Premium
Seasonal Variations in Dissolved Carbon Inventory and Fluxes in a Mangrove‐Dominated Estuary
Author(s) -
Volta Chiara,
Ho David T.,
Maher Damien T.,
Wanninkhof Rik,
Friederich Gernot,
Del Castillo Carlos,
Dulai Henrietta
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
global biogeochemical cycles
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.512
H-Index - 187
eISSN - 1944-9224
pISSN - 0886-6236
DOI - 10.1029/2019gb006515
Subject(s) - mangrove , dissolved organic carbon , estuary , alkalinity , dry season , environmental science , carbonate , wet season , hydrology (agriculture) , total organic carbon , total inorganic carbon , environmental chemistry , oceanography , carbon dioxide , ecology , chemistry , geology , biology , geotechnical engineering , organic chemistry
Two experiments were performed during the wet and dry seasons to quantify dissolved carbon dynamics and fluxes in the Shark River, a tidal estuary flowing through the largest contiguous mangrove forest in North America (Everglades National Park, Florida, USA). During these experiments, between 80% and 87% of the total dissolved carbon pool consisted of inorganic carbon (DIC). Carbon inputs from mangroves to the estuary were slightly higher during the wet season, whereas alkalinity inputs were comparable during the two experiments. Longitudinal dissolved carbon fluxes to the coastal ocean were slightly higher during the wet season (13.53 ± 0.76 × 10 5 mol day −1 during the wet and 11.70 ± 0.32 × 10 5 mol day −1 during the dry), whereas longitudinal alkalinity flux was comparable during both experiments (10.64 ± 0.74 in the wet vs. 9.88 ± 0.30 × 10 5 mol day −1 during the dry season). Overall, DIC production in surface water, porewater, and groundwater was dominated by oxic mineralization of mangrove‐derived organic matter and carbonate dissolution. Carbonate dissolution was the most important alkalinity production process in the system. The experiments show that regardless of the season and hydro‐climatic conditions, Shark River receives large inputs of dissolved carbon from the upstream marsh, mangroves, and carbonate dissolution, and that per area, it exports a greater amount of dissolved carbon than many other mangrove‐dominated estuaries in the world.