Abstract

The benthic flora off the Luhuitou Peninsula (Sanya Bay) was studied, for the first time, in areas located opposite a wastewater outlet from fish farm ponds and, thus, heavily polluted with nutrients (dissolved organic nitrogen (DIN), on average 30 μM; orthophosphates, 5.0 μM). Changes in the benthic flora were recorded before and after the farm stopped operation. It was shown that with a decrease in the concentration of nutrients in seawater (DIN, to 3 μM; orthophosphates, to 0.2 μM) the species diversity of macroalgae and cyanobacteria increased significantly over a year and a half, while the population density and biomass of macrophytes decreased. The values of all parameters of the studied flora in the previously heavily polluted areas became close to the average level for Sanya Bay.