• Journal of the korean society of oceanography
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.222-233
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• 2004

Using nitrogen as the limiting nutrient, the default version of a microplankton-detritus model linked chlorophyll concentration to the autotroph nitrogen. However, phosphorus dynamics were added to simulate the results of a microcosm experiment. Using standard parameter values with a single value of microheterotroph fraction in the microplankton taken from the observed range, the best simulation successfully captured the main features of the time-courses of chlorophyll and particulate organic carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus, with root-mean-square error equivalent to 29% of particulate concentration. A standard version of microbiological model assumes complete internal cycling of nutrient elements; adding a term for ammonium and phosphate excretion by microheterotrophs did not significantly improve predictions. Relaxing the requirement for constant microheterotroph fraction resulted in an autotroph-heterotroph model AH, with dynamics resembling those of a Lotka-Volterra predator-prey system. AH fitted the microcosm data worse than did MP, justifying the suppression of Lotka-Volterra dynamics in MP. The paper concludes with a discussion of possible reasons for the success of the simple bulk dynamics of MP in simulating microplankton behaviour.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.228-235
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• 2016

Aquatic ecosystems are receiving various harmful effects due to anthropogenic chemical pollutions. To protect wildlife, risk assessments of the chemicals are conducted using reference indexes of toxicity estimated by species-level laboratory tests and/or micro-/mesocosm community-level studies. However, the existing micro-/mesocosm communities are structurally too complicated, and it is also difficult to compare the experimental results directly with those from species-level tests. Here, we developed a procedure of a simple bi-trophic microcosm experiment which contains the common species (a green algae, Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata and a cladoceran, Daphnia magna) for testing chemical toxicities. For the proper operation of bitrophic microcosm experiment, the minimum required concentration of primary producer (P. subcapitata) is $5{\times}10^5cells\;mL^{-1}$. The microcosm system showed higher stability when the initially introduced D. magna population was composed of neonates (<24-h old) than adults and those mixture. This simple microcosm system would be an applicable tool to estimate the disturbing impacts of pollutants on plant-herbivore interactions, and linking the species- and population-/community level risk assessments in the future studies.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.401-410
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• 2011

We assayed the effects of simulated acid rain on the mass loss, $CO_2$ evolution, dehydrogenase activity, and microbial biomass-C of decomposing Sorbus alnifolia leaf litter at the microcosm. The dilute sulfuric acid solution composed the simulated acid rain, and the microcosm decomposition experiment was performed at 23$^{\circ}C$ and 40% humidity. During the early decomposition stage, decomposition rate of S. alnifolia leaf litter, and microbial biomass, $CO_2$ evolution and dehydrogenase activity were inhibited at a lower pH; however, during the late decomposition stage, these characteristics were not affected by pH level. The fungal component of the microbial community was conspicuous at lower pH levels and at the late decomposition stage. Conversely, the bacterial community was most evident during the initial decomposition phase and was especially dominant at higher pH levels. These changes in microbial community structure resulting from changes in microcosm acidity suggest that pH is an important aspect in the maintenance of the decomposition process. Litter decomposition exhibited a positive, linear relationship with both microbial respiration and microbial biomass. Fungal biomass exhibited a significant, positive relationship with $CO_2$ evolution from the decaying litter. Acid rain had a significant effect on microbial biomass and microbial community structure according to acid tolerance of each microbial species. Fungal biomass and decomposition activities were not only more important at a low pH than at a high pH but also fungal activity, such as $CO_2$ evolution, was closely related with litter decomposition rate.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.12 no.2 s.25
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• pp.89-98
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• 2006

