太湖浮游植物群落结构及其与水质指标间的关系

为了探讨太湖浮游植物群落结构时空分布特征、以及太湖浮游植物群落指标与水质指标间的关系,于2013年1月─2013年12月对太湖7个点位浮游植物群落结构和水质指标（水温、透明度、pH、溶解氧、电导率、总氮、总磷、氨氮、高锰酸盐指数、化学需氧量、氟化物、生化需氧量、硝酸盐氮、亚硝酸盐氮、溶解性磷酸盐和叶绿素a）进行月度调查,研究其浮游植物群落结构和湖泊水质的时空分布;并利用Pearson相关性分析浮游植物密度、浮游植物多样性与水质指标间的关系;找出影响太湖浮游植物群落结构的主要水质指标。结果表明：太湖7个点位共获得124种浮游植物物种,其中蓝藻门（Cyanophyta）30种、绿藻门（Bacillariophyta）47种、硅藻门（Chlorophyta）34种、隐藻门（Cryptophyta）3种、裸藻门（Euglenophyta）6种和甲藻门（Dinoflagellate）4种;其中蓝藻门的微囊藻属（Microcystis spp.）为绝对优势种群,优势度为80.8%;太湖浮游植物总密度与蓝藻门密度呈极显著正相关（r=1.000,P＜0.0001）;绿藻门和硅藻门占浮游植物总密度百分比分别和蓝藻门占浮游植物总密度百分比呈极显著负相关（r=-0.497,P＜0.0001;r=-0.814,P＜0.0001）。太湖7个点位水质首要污染物为总氮,其次是总磷和化学需氧量;西太湖污染物浓度最高。从空间上看,太湖浮游植物总密度最高值出现在贡湖湾（远离其入湖口处）,且贡湖湾浮游植物群落多样性相对低于太湖其他点位,同时贡湖湾微囊藻属密度百分比达90.1%,远高于太湖其他点位;从时间上看,太湖浮游植物总密度最高值出现在12月份、其次是6月份;通过浮游植物群落指标与水质指标相关性分析,水温、透明度、总氮、化学需氧量、叶绿素a是影响太湖浮游植物群落结构的主要水质指标。控制太湖入湖口水质污染物浓度排放和修?     

Water quality monitoring in a slightly-polluted inland water body through remote sensing — Case study of the Guanting Reservoir in Beijing, China

This study focused on the water quality of the Guanting Reservoir, a possible auxiliary drinking water source for Beijing. Through a remote sensing (RS) approach and using Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper (TM) data, water quality retrieval models were established and analyzed for eight common water quality variables, including algae content, turbidity, and concentrations of chemical oxygen demand, total nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, total phosphorus, and dissolved phosphorus. The results show that there exists a statistically significant correlation between each water quality variable and remote sensing data in a slightly-polluted inland water body with fairly weak spectral radiation. With an appropriate method of sampling pixel digital numbers and multiple regression algorithms, retrieval of the algae content, turbidity, and nitrate nitrogen concentration was achieved within 10% mean relative error, concentrations of total nitrogen and dissolved phosphorus within 20%, and concentrations of ammonia nitrogen and total phosphorus within 30%. On the other hand, no effective retrieval method for chemical oxygen demand was found. These accuracies were acceptable for the practical application of routine monitoring and early warning on water quality safety with the support of precise traditional monitoring. The results show that performing the most traditional routine monitoring of water quality by RS in relatively clean inland water bodies is possible and effective.     

生态沟渠净化稻田排水动力学分析和生物相特征

本研究以太湖流域常见的菱角、水葫芦、梭鱼草、圆币草等水生植物和人工水草、塑料立体弹性填料为生态强化载体,构建"水生植物-载体生物膜-菌藻"复合型生态系统,研究了稻田排水中的氮、磷等营养元素的去除特性,构建氮、磷污染物的降解动力学模型,并调查了沟渠内"微生物-藻类"生物相特征.结果表明,生态沟渠运行期间,随着水稻进入不同的生长阶段,系统内氮、磷等营养元素的去除率都呈普遍下降趋势,总磷、氨氮、总氮、硝态氮平均去除率分别达到87.1%、92.3%、77.5%、88.6%,其中氨氮的去除率最高,化学需氧量(CODMn)的去除效果并不显著,各实验周期的污染物降解趋势均符合一级动力学降解模型.经生物相分析揭示:随着复合生态系统运行延续,系统内微生物、藻类的种类及Shannon-Weiner index等多样性指数呈不断增长趋势,表明复合生态系统水质改善后更适于多种类细菌与藻类生存与繁殖;复合生态系统中的菌、藻、水生植物及其表面附着的生物膜对污染物的去除具有协同作用,强化了生态沟渠的自净能力.     

