Nutrient processing and the development of tidal creek ecosystems

Abstract

The North Inlet marsh-estuarine system encompasses the spectrum of interaction between the ocean and the uplands typical of the southeastern United States. The system is an ebb-dominated, bar-built estuary with good flow connection to the sea and some freshwater input. The North Inlet basin has evolved from a forested, relic, beach-ridge terrain under a regime of slowly rising sea level (2 mm year −1). This mode of development is supported by historic tide gage data. 210Pb dating of sediment cores, the presence of spodic soil horizons and tree roots at shallow depths beneath the marsh surface, and the presence of relic ‘cat eye’ ponds at the edge of the salt marsh. As sea level rises, the boundary between forest and salt marsh recedes upslope and forest spodosols are gradually transformed into marsh soils by salinization, the deposition and mixing of marine mud into the upper horizons of the forest soil and the accumulation of reduced sulfur via sulfate reduction. As a forest watershed is transformed into a salt-marsh basin, the hydraulic geometry of the original, black-water (fresh) stream increases to accommodate the increasing volumes of tidal discharge. Forest sands move seaward while marine muds are transported into the basin. As water moves between the forest and the sea, it passes through creeks in different developmental stages. Large mature creeks interact with the ocean while young, ephemeral creeks drain the uplands and intertidal marsh zones. Intermediate stage creeks connect these two and are characterized by the presence of oyster reefs. Net nutrient fluxes appear to be different in each developmental stage. The ‘Bly Creek’ study of Dame and coworkers addressed the flux of materials between a creek at the intermediate stage of development and the adjacent mature system. Material fluxes from a freshwater stream draining into Bly Creek from the adjacent uplands were also observed. The role of the salt marsh and the oyster reefs in determining material fluxes was examined. The Bly Creek basin imports particulate nutrients and exports dissolved forms. The ‘Outwelling’ study of Dame and coworkers at North Inlet focused on the flux of materials between the mature creeks and the Atlantic Ocean. All constituents were exported seasonally and annually from the estuary, except total sediments (imported during fall and winter) and chlorophyll a (imported in the summer and fall). The export of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus was high compared with other estuarine systems. On a unit area basis, primary productivity is higher and nutrient fluxes are lower in Bly Creek (intermediate stage of development) as compared with the mature North Inlet system. These observations support the general ecosystem development hypothesis that nutrient storage and retention are higher in younger systems than more mature systems where growth is lower and fewer nutrients are needed.