Open AccessCarbonate chemistry seasonality in a tropical mangrove lagoon in La Parguera, Puerto Rico
Author(s) -
Erick García-Troche,
Julio M. Morell,
Melissa Meléndez,
Joseph E. Salisbury
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0250069
Subject(s) - mangrove , alkalinity , aragonite , seawater , carbonate , salinity , ocean acidification , oceanography , seasonality , environmental chemistry , environmental science , total inorganic carbon , tropical marine climate , saturation (graph theory) , chemistry , carbon dioxide , ecology , geology , biology , organic chemistry , mathematics , combinatorics
We investigated the seasonal carbonate chemistry variability within a semi-enclosed tropical mangrove lagoon in southwestern Puerto Rico. Biweekly measurements of seawater temperature, salinity, total alkalinity (TA), and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) were conducted from 2014 to 2018. We describe the possible mechanisms driving the observed variability by correlating the DIC/TA ratio with pH and Ω arg , suggesting that the mean pH (7.87 ± 0.09) and aragonite saturation state (Ω arg , 2.96 ± 0.47) of the mangrove lagoon negatively affected calcification. The measured p CO 2 and DIC/TA ratios indicate that heterotrophic activity was the primary driver for persistent acidification, which reached its maximum expression during the wet season. We conclude that mangrove lagoons with limited seawater exchange and high carbon input will not mitigate ocean acidification.