Nanotechnology-based controlled release of sustainable fertilizers. A review

The rising population is increasing food demand, yet actual crop production is limited by the poor efficiency of classical fertilizers. In particular, only about 40–60% of fertilizer nitrogen, 15–20% of phosphorus and 50–60% of potassium are used by crop plants, the rest ending polluting the environment. Nanofertilizers are promising alternatives. Here, we review plant nutrients, synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles, encapsulation of nanoparticles in fertilizers, and effect on plants.

     

Effect of water and temperature on ammonia volatilization of maize straw returning

ABSTRACT

Ammonia volatilization is an important nitrogen (N) loss pathway in agricultural production and consequent significant atmospheric pollutant. The primary objective of this study was to (1) examine effects of environmental factors such as temperature and soil water capacity, as well as crop residue (CR) addition as fertilizer, on ammonia (NH₃) volatilization, and (2) search for a comprehensive management strategy to reduce accumulative ammonia volatilization (AAV). A bench-scale cultivated experiment was conducted at two environment temperatures (15 or 25 °C), three forms of soil water capacity (30%, 50%, or 70% soil field moisture capacity), and two treatments of fertilizers (conventional fertilizer urea and straw returning – 10% of total N application arising from maize straw and remainder from conventional urea). Results showed that AAV was markedly decreased by adjusting soil water capacity, temperature, and CR addition. Significant quantified exponential correlation between AAV and soil moisture was observed. More than 70% AAV was reduced in intermediate 50% and high 70% soil moisture compared to low 30%. AAV was less sensitive to temperature than soil moisture using black soils. Only in low soil moisture, AAV rose with increasing of temperature. Straw restoration addition decreased significantly the AAV loss.     

Performance and mechanistic study on electrocoagulation process for municipal wastewater treatment based on horizontal bipolar electrodes

• EC modified with BPEs enhances pollutant removal and reduce energy consumption. • Increasing BPE number cannot increase flocculants yield exponentially. • Simulations help to predict the distribution of electrochemical reactions on BPEs. The design of electrodes is crucial to electrocoagulation process (EC), specifically, with respect to pollutant removal and energy consumption. During EC, the mechanisms for interaction between different electrode arrangement and electrode reactions remain unclear. This work presents an integrated EC process based on horizontal bipolar electrodes (BPEs). In the electrochemical cell, the graphite plates are used as driving cathode while either Fe or Al plates serves as driving anode and BPEs. The BPEs are placed horizontally between the driving electrodes. For municipal wastewater treatment, the pollutant removal efficiency and energy consumption in different configurations of two-dimension electrocoagulation (2D-EC) system with horizontal BPEs were investigated. The removal efficiency of turbidity, total phosphorus and total organic carbon increased significantly with the number of BPEs. Noted that the energy consumption for TP removal decreased by 75.2% with Fe driving anode and 81.5% with Al driving anode than those of 2D-EC, respectively. In addition, the physical field simulation suggested the distributions of potential and current in electrolyte and that of induced charge density on BPE surface. This work provides a visual theoretical guidance to predict the distribution of reactions on BPEs for enhanced pollutant removal and energy saving based on electrocoagulation process for municipal wastewater treatment.     