The microbial response after treatment of antibiotics was studied for investigating the resistance pattern under simulated aquaculture environment. A marine microcosm was developed for marine fish farm environment using artificial seawater and sediment. Oxolinic acid, which has been commonly used in aquaculture, was employed for the experiment. Resistance patterns and the changes of microbial community were monitored before. during and after use of oxolinic acid. Vibrionaceae was the dominant bacterial species throughout the experiment, consisting 65-75% of total bacterial number in fish farm environment. However, some gram-positive bacteria, Micrococcos sp. and Bacillus sp. strains in marine farm environment were increased in proportion to their number during the treatment. ETS activity of the bacterial communities in aquaculture environment was reduced to 42-67% during the treatment of oxolinic acid. But recovering trends of bacterial number were also detected immediately after cease of oxolinic acid treatment. Frequent treatment of oxolinic acid under the simulated fish farm environment showed bacterial resistance to increase sharply.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.298-310
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• 2007

This study compared the correlation between the accumulated copper content in earthworms and the copper concentration rate of soil measured using several methods to extract heavy metals from soil. For the experiment, a microcosm soil test was carried out using copper contaminated soil from the vicinity of copper-roofed buildings and earthworms (Eisenia fetida). Soils from the study area were used to produce 6 treatments; control, 1C (contamination level with the lowest treated copper concentration rate), 2C, 4C, 8C, and 16C (contamination level with the highest treated copper concentration rate). Microcosm soil test using the 6 treatments proved that as the copper content in soil and the experiment time increased, the growth rate of and the accumulated copper concentration rate in earthworms increased as well. The degree of the increase corresponded to the order of the treated copper concentration levels in microcosm soils. Standard method of the ministry of environment and EPA method 3051 were used to obtain the copper concentration in soil and the total copper content in soil, respectively. The correlation coefficient (r) of 0.9875~0.9993 between the copper content extracted by the standard method and the total copper content shows high positive correlation. The correlation coefficient of the copper content in soil extracted by the standard method and the accumulated copper content in earthworms, and the correlation coefficient of the total copper content in soil and the accumulated copper content in earthworms were ranged from 0.9193 to 0.9728 and from 0.9282 to 0.9844, respectively, showing highly significant positive correlation. Due to the high correlation between the copper concentration in soil and the accumulated copper content in earthworms, it is concluded that earthworms are suitable to be used as biological indicator species or for bio-monitoring against copper contamination of soil.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.141-150
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• 2013

Natural zooplankton communities are composed of many different species at different trophic levels in the aquatic food web. Several researchers have reported that in mesocosm/enclosure experiments, larger cladocerans tend to be more sensitive to carbamate insecticides than smaller ones (Daphnia > Moina, Diaphanosoma > Bosmina). In contrast, results from individual-level laboratory tests have suggested that large cladoceran species are more tolerant than small species. To clarify this inconsistency, we conducted a microcosm experiment using model zooplankton communities with different species compositions, where animals were exposed to lethal (near to the 24 h LC50, concentration estimated to kill 50% of individuals within 24-h for the small cladoceran Bosmina) and lower, sublethal concentrations of carbaryl. In the experiment, population densities of the small cladocerans (Bosmina and Bosminopsis) decreased subsequent to the applications of chemical, but no impacts were observed on the large cladoceran Daphnia. Our results supported the reports of previous individual level toxicity tests, and indicated that the sensitivity of zooplankton to the insecticide was unchanged by biological interactions but the response of population can be modified by compensation of population through hatching from resting eggs and/or the persistence of insecticide in the systems.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.132-137
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• 2015

Effects of chitin and chitosan treatments on soil microorganisms and the mesofauna were investigated in a microcosm and a fumigated field experiment. Responses of microorganisms were determined using microbial phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis, whereas responses of the mesofauna were measured in terms of the abundances of nematodes and microarthropods. Soil nitrate concentration increased on the application of chitin. Overall, chitin promoted bacterial and fungal abundance, leading to an increase in abundance of free-living soil nematodes that feed on decomposers. The ratio of saturated to unsaturated fatty acids was highest in the chitin-treated soil. Chitosan had a minimal effect on the abundance of microorganisms; however, it reduced the abundance of collembolans in the microcosm experiment. These results indicate that the application of chitin has beneficial effects on the supply of nutrients and promotion of the abundance of soil organisms.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.114-126
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• 2020

