Variability of the carbonate chemistry in a shallow, seagrass-dominated ecosystem: implications for ocean acidification experiments

Roberta Challener; Lisa L. Robbins; James B. Mcclintock

doi:10.1071/mf14219

Home/Archive/USGS

USGS · 70148388

Variability of the carbonate chemistry in a shallow, seagrass-dominated ecosystem: implications for ocean acidification experiments

Roberta Challener·Lisa L. Robbins·James B. Mcclintock

View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Open ocean observations have shown that increasing levels of anthropogenically derived atmospheric CO 2 are causing acidification of the world's oceans. Yet little is known about coastal acidification and studies are just beginning to characterise the carbonate chemistry of shallow, nearshore zones where many ecologically and economically important organisms occur. We characterised the carbonate chemistry of seawater within an area dominated by seagrass beds (Saint Joseph Bay, Florida) to determine the extent of variation in pH and p CO 2 over monthly and daily timescales. Distinct diel and seasonal fluctuations were observed at daily and monthly timescales respectively, indicating the influence of photosynthetic and respiratory processes on the local carbonate chemistry. Over the course of a year, the range in monthly values of pH (7.36-8.28), aragonite saturation state (0.65-5.63), and calculated pCO2 (195-2537 μatm) were significant. When sampled on a daily basis the range in pH (7.70-8.06), aragonite saturation state (1.86-3.85), and calculated p CO 2 (379-1019 μatm) also exhibited significant range and indicated variation between timescales. The results of this study have significant implications for the design of ocean acidification experiments where nearshore species are utilised and indicate that coastal species are experiencing far greater fluctuations in carbonate chemistry than previously thought.

Explore related subjects

Marine and Freshwater Research Article

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeX RIS

Roberta Challener, Lisa L. Robbins, James B. Mcclintock. 2016. Variability of the carbonate chemistry in a shallow, seagrass-dominated ecosystem: implications for ocean acidification experiments. https://doi.org/10.1071/mf14219

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related USGS reports

USGS2023

Accuracy and precision of sea-finding orientation as a function of dune proximity in hatchlings of two species of sea turtles

Context: Sea turtle hatchlings generally emerge at night from nests on sand beaches and immediately orient using visual cues, which are believed to entail the difference in brightness between the light seen in the seaward direction and that seen in the duneward direction. Aim: The aim of this study was to understand how dune proximity affected hatchling orientations in two sea turtle species that share a nesting beach 15 km long and 25.3 ± 9.4 m ( N = 215) from dune to waterline, with low to moderate artificial light nearby. Methods: For hatchling loggerhead and green turtles, we measured accuracy and precision of orientation, tested differences in distance from nest to dune, and investigated the effect of dune proximity on hatchling orientation. Key results: We found a significant decrease in hatchling orientation accuracy and precision in both species as the distance increased from nests to dune. Loggerhead and green turtles showed similar orientation ability when in the same proximity to the dune. Conclusions: We conclude that dune features provide important cues for hatchling orientation on sea turtle nesting beaches. Implications: Restoring and maintaining natural beach profiles, especially dune systems, is likely to increase the accuracy and precision of sea finding in hatchling sea turtles.

Florida↗

USGS2021

Expanding freshwater biologger studies to view fish as environmental sensing platforms

While recording fish habitat use by electronic sensors, biologgers can also be viewed as autonomous environmental monitoring systems with the organism as a vehicle. This dual perspective has provided novel results from marine ecosystems, but has not been applied to freshwater ecosystems. To understand limitations in fresh water, we evaluated miniature depth and temperature recorders as aquatic monitoring systems in a Laurentian Great Lake: Erie. As part of an acoustic telemetry study, biologgers were opportunistically implanted in a subsample of walleye Sander vitreus . Biologgers recorded temperature and depth at half-hour intervals for up to 1 year. Recaptures provided six biologgers for analysis of seasonal temperature patterns and lake stratification, key variables for understanding dimictic lakes. Depth-resolved temperature patterns showed close correspondence with independent weather buoy measurements. Because the buoy was deployed late in the season, biologger data provided improved estimates of the start of stratification, which had important implications for understanding development of hypoxia in the hypolimnion. Drawbacks to biologger data included imprecise knowledge of fish location and reliance on tag recoveries from the fishery. Optimistically, our results show how biologgers could be part of a monitoring approach that integrates limnological surveys with fisheries science.

Marine and Freshwater Research↗

USGS2020

Estimating the invasion extent of Asian swamp eel (Monopterus: Synbranchidae) in an altered river of the south-eastern United States

The first reported invasion of Asian swamp eels ( Monopterus albus , ASE) in the continental United States was in the state of Georgia in 1994. This population was first discovered within several ponds on a private nature centre, but the ponds drained via an outflow pipe into marsh habitats along the Chattahoochee River. Our objective was to delineate the current invasion extent of ASE in the Chattahoochee River, Georgia, by sampling juvenile ASE within an occupancy modelling framework. We sampled 111 and 100 sites in 2015 and 2016 respectively, on 10 occasions, each within a 2-km radius of the purported invasion point to estimate the spatial extent of their invasion in this system. Leaf-litter traps (LLTs) were effective at documenting an increase in the invasion extent of ASE, from within 100 m of the Chattahoochee Nature Center pond outflow to 1.6 km away. Documenting the extent of invasion of this population has proven elusive in the past, but the use of LLTs to target juvenile eels has documented a larger invasion extent than previously known in the study system. The results of this research can be used to develop effective control and management strategies, such as locating potential breeding areas for targeted removal sampling.

Georgia↗