Metabolic rates of epipelagic marine copepods as a function of body mass and temperature

Metabolic rates (oxygen consumption, ammonia excretion, phosphate excretion) have been calculated as a function of body mass (dry, carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus weights) and habitat temperature, using multiple regression. The metabolic data used for this analysis were species structured, collected from Arctic to Antarctic seas (temperature range: -1.7°C to 29.0°C). The data were further divided into geographical and/or seasonal groups (35 species and 43 data sets for oxygen consumption; 38 species and 58 data sets for ammonia excretion; 22 species and 31 data sets for phosphate excretion). The results revealed that the variance attributed to body mass and temperature was highest (93-96%) for oxygen consumption rates, followed by ammonia excretion rates (74-80%) and phosphate excretion rates (46-56%). Among the various body mass units, the best correlation was provided by the nitrogen unit, followed by the dry weight unit. The calculated Q₁₀ values varied slightly according to the choice of body mass units; overall ranges were 1.8-2.1 for oxygen consumption rates, 1.8-2.0 for ammonia excretion rates and 1.6-1.9 for phosphate excretion rates. The effects of body mass and temperature on the metabolic quotients (O:N, N:P, O:P) were insignificant in most cases. Although the copepod metabolic data used in the present analysis were for adult and pre-adult stages, possible applications of the resultant regression equations to predict the metabolic rates of naupliar and early copepodite stages are discussed. Finally, global patterns of net growth efficiency [growth (growth+metabolism)^-1] of copepods were deduced by combining the present metabolic equation with Hirst and Lampitt's global growth equation for epipelagic marine copepods.     

三峡水库香溪河库湾氮磷分布状况及沉积物污染评价

为了解三峡大坝蓄水完成之后香溪河库湾水体及沉积物中氮、磷的分布状况以及沉积物污染水平,2013年4月对三峡水库香溪河库湾进行调查采样,测定表层水及沉积物中氮磷含量和形态组成。结果表明,香溪河库湾表层水总磷(TP)含量范围为0.20~0.51 mg·L~(-1),总氮(TN)含量范围为0.54~2.25 mg·L~(-1),TP主要由磷酸盐(PO_4~(3-))组成,TN主要由硝酸盐(NO_3~-)以及氨氮(NH_4~+)组成,TP在空间上呈现从河口向库尾逐渐升高的分布格局,TN分布从河口向库尾逐渐降低。香溪河库湾沉积物中TP含量变化范围为642~1 189 mg·kg~(-1),TN含量变化范围为867~1 718 mg·kg~(-1),沉积物TP含量分布呈现上游高下游低,沉积物TN分布趋势呈现中间高,两头低。沉积物中TP主要由无机磷(IP)组成,有机磷(OP)所占比例较小,其中IP由钙磷(Ca-P)、铁铝磷(Fe/Al-P)组成,三者含量:Ca-POPFe/Al-P,且沉积物TP含量空间变化受到三者影响(P0.05)。采用单一因子标准指数法对香溪河库湾沉积物中TN、TP污染水平进行评价,结果表明,表层沉积物中TN、TP最低级别污染指数平均值为2.0和1.6,表层沉积物中TN、TP污染指数均超过最低污染水平,且TP的严重级别污染指数达到0.5以上。三峡水库三期蓄水完成以后,香溪河库湾表层水体中氮磷含量较初期蓄水有所升高,各样点沉积物中氮磷含量表现出相同的趋势,沉积物中不稳定磷释放对水体富营养化具有影响,香溪河库湾的表层沉积物已经受到一定的污染,磷污染水平较高。     

曝气复氧对富营养化水体底泥氮磷释放的影响

采用实验室模拟，研究了曝气复氧对富营养化水体底泥氮磷释放的影响，结果表明，①溶解氧是影响底泥氮磷释放的重要因素，厌氧状态会加速底泥氮磷的释放。②正常条件下曝气复氧可以有效的控制底泥总磷的释放；曝气条件下高pH值无法控制底泥总磷的释放，搅动会对底泥总磷的释放产生轻微的影响，上覆水总磷浓度较高时底泥会发生吸磷现象，而温度则影响较小。③正常条件下曝气复氧可以控制比较封闭水体底泥氨氮的释放；曝气条件下温度对底泥氨氮和总氮的释放影响较大，即温度越高，抑制氨氮和总氮的释放效果越好，且低温会导致底泥氨氮和总氮的大量释放；曝气条件下搅动导致底泥释放更多的氨氮和总氮。     

Characteristic and correlation analysis of influent and energy consumption of wastewater treatment plants in Taihu Basin