Bloom-forming toxic cyanobacteria Microcystis spp. are common in the summer season in temperate freshwater ecosystems. Often, it leads to the degradation of water quality and affects the quality of drinking water. In a previous study, NQ (naphthoquinone) compounds were shown to be effective, selective, and ecologically safe algicides for Microcystis spp. blooms. To analyze the superiority of developed NQ derivatives, we conducted a microcosm experiment using clay, which is frequently used in South Korea. Similar to previous studies, the NQ 40 and NQ 2-0 compounds showed high algicidal activities of 99.9% and 99.6%, respectively, on Microcystis spp. at low concentrations (≥1 μM) and enhanced phytoplankton species diversity. However, when treated with clay, a temporary algicidal effect was seen at the beginning of the experiment that gradually increased at the end. In addition, treatment with the NQ compounds did not affect either the abiotic or biological factors, and similar trends were observed with the control. These results showed that the NQ 2-0 compound was more effective, with no ecosystem disturbance, and more economical than the currently used clay. These results suggest that NQ 2-0 compound could be a selective, economically and ecologically safe algicide to mitigate harmful cyanobacterial blooms in the field.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.203-208
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• 2015

To identify the effect of fallen cherry blossom on the artificial pond ecosystem, microcosm experiment was conducted into the aquatic decomposition of Prunus species petals. Petals were put in $1mm^2$ mesh nylon litter bags. For treatment group, one flower litter bag was placed into each pot microcosm ($27{\times}20{\times}8cm^3$) filled with influent water from the artificial pond, whereas control group microcosm contained pond water only. Decomposition time were set differently (4, 8, 12, 16 days) among treatment groups. At the end of experiment, most petals were decomposed and only 32.3% of initial dry weight remained with the decay rate (k) of $7.06{\times}10^{-2}day^{-1}$. $NO_3-N$ concentration of microcosm water decreased sharply from 1.90 mg/L at first to 0.02 mg/L, whereas $NH_4-N$ concentration increased from 0.03 mg/L to 2.85 mg/L continually. $PO_4-P$ concentration was 0.03 mg/L at first and increased to 2.39 mg/L by decomposition. Therefore, available phosphorus seems to have leached with higher rate than nitrogen from the petals litter. Increase about 0.02 mg/L in $PO_4-P$ concentration could be estimated in artificial pond from the calculation on the total quantity of fallen blossoms. This result suggests that available phosphorus from the decomposed Prunus petals could cause eutrophication in the artificial pond.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.353-362
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• 2009

This study attempted to compare the litter decomposition rate of Arundinella hirta and Miscanthus sinensis var. purpurascens which collected from serpentine soil acting potentially toxic concentration of heavy metals and non-serpentine soil by using the microcosm method for 192 days under constant humidity and $23^{\circ}C$. The contents of Ni, Fe, Mg and Cr in the serpentine and nonserpentine soil originated litter showed high differences between them. The litter samples from serpentine site have lower C/N than non-serpentine litter, but the soluble carbohydrate content was shown almost similar between two plant litter. The mass loss rates of leaf litter from serpentine area were slower than those from non-serpentine site. During the experimental period, the remained dry weight of A. hirta and M. sinensis var. purpurascens litter collected from serpentine site were 64.7%, 65.0% of initial dry weight and litter samples from non-serpentine site showed 54.2%, 50.7%, respectively. K and Na were leached rapidly at the initial decomposition periods, but Ca showed immobilization and other metal elements reserved at the decomposing litter for a long time. The decomposing A. hirta litter from non-serpentine soil showed higher values of $CO_2$ evolution, microbial biomass-C, and microbial biomass-N than those in serpentine soil originated litter acting nutrient stresses and exhibited rapid decay rate. The microbial biomass and microbial respiration of decaying litter were positively correlated with litter decomposition rate, and these relationships showed more rapid slope in non-serpentine soil originated litter than that in serpentine soil.