Abstract
In this work the Auda marsh, which is part of a system of Iraqi marshes, was sampled to assess the seasonal dynamics and controlling factors of microalgae productivity. The marshes are situated in a hot climate with high seasonal variation near the Arabian Gulf. Physicochemical and biological measurements were taken for water in three areas. Bio-optical models were constructed to describe the primary productivity and chlorophyll-a concentrations in the wet and dry seasons separately and also for the entire area of the Iraqi marshes. The models, as well as almost all measurements, showed high seasonal variation. The mean water temperature was 16 °C in the wet season and 28 °C in the dry season. An almost twofold difference was measured for turbidity and the concentrations of dissolved oxygen and chlorophyll-a for the two seasons. Chlorophyll-a appeared to be a better indicator of ecosystem conditions than primary productivity or biological oxygen demand, according to the results obtained from canonical correlation analysis. Nitrogen or phosphorous did not explain primary productivity or chlorophyll-a to an appreciable extent. Biological variables were related most strongly to water temperature and turbidity, which were the factors most important for controlling phytoplankton productivity in the marshes.
Highlights
Published: 27 July 2021Wetlands are facing rapid and unpredictable changes in response to global warming.The warming of the climate has been shown to change wetland ecosystems throughout the world, and it is likely to affect the wetlands in areas where the climate is already hot and the conditions are extreme [1]
Warming affects the hydrological regime of the wetlands, which largely controls the organisms present [2]
Our objective was to understand the seasonal variation in primary productivity and the factors that control this variation in a wetland in the system of Iraqi marshes
Summary
The warming of the climate has been shown to change wetland ecosystems throughout the world, and it is likely to affect the wetlands in areas where the climate is already hot and the conditions are extreme [1]. Warming affects the hydrological regime of the wetlands, which largely controls the organisms present [2]. Warming itself creates stressful conditions for these organisms, changing the functioning of the entire ecosystem [3]. Warming generally increases the primary productivity of aquatic ecosystems. Primary production is enhanced by high temperatures that indirectly weaken water current in tidal wetlands, increasing the concentrations of nutrients available to organisms such as phytoplankton [4,5,6,7].
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