Poor biodegradability and insufficient carbon source are discovered from influent. Influent indices presented positively normal distribution or skewed distribution. Average energy consumption of WWTPs in Taihu Basin was as high as 0.458 kWh/m³. Energy consumption increases with the increase in influent volume and COD reduction. The total energy consumption decreases with the NH₃-N reduction. The water quality and energy consumption of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Taihu Basin were evaluated on the basis of the operation data from 204 municipal WWTPs in the basin by using various statistical methods. The influent ammonia nitrogen (NH₃-N) and total nitrogen (TN) of WWTPs in Taihu Basin showed normal distribution, whereas chemical oxygen demand (COD), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD₅), suspended solid (SS), and total phosphorus (TP) showed positively skewed distribution. The influent BOD₅/COD was 0.4%–0.6%, only 39.2% SS/BOD₅ exceeded the standard by 36.3%, the average BOD₅/TN was 3.82, and the probability of influent BOD₅/TP>20 was 82.8%. The average energy consumption of WWTPs in Taihu Basin in 2017 was 0.458 kWh/m³. The specific energy consumption of WWTPs with a daily treatment capacity of more than 5 × 10⁴ m³ in Taihu Basin was stable at 0.33 kWh/m³. A power function relationship was observed between the reduction in COD and NH₃-N and the specific energy consumption of pollutant reduction, and the higher the pollutant reduction is, the lower the specific energy consumption of pollutant reduction presents. In addition, a linear relationship existed between the energy consumption of WWTPs and the specific energy consumption of influent volume and pollutant reduction. Therefore, upgrading and operation with less energy consumption of WWTPs is imperative and the suggestions for Taihu WWTPs based on stringent discharge standard are proposed in detail.     

Metabolism and elemental composition of a giant chaetognath Sagitta gazellae from the Southern Ocean

Oxygen consumption, ammonia excretion and phosphate excretion rates were measured on Sagitta gazellae Ritter-Zahony, in conjunction with body composition analyses (water, ash, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and phosphorus). Both water content (94.7% of wet weight) and ash content (53.0% of dry weight) recorded on S. gazellae were the highest and the lowest, respectively, among the chaetognath data being reported. Contents of carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen of S. gazellae were the lowest among published values of chaetognaths. Metabolic comparison with other chaetognaths living in similar subzero water temperature revealed reduced rates in S. gazellae, while no appreciable differences were seen in the metabolic quotients (O:N, N:P and O:P ratios). The O:N atomic ratios were 10.5 to 15.9 indicating protein oriented metabolism. Reduced metabolic activity of S. gazellae is not due to their body composition as calculated daily metabolic losses of body carbon (0.50%), body nitrogen (0.38) and body phosphorus (1.6%) were also found to be lower than respective values reported on other congeners and even those of other zooplankton living in the Antarctic waters.     

Ammonia and phosphorus removal from agricultural runoff using cash crop waste-derived biochars

• Orange tree residuals biochar had a better ability to adsorb ammonia. • Modified tea tree residuals biochar had a stronger ability to remove phosphorus. • Partially-modified biochar could remove ammonia and phosphorus at the same time. • The real runoff experiment showed an ammonia nitrogen removal rate of about 80%. • The removal rate of total phosphorus in real runoff experiment was about 95%. Adsorption of biochars (BC) produced from cash crop residuals is an economical and practical technology for removing nutrients from agricultural runoff. In this study, BC made of orange tree trunks and tea tree twigs from the Laoguanhe Basin were produced and modified by aluminum chloride (Al-modified) and ferric sulfate solutions (Fe-modified) under various pyrolysis temperatures (200°C–600°C) and residence times (2–5 h). All produced and modified BC were further analyzed for their abilities to adsorb ammonia and phosphorus with initial concentrations of 10–40 mg/L and 4–12 mg/L, respectively. Fe-modified Tea Tree BC 2h/400°C showed the highest phosphorus adsorption capacity of 0.56 mg/g. Al-modified Orange Tree BC 3h/500°C showed the best performance for ammonia removal with an adsorption capacity of 1.72 mg/g. FTIR characterization showed that P = O bonds were formed after the adsorption of phosphorus by modified BC, N-H bonds were formed after ammonia adsorption. XPS analysis revealed that the key process of ammonia adsorption was the ion exchange between K⁺ and NH₄⁺. Phosphorus adsorption was related to oxidation and interaction between PO₄^3– and Fe³⁺. According to XRD results, ammonia was found in the form of potassium amide, while phosphorus was found in the form of iron hydrogen phosphates. The sorption isotherms showed that the Freundlich equation fits better for phosphorus adsorption, while the Langmuir equation fits better for ammonia adsorption. The simulated runoff infiltration experiment showed that 97.3% of ammonia was removed by Al-modified Orange tree BC 3h/500°C, and 92.9% of phosphorus was removed by Fe-modified Tea tree BC 2h/400°C.     

