Analysis of the characteristics of Eco-Exergy-based indices and diversity indices in the Zhoushan archipelago, China.

Abstract

Anthropogenic disturbance of coastal ecosystems has increased the need for comprehensive methods and indicators to assess the health status of marine ecosystems. Biotic indices are important as they indicate different ecological states. In this study, Eco-Exergy-based indices (Exergy and Structural Exergy) and diversity indices (Shannon-Wiener index and Margalef index) were applied in the seas around the Zhoushan archipelago, and correlation analysis between biotic indices and environmental factors was used to test the robustness of these indices in capturing the environment changes, aimed to provide reference in selecting the indices for assessing marine eco-environment quality. Results showed that the benthic indices of Exergy, Shannon-Wiener, and Margalef increased with the distance from the mainland. The Eco-Exergy-based indices and Margalef index were significantly, negatively correlated with dissolved inorganic nitrogen and reactive phosphate, and significantly, positively correlated with the salinity of seawater. Overall, the marine ecosystem was more stable further away from the coast, where salinity was higher, and pollutants such as nutrients in seawater were lower. In addition, biodiversity and Eco-Exergy was also higher. Generally, Eco-Exergy-based indices were observed to be good indicators for detecting the environment changes in the study area.