TITLE:
Biomass and Community Structure of Epilithic Biofilm on the Yellow and East Coasts of Korea
AUTHORS:
Bo Yeon Kim, Seo Kyoung Park, Jin Suk Heo, Han Gil Choi, Young Sik Kim, Ki Wan Nam
KEYWORDS:
Biomass, Community Structure, Epilithic Biofilm, NDVI and VI
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Marine Science,
Vol.4 No.4,
October
16,
2014
ABSTRACT: Spatial biomass variation and
community structure of epilithic biofilms were examined using cell counts,
chlorophyll a extraction, and
remote-sensing techniques. Samples were collected at two levels of wave
exposure along the Yellow and East Coasts of Korea in December 2010.
Cyanobacteria were dominant, occupying about 88% of biofilm, irrespective of
wave exposure levels. The cyanobacteria species, Aphanotece spp. was abundant in the Yellow Coast location and Lyngbya spp. was abundant in the East
coast location. The representative diatoms were Navicula spp. and Achnanthes spp. on the rocky shores of all study sites. Average Normalized Difference
Vegetation Index (NDVI) was significantly greater in the Yellow Coast (mean
0.46) than that in the East Coast (mean 0.21); a similar pattern was observed
in Vegetation Index (VI). Chlorophyll a content was three times greater on the Yellow Coast (20.50 μg/cm2)
than that on the East Coast (8.21 μg/cm2), and it was
greater at the Gosapo and Bangpo shore sites than that at the Gyeokpo site, on
the Yellow Coast. However, chlorophyll a contents were not different between 23.33 and 17.66 μg/cm2
at exposed- and sheltered-shores of Yellow Coast, and were 9.62 μg/cm2
and 6.80 μg/cm2 on the East Coast. Vegetation indices
were positively correlated with chlorophyll a contents. In conclusion, biofilm of Korean upper rocky shore was mainly composed
of cyanobacteria and biofilm biomass that differed between the Yellow and East
Coast.