Water quality index and suitability assessment of urban ground water of Hisar and Panipat in Haryana

Ground water quality in two well-developed cities of Haryana, viz. Hisar and Panipat was assessed for drinking purpose based on water quality parameters like pH, EC, turbidity, TDS, alkalinity, total hardness, calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), potassium (K), chloride (Cl), nitrate (NO3), phosphate (PO4), sulphate (SO4) and fluoride (F) with respect to different land-use areas viz. residential, industrial, commercial and agricultural. Water quality index based on 9 parameters showed that at Panipat, underground water in all the land-use zones was fit for consumption (WQI < 50), whereas at Hisar, water in agricultural areas was good in quality, but that in other areas varied in magnitude of pollution (WQI > 50 to 100).     

生物陶粒柱—PAC—膜过滤装置系统处理饮用水实验研究

生物陶粒柱和粉末活性炭作为淹没式中空纤维膜过滤装置的预处理工艺不仅解决了膜过滤装置氨氮去除不利的弱点,避免了亚硝酸盐氮的积累,而且在浊度、细菌、有机物等方面极大地降低了膜过滤装置的负荷。生物陶粒柱－PAC－膜过滤装置系统高锰酸盐指数平均去除率为76．97％,氨氮和亚硝酸盐氮的平均去除率分别达到顾95．50％和99．15％。     

固定化藻膜去除水中氮磷的模拟研究

针对富营养化水体生物修复和污水深度处理氮磷的去除,将细颤藻、水绵、水网藻、栅裂藻固定在纤维填料上,形成固定化藻膜。用固定化藻膜处理模拟富营养化湖水、实际富营养化湖水、城市污水二级出水、低质量浓度生活污水,考察固定化藻膜去除氮磷的效果。实验结果表明,固定化藻膜具有良好的去除磷、氨氮能力,对水中有机物去除也有一定的促进作用。对TP质量浓度小于5.0mg·L-1,NH4 -N质量浓度小于34.0mg·L-1的污染水体,四种藻膜都有良好的去除氮磷能力,其中栅裂藻去除TP、NH4 -N的能力最强。综合除污能力和藻细胞的可固定性,水绵应是最佳的备选藻种。研究结果显示,固定化藻膜具有良好的除污性能,预示了悬浮载体将在水体生物修复、氧化塘污水处理方面具有重要的潜在应用价值。     

Metabolism and body composition of two euphausiids (Euphausia superba and E. crystallorophias) collected from under the pack-ice off Enderby Land,Antarctica

Oxygen consumption, ammonia excretion and phosphate excretion rates were measured for Euphausia superba and E. crystallorophias captured under the pack-ice off Enderby Land, Antarctica, during November 1985. Water, ash, carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus composition were also determined. Compared with summer data, body composition of E. superba at this time of year was characterized by low carbon (40.2 to 40.7% of total dry wt), high nitrogen (11.8 to 12.0%), high phosphorus (1.2%) and high water (80.6 to 81.7% of total wet wt) content. Metabolic rates, expressed as percentage daily losses of body carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus were 1.3 to 1.6%, 0.38 to 0.42% and 1.9 to 2.2%, respectively; these fall within the ranges of summer data. E. superba fed on algae growing on the bottom of the ice, but body compositional features of this species suggest limited contribution of ice-algae to nutrition. Compared to E. superba, E. crystallorophias displayed greater metabolic rates and much higher body carbon content (40.9 to 45.0%), implying that feeding conditions under the ice were better suited to the requirements of E. crystallorophias. The only gravid females found belonged to E. crystallorophias.     

