Plankton Metabolism in Coastal Waters of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay: Regional Variance and Driving Factors

Abstract

Metabolisms of field plankton community, including gross primary production (GPP), community respiration (CR), and net community production (NCP), usually indicate the status of the health, resource production, and carbon budget of marine ecosystems. In this study, we explored the regional variance and driving forces of plankton metabolism in coastal waters of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GGBA), a fast-developed area with complex hydrological and environmental states. The results showed that the maximum GPP and CR occurred in the estuarine plume of the GGBA in summer, while in winter the more active metabolisms of plankton community occurred in the Daya Bay, with the GPP and CR being respectively mediated by the nutrient level and temperature. Moreover, four regional zones were divided on the base of the environments and biological factors in surface water of the GGBA i.e., the river-runoff zone, river-plume zone, nearshore and far-offshore zones. The metabolic states in these zones varied significantly due to the regional and seasonal variations of, for example, the nutrient level, temperature, and turbidity driven by multiple factors including land-derived runoffs, anthropogenic activities, the Yuedong Coastal Current, and offshore seawater-intrusions. On the whole, the GGBA areas exhibited the weak heterotrophic processes in both summer (NCP = -24.9 ± 26.7 mg C m-3 d-1) and winter (NCP = -51.2 ± 8.51 mg C m -3 d-1). In addition, we found that the higher CR occurred to the bottom layers of the river plume and nearshore zones wherein hypoxia happened, indicating a possible attribution of plankton community respiration to the hypoxia in the GGBA.