The bioaccumulation of mercury (Hg) in aquatic ecosystem poses a potential health risk to human being and aquatic organism. Bioaccumulations by plankton represent a crucial process of Hg transfer from water to aquatic food chain. However, the current understanding of major factors affecting Hg accumulation by plankton is inadequate. In this study, a data set of 89 aquatic ecosystems worldwide, including inland water, nearshore water and open sea, was established. Key factors influencing plankton Hg bioaccumulation (i.e., plankton species, cell sizes and biomasses) were discussed. The results indicated that total Hg (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg) concentrations in plankton in inland waters were significantly higher than those in nearshore waters and open seas. Bioaccumulation factors for the logarithm of THg and MeHg of phytoplankton were 2.4–6.0 and 2.6–6.7 L/kg, respectively, in all aquatic ecosystems. They could be further biomagnified by a factor of 2.1–15.1 and 5.3–28.2 from phytoplankton to zooplankton. Higher MeHg concentrations were observed with the increases of cell size for both phyto- and zooplankton. A contrasting trend was observed between the plankton biomasses and BAF_MeHg, with a positive relationship for zooplankton and a negative relationship for phytoplankton. Plankton physiologic traits impose constraints on the rates of nutrients and contaminants obtaining process from water. Nowadays, many aquatic ecosystems are facing rapid shifts in nutrient compositions. We suggested that these potential influences on the growth and composition of plankton should be incorporated in future aquatic Hg modeling and ecological risk assessments.

汞（Hg）在水生生态系统中的生物积累对人类和水生生物构成潜在的健康风险。浮游生物的生物积累代表了汞从水转移到水生食物链的关键过程。然而，目前对影响浮游生物汞积累的主要因素的认识是不够的。本研究建立了包括内陆水域、近岸水域和公海在内的全球89个水生生态系统的数据集。讨论了影响浮游生物汞生物积累的关键因素（即浮游生物种类、细胞大小和生物量）。结果表明，内陆水域浮游生物的总汞（THg）和甲基汞（MeHg）浓度显着高于近岸水域和公海。浮游植物THg和MeHg对数的生物蓄积因子为2.4-6。在所有水生生态系统中分别为 0 和 2.6–6.7 L/kg。从浮游植物到浮游动物，它们可以进一步生物放大 2.1-15.1 和 5.3-28.2。随着浮游植物和浮游动物细胞大小的增加，观察到更高的甲基汞浓度。在浮游生物生物量和 BAF 之间观察到对比趋势_MeHg，与浮游动物呈正相关，与浮游植物呈负相关。浮游生物的生理特征对从水中获取营养物质和污染物的速率施加了限制。如今，许多水生生态系统正面临营养成分的快速变化。我们建议将这些对浮游生物生长和组成的潜在影响纳入未来的水生汞建模和生态风险评估中。