Abstract
The relationship between the diatom taxa preserved in surface lake sediments and environmental variables in Dongping Lake was explored using multivariate statistical methods. The statistical analysis showed that the lake was eutrophicated in all seasons. Transparency, chlorophyll a (Chla) and total phosphorus (TP) were the dominant environmental factors in spring and summer, and NH4+-N and chemical oxygen demand (COD) were the dominant environmental factors in autumn and winter. Sixteen genera and 43 species of diatom were found in the surface sediments, and the dominant diatom genera were Aulacoseira, Ulnaria, Cyclotella, Navicula and Fragilaria. A redundancy analysis (RDA) and Monte Carlo permutation 20 test revealed that COD, pH, TP, conductivity and transparency were significant factors influencing diatom assemblage change, meaning that the distribution of the diatom assemblages were mostly influenced by nutrient composition, light intensity and ion concentrations.
Highlights
This study focuses on the surface sediment diatom assemblage rather than a paleolimnological survey, which may provide information regarding long-term changes in diatom assemblage composition and provide data support for lake ecosystem health and biodiversity restoration
trophic state index (TSI) showed that Dongping Lake was eutrophic in all seasons, but the water environment quality in different sampling areas was different, the inlet and cage breeding areas were seriously polluted and the center and outlet of the lake were relatively good
Epiphytic and planktonic species of diatoms were dominant, whereas benthic species were relatively rare in the surface sediments of Dongping Lake
Summary
Diatoms have specific optimal levels and degrees of tolerance to some indicators of the water environment (such as pH, temperature, salinity and nutrients) [1,4,5], so changes in these variables will affect their community structure and biomass, making them a reliable indicator of water quality, including the occurrence of acidification and eutrophication [6,7,8].
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