Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

SS08 Processes at the Benthic Interface (Environmental Connections)

Date: Monday, February 12, 2001, Time: 11:45:00 AM

Location: Ruidoso/Pecos

D'Andrea, A, F, US EPA - Pacific Coastal Ecology Branch, Newport, USA, dandrea.tony@epa.gov

DeWitt, T, H, US EPA - Pacific Coastal Ecology Branch, Newport, USA, dewitt.ted@epa.gov

Eldridge, P, M, US EPA - Pacific Coastal Ecology Branch, Newport, USA, eldridge.pete@epa.gov

ENHANCED ORGANIC MATTER REMINERALIZATION AND NUTRIENT TURNOVER BY POPULATIONS OF BURROWING SHRIMP IN YAQUINA BAY, OR

Burrowing, or thalassinid, shrimp structure large areas of intertidal habitat of Pacific Northwest estuaries. This field study utilized a combination of anoxic incubations, porewater dialysis peepers, and benthic chambers to quantify the role of burrowing shrimp species on OM decomposition and nutrient fluxes across the sediment-water interface (SWI) on Idaho Flat, an intertidal sandflat in Yaquina Bay, OR. The two species studied have functionally different bioturbational effects on organic matter (OM) cycling and nutrient fluxes. Bioturbation by Neotrypaea californiensis had a more significant impact on organic carbon reaction rates whereas bioirrigation by Upogebia pugettensis enhanced nutrient fluxes across the SWI. The large-scale physical and chemical alteration of sediments by dense beds of these burrowing shrimp has implications for OM remineralization processes and nutrient fluxes in areas of the estuary they inhabit.

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Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Albuquerque 2001

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