Abstract
Spatial patterns of planktonic ciliate communities were studied to monitor marine water quality during winter, spring, summer, and autumn of 2014 in Daya Bay, South China Sea. A total of 41 species, with eight dominant species, were identified. Multivariate and univariate analyses demonstrated that spatial taxonomic pattern of planktonic ciliate communities was significantly correlated with environmental condition; ciliate abundance, species diversity, and species richness were significantly correlated with NO3– and salinity or temperature. Additionally, two dominant species (Tintinnopsis minuta Wailes, 1925 and Tintinnopsis beroidea Stein, 1867) were significantly positively correlated with nutrients, particularly with nitrogen nutrients. Three dominant species (Strombidium conicum (Lohmann, 1908) Wulff, 1919; Spirotontonia turbinata (Song & Bradbury, 1998) Agatha, 2004; Laboea strobila Lohmann, 1908) showed more sensitivity to salinity, whereas Mesodinium rubrum (Lohmann, 1908) was significantly correlated with temperature. Our findings suggest that planktonic ciliate communities can be considered a favorable bioindicator of marine water quality.
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