Ecological risk assessment from the viewpoint of surface water pollution in Xiamen City,China

The ecological security of urban surface water is subject to significant risk due to rapid urbanization. Pollutant discharge and accumulation are among the most critical stressors endangering urban surface water and affecting the normal operation of urban aquatic ecosystem services. In this study, we assessed how pollutant accumulation stresses water purification systems, which perform important urban ecosystem services. First, we applied a water environmental capacity model to calculate thresholds of urban surface water environmental capacity under a given water quality target. Second, based on a stepwise regression method, an equation was used to describe the relationship between stressor factors (pollutant accumulation) and measurable socioeconomic indicators. Third, an ecological risk index was used as an assessment endpoint indicator to assess the negative ecological effect of pollutant accumulation. Finally, risk level was classified according to the risk quotient method. Taking Xiamen City as an example, we analyzed the contribution of different sources of pollutants and evaluated the urban ecological risk posed by two major contaminants present in the environment by measuring chemical oxygen demand (COD) and ammonium nitrogen (NH₄⁺-N). The results show that the ecological risk indexes of both COD and NH₄⁺-N are expected to decrease from 2020 to 2030; that of COD is expected to fall from medium to low, whereas that of NH₄⁺-N is expected to fall from high to medium. These findings demonstrate that the ecological risk posed to the surface water in Xiamen City can be reduced by controlling population growth, optimizing industrial structure, and promoting economic development.     

厌氧除磷同步脱氮及影响因素研究

采用鸡粪污泥为种泥,在厌氧混合连续流反应装置内进行厌氧还原磷产生磷化氧功能菌的富集,进行硝酸盐、硫酸盐、不同碳源和氮源条件下厌氧除磷效率的研究,并考察磷化氧的生成与硝酸、总磷、氨氮去除的关系.结果表明,(1)SO_4~(2-)-S适宜的投加量为26 mg·L~(-1),不投加NO_3~--N.水中含有氧化态的无机物在厌氧条件下与磷争夺[H]导致厌氧除磷的效率下降.(2)合适的碳源为葡萄糖1 000 mg·L~(-1),纤维素不适合作为碳源,合适的氮源为蛋白胨500 mg·L~(-1),水中含有的还原糖和有机氮源促进磷化氧的生成.(3)pH值控制在6.5～7.0的范围,最适宜的生长温度在35℃左右.(4)氨氮的去除率随着总磷的去除率而增加,在厌氧条件下可达到同时脱氮除磷的效果.磷的去除由厌氧除磷菌还原磷生成磷化氧完成,氨氮由生成氮气或生成蛋白质来去除.     

湖泊营养物基准的候选变量和指标

湖泊营养物基准指标变量是可用于衡量水质、评价或预测水体的营养状态或富营养化程度的变量,是构成建立区域和湖泊营养物基准的基础。详细介绍和分析了氮、磷两个营养物变量和有机碳、叶绿素、透明度、溶解氧、大型植物、生物群落结构等生物学指标,以及营养状态指标、自养指数、温度、pH值、电导率以及土地利用等一系列相关变量（度量或指标）,并总结了当前美国各州在湖泊营养物基准指标选取方面的基本情况。归纳出选择营养物基准指标时应遵循的若干原则,即综合考虑富营养化控制关键因子和区域差异性,所选指标应具有相对稳定、早期预警和易于监测等特点。最后针对我国湖泊营养物基准指标的选取提出了几点建议。     

Effects of prolonged starvation on O2 consumption,NH 4 + excretion,and chemical composition of the bathypelagic mysid Gnathophausia ingens

The large bathypelagic mysid Gnathophausia ingens was collected in January 1980 at 400 to 700 m depth from the San Clemente Basin off southern California. Instars 7-8 and Instars 10-12 were starved in the laboratory for up to 19 wk. Oxygen consumption and ammonia excretion rates, and water, protein, lipid, and ash contents were determined periodically during starvation. Protein and lipid were metabolized in approximately equal amounts by starved individuals after the initial weeks of food deprivation. Unidentified components (probably non-protein nitrogenous compounds) apparently were oxidized within the first 7 wk of starvation. Oxygen consumption and ammonia excretion by Instars 7-8 decreased steadily during 19 wk of starvation. In contrast, stable or increasing respiration and excretion rates were observed for fed mysids. The mean respiration rate of Instars 10-12 did not change significantly during 13 wk of starvation, although ammonia excretion rates decreased. Low metabolic rates and large lipid reserves probably help G. ingens to withstand long periods of starvation in the mesopelagic environment. Calculations based on the laboratory data demonstrate that small, infrequent meals could account for the rates of metabolism and growth observed for G. ingens in the field.