web Dynamics in China's Marginal Seas
Chaofeng Wang1, Wenbo Yang2, Wenhua Bian3,4
1State Key Laboratory of Mariculture Breeding, Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology of Fujian Province, Institute of Oceanology, College of Marine Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, 350002, China. wangchaofeng@fafu.edu.cn.
Microbial Ecology
|June 2, 2026
Summary
China
Area of Science:
- Marine microbial ecology
- Oceanography
- Biogeochemistry
Background:
- Pelagic microbial food webs (MFWs) are crucial for marine biogeochemical cycles, productivity, and climate regulation.
- Understanding MFW dynamics and their drivers in China's marginal seas (CMS) is limited.
- MFWs involve complex interactions between picoplankton (Pico), nanoplankton (Nano), and microzooplankton (Micro).
Purpose of the Study:
- To elucidate the trophic structure of MFWs in four CMS subzones.
- To identify the physicochemical drivers influencing MFW composition and dynamics.
- To provide a framework for predicting marine ecosystem resilience and carbon export.
Main Methods:
- Utilized flow cytometry and microscopy to assess plankton abundance and composition.
- Employed satellite remote sensing for hydrographic data.
- Applied multivariate analyses to determine biotic-abiotic interplays.
Main Results:
- Observed a latitudinal shift in MFWs from Pico- to Micro-dominated assemblages northward.
- Validated size-structured ecological theory with consistent negative slopes for abundance and biomass spectra.
- Identified nutrient-driven bottom-up control as the primary regulatory mechanism for Pico and Nano.
- Found synergistic environmental forcing (nutrient co-limitation and mixing) modulates MFW stability.
Conclusions:
- MFW structure in CMS exhibits a size-structured framework consistent with ecological theory.
- Nutrient availability and physical mixing are key drivers of MFW dynamics and stability.
- Findings offer a trait-based approach for assessing marginal sea resilience and carbon export under climate change.
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