Changes in nutrient uptake of phytoplankton under the interaction between sunlight and phosphate in the Changjiang (Yangtze) River Estuary

Abstract

We conducted ship-board incubation experiments to investigate changes in nutrient uptake of phytoplankton under different phosphate concentrations and irradiances in the Changjiang River Estuary and its adjacent waters in China. Under 100% natural irradiance the uptake rates of phosphate, silicate, and nitrate were accelerated at high phosphate levels (1.84 μM), while under low irradiance (about 50% natural irradiance) their uptake rates were restrained at the high but stimulated greatly at the intermediate phosphate concentrations (1.26 μM), as the growth of phytoplankton, changes in nitrite and ammonium uptake didn’t follow an obvious pattern. Our results also showed that there were linear relationships between nitrate, silicate and phosphate uptake at different phosphate concentrations under low and high irradiances, and the growth period of phytoplankton was prolonged both at the high phosphate concentrations under high irradiance and at the intermediate concentrations under low irradiance, suggesting that the limitation of phytoplankton growth mainly reflected changes in its growth period, and because no such environment (low irradiance and low phosphate concentrations) actually existed in a high turbidity zone, phytoplankton blooms hardly occurred there. In the absence of irradiance, denitrification occurred readily and phytoplankton was kept decreasing, which resulted in phosphate regeneration.