2.1. Experimental area
The study was conducted between May 20 and September 20,
2008, in Sanggou Bay, a 140-km2 coastal embayment in north China
(37°01′–37°09′N, 122°24′–122°35′E). Water exchange between the
bay and the Yellow Sea is driven by semi-diurnal tidal exchange (tidal
range 2 m). The average depth of the bay is 8.0 m. The experimental
farm is located in a polyculture area of kelp and abalone. During the
experiment, the water temperature ranged from 10.4 to 22.8 °C.