loading page

An unprecedented outbreak of pelagic molluscs Creseis acicula in Daya Bay, South China Sea
  • +7
  • Ming Dai,
  • Zhanhui Qi,
  • Lei Zeng,
  • Shufei Zhang,
  • Lingling Wang,
  • Xiaoqing Qin,
  • Xiuli Liao,
  • Jing Yan,
  • Honghui Huang,
  • Shaoling Shang
Ming Dai
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

Author Profile
Zhanhui Qi
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute
Author Profile
Lei Zeng
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute
Author Profile
Shufei Zhang
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute
Author Profile
Lingling Wang
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute
Author Profile
Xiaoqing Qin
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute
Author Profile
Xiuli Liao
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute
Author Profile
Jing Yan
Xiamen University
Author Profile
Honghui Huang
South China Sea Fisheries Research Institute
Author Profile
Shaoling Shang
Xiamen University
Author Profile

Abstract

Creseis acicula is a pteropod species, widely distributed in the world’s ocean. The latest report of its bloom was in the Mediterranean Sea in 1990. On June 12, 2020, an unprecedented bloom of C. acicula was observed in Daya Bay, China, that lasted for over a month and caused economic losses. The maximum abundance of C. acicula was up to 5595 ind. m-3, 1000 times the local record high, and 10 times the highest number recorded elsewhere. Higher abundance (≥ 1000 ind. m-3) was found in the warm water of ≥ 30℃ along the southwest shore of Daya Bay. The initiation of the bloom matched a sharp increase of temperature and chlorophyll a and an abrupt decrease of salinity attributed to heavy rainfall that lasted for more than 20 days. Considering rising occurrences of extreme weather due to global change, possibilities of recurrent C. acicula blooms worldwide certainly deserve attention.