EOF Analysis of Water Level Variations for Microtidal and Mangrove-Covered Frog Creek System, West–Central Florida

Abstract

Abstract Zhang, J.; Wang, P., and Hughes, J., 2012. EOF analysis of water level variations for microtidal and mangrove-covered Frog Creek system, west-central Florida. At present, little is known about the mechanisms that control water level variations for the Frog Creek system, west–central Florida, which is a mangrove-covered, microtidal, shallow estuary. Although connected with open waters, topographic and roughness constraints can alter expected variability of water levels in this area. Water level variations are especially important for the Frog Creek system, because the increases or decreases in subtidal water level change the present tidal environments. In this paper, 1-year measurements of water levels were examined using the empirical orthogonal function (EOF) method. Water level data from eight stations were first filtered by employing a Lancz6-squared filter because of its ability to eliminate diurnal tidal signals while inducing minimal attenuation in variations with periods of 2 to 3 days, wh...