Evaluating ecosystem structure and functioning of the East China Sea Shelf ecosystem,China |
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Authors: | Yunkai Li Yong Chen Derek Olson Na Yu Liqiao Chen |
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Institution: | (1) College of Life Science, East China Normal University, 200062 Shanghai, People’s Republic of China;(2) The Key Laboratory of Sustainable Exploitation of Oceanic Fisheries Resources, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Ocean University, 201306 Shanghai, People’s Republic of China;(3) School of Marine Sciences, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469, USA; |
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Abstract: | As China’s second-largest large marine ecosystem, the East China Sea Shelf has suffered from overfishing, eutrophication,
and physical disturbance over the last several decades. A trophic mass-balance model of this ecosystem was developed in order
to characterize the structure and functioning of its food web, to identify its keystone species, and to quantify the ecological
impacts of fishing that it sustained during the early 2000s. Using a multivariate statistical analysis, we identified 38 functional
groups for the trophic model, including fish and invertebrate groups targeted and not targeted by fisheries. Pelagic sharks
and rays were identified as the keystone species in the ecosystem. Strong benthic–pelagic coupling was indicated in this ecosystem.
In particular, this study highlighted the interdependent relationships that exist among plankton, benthic invertebrates, and
detritus. Recent fishing activities were characterized by high exploitation rates for various commercially targeted and non-targeted
species, leading to the removal of much of the ecosystem’s fishable production. Overall, our findings give a preliminary explanation
of the current problems of eutrophication and fishery depletion and other changes in the East China Sea Shelf, and highlight
the need for developing ecosystem-based fisheries management. |
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