Greater niche overlap and species association of phytoplankton in dry season than in wet season in Wujiang River, Yungui Plateau, China

Yang YANG; Yiqin CHEN; Qinglan CHEN; Luigi NASELLI-FLORES

doi:10.1007/s00343-025-4200-7

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Greater niche overlap and species association of phytoplankton in dry season than in wet season in Wujiang River, Yungui Plateau, China

Ecology | Updated：2025-10-16

- Greater niche overlap and species association of phytoplankton in dry season than in wet season in Wujiang River, Yungui Plateau, China
- Journal of Oceanology and Limnology Vol. 43, Issue 5, Pages: 1488-1500(2025)
- Affiliations：
  
  1.School of Life Sciences, Guizhou Normal University, Guiyang 550025, China
  2.Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, University of Palermo, Palermo 90123, Italy
- Author bio：
  
  yang.yang@gznu.edu.cn
- Funds：
- DOI：10.1007/s00343-025-4200-7
  CLC：
- Received：31 July 2024，
  
  Accepted：23 October 2024，
  
  Online First：05 November 2024，
  
  Published：01 September 2025
- Accepted：
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YANG Yang,CHEN Yiqin,CHEN Qinglan,et al.Greater niche overlap and species association of phytoplankton in dry season than in wet season in Wujiang River, Yungui Plateau, China[J].Journal of Oceanology and Limnology,2025,43(05):1488-1500.
DOI：

YANG Yang,CHEN Yiqin,CHEN Qinglan,et al.Greater niche overlap and species association of phytoplankton in dry season than in wet season in Wujiang River, Yungui Plateau, China[J].Journal of Oceanology and Limnology,2025,43(05):1488-1500. DOI： 10.1007/s00343-025-4200-7.

摘要

Abstract

Phytoplankton plays a crucial role in the energy flow and nutrient cycling of aquatic ecosystems. To understand the spatial and temporal distribution of phytoplankton in the Wujiang River

Yungui Plateau

SW China

samples were collected in 12 locations in wet and dry seasons and analyzed. We hypothesized that phytoplankton assemblages would exhibit significant temporal variability

with niche breadths of dominant species fluctuating seasonally

leading to distinct patterns of species association and community stability. Results show differences in community structure between the two seasons

but such changes did not cause non-significant differences in α-diversity. Diatoms were dominant in the assemblages in terms of biomass

while the numerical abundance of Cyanobacteria was highest in the wet season due to their relatively small cells. Rainfall-driven changes in runoff significantly altered nutrient availability

which in turn strongly affected phytoplankton structure. The more intense water flow contributed to a greater β-diversity in the wet season

driven primarily by species replacement

with stochastic processes played a more important role during the dry season. In the dry season

dominant species exhibited a broader niche breadth and greater niche overlap

along with more positive species associations

suggesting a more stable and resilient community structure. Conversely

in the wet season

species had narrower niche breadth and less niche overlap

leading to a less stable community. Both negative and positive species associations were observed

indicating a complex balance between environmental filtering and competition within the assemblages. These findings provide important insights into how seasonal environmental changes

particularly water flow and nutrient dynamics

shape phytoplankton communities in aquatic ecosystems. Understanding the mechanisms driving changes in community and stability is critical for predicting the impacts of climate change and managing aquatic biodiversity

as fluctuations in water flow and nutrient input may alter ecosystem functioning and productivity.

关键词

Keywords

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