Differences in crab burrowing and halophyte growth by habitat types in a Korean salt marsh

Bang, Jeong Hwan; Lee, Eun Ju

doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2018.11.029

Cited by 16 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…According to the simulated results in this study, crab burrows can strongly promote aeration of salt marsh sediments (Figure 2), which has significant implications for ecological and environmental processes. On one hand, sufficient oxygen is essential for plant survival in salt marshes (Bang & Lee, 2019; Scholander et al., 1955). Considering the high microbial demand and slow diffusion rate of oxygen in the muddy layer (Golley et al., 1962), plant survival would be seriously challenged without the animal burrows.…”

Section: Implications and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Randomly Distributed Crab Burrows Enhance Groundwater Flow and Salt Transport in Creek‐Marsh Systems

Yin,

Xiao,

Xin

et al. 2023

Water Resources Research

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Macropores created by crab burrowing are commonly found in vegetated coastal wetlands. However, their impact on surface water‐groundwater interactions and salt transport is insufficiently understood. In this study, we used numerical models to quantify the impact of crab burrows with random spatial distribution, morphology, and openings on groundwater flow and salt transport in creek‐marsh systems. Results showed that these burrows can lead to a more complex network of preferential flow paths and burrow flushing capabilities than those with a single pipeline. The velocity magnitude varied over seven orders in the burrowed mud layer. Local increases in the hydraulic gradient occurred in the burrows, leading to faster water circulation and salt transport as well as turnover of soil aeration. The salinity front in the burrowed marsh reached two‐m deeper than in the unburrowed marsh. Burrow flushing depth and intensity is significantly enhanced in burrows with multiple openings. This study emphasized the complexity of tortuous burrows regulating groundwater flow and solute transport through modeling realistic crab burrows. This work supports fiddler crabs as ubiquitous “ecoengineers” who can produce more significant impact on local hydrological cycle and ecosystem‐scale geochemical processes than previously indicated.

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Section: Implications and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Randomly Distributed Crab Burrows Enhance Groundwater Flow and Salt Transport in Creek‐Marsh Systems

Yin,

Xiao,

Xin

et al. 2023

Water Resources Research

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“…These species have a fibrous, radiate root system within the top 10 cm of the surface sediment (Kim et al, 2015). Native S. japonica, in contrast, are highly salttolerant annual plants, and flower from August to September (Bang and Lee, 2019). They can reach a height of approximately 20 cm (Figure 1d), and major rhizospheres occur between FIGURE 1 | A map showing sampling sites inhabited by Spartina anglica (SA) and Suaeda japonica (SJ) and the unvegetated mud flat (UMF) of the Ganghwa intertidal wetland (a,b).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Invasive Spartina anglica Greatly Alters the Rates and Pathways of Organic Carbon Oxidation and Associated Microbial Communities in an Intertidal Wetland of the Han River Estuary, Yellow Sea

Cho

Jung

et al. 2020

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Biogeochemical process studies and molecular microbiological analyses were applied to assess the effect of invasive Spartina anglica (SA) on organic carbon (C org ) oxidation pathways and microbial community structures in intertidal sediments vegetated by the indigenous marsh plant Suaeda japonica (SJ) and unvegetated mud flats (UMF). Invasive S. anglica possessed 10 times the below-ground biomass of native S. japonica, which was responsible for releasing a substantial amount of labile dissolved organic matter and creating relatively oxidized conditions at the SA site. As a result, microbial metabolic activities measured by rates of anaerobic C org oxidation, iron reduction (FeR) and sulfate reduction (SR) appeared to be greater at SA site compared with the SJ and UMF sites. SR was the dominant anaerobic respiration pathway at a depth of 0-10 cm for vegetated sediments, but the contribution of FeR to C org oxidation was exceptionally high in the rhizosphere of the vegetated sites, comprising 60% and 70% of anaerobic C org oxidation of SA and SJ, respectively. The iron turnover rate at the rhizosphere was 3 times higher at SA site (0.063 d −1 ) compared with the SJ site (0.023 d −1 ), indicating that the denser root system of invasive S. anglica greatly accelerates iron cycling. Bacterial communities based on 16S rRNA genes analysis revealed that members in Desulfuromonadaceae related to the reduction of FeOOH and S 0 were highly abundant at the relatively oxidized SA site, whereas Desulfobulbaceae, which are known as sulfate reducers, were more dominant at the relatively reduced SJ site. Similarly, two sulfur-oxidizing bacteria groups with different eco-physiological strategies thrived in each of the two vegetated sites. Thioprofundaceae in the Gammaproteobacteria were the predominant S-oxidizers at the less-reduced SA site, whereas Sulfurovum in the Epsilonproteobacteria dominated at the relatively reduced SJ site. Our results suggest that an invasion of tall S. anglica and its subsequent displacement of native S. japonica would greatly alter the biogeochemical C-Fe-S cycles and associated microbial communities, which ultimately generate multidirectional variations in ecological and biogeochemical processes in coastal ecosystems.

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“…Knowledge of crab digging behavior and their burrow morphology is key to accurately calculating crab excavation volume (Bang and Lee, 2019). The daily excavation volume of crabs and burrow morphological parameters, such as maximum length and crab burrow volume, are vital for estimating their ability to turnover sediments.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Crab contributions as an ecosystem engineer to sediment turnover in the Yellow River Delta

Xie

Wang

et al. 2022

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Burrowing crabs are widely distributed and have large populations in estuarine wetlands. Crab excavation can have potentially significant bioturbation effects on the vertical structure of sediments, and the processes of nutrients deposition and mineralization. However, the effects of crab micro activities on the geochemical cycling processes of the whole estuarine ecosystems are not clear, specifically the contributions of burrowing crabs to sediment and nutrients turnover in coastal ecosystems. Due to the lack of knowledge on crab burrowing behavior and borrow morphology, it is difficult to accurately estimate the excavation and turnover volumes of crabs. Therefore, this study examined the bioturbation activity of the crab Helice tientsinensis in western Pacific estuary ecosystems by analyzing their burrow morphology and local sediment properties. The common burrow shapes of Helice tientsinensis were J- and Y-shaped burrows. Burrow morphological characteristics such as total burrow depth, curve burrow length, burrow volume, and opening diameter significantly differed among tidal zones. Crab carapace size, water depth, soil hardness, and bulk density were the main factors driving burrow morphology. Sediment excavation by crabs was ~50 times greater than the deposition of sediment into crab burrows. The net transported amounts of sediment (31.66–33.18 g·d-1·m-2) and nutrients (total nitrogen: 0.075–0.090 g·d-1·m-2, total carbon: 3.96–4.55 g·d-1·m-2, and organic matter: 0.44–0.77 g·d-1·m-2) were mainly from the belowground sediment to the surface. These results highlighted the important role of crabs in sediment and nutrients cycling within coastal estuary ecosystems.

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Differences in crab burrowing and halophyte growth by habitat types in a Korean salt marsh

Cited by 16 publications

References 52 publications

Randomly Distributed Crab Burrows Enhance Groundwater Flow and Salt Transport in Creek‐Marsh Systems

Randomly Distributed Crab Burrows Enhance Groundwater Flow and Salt Transport in Creek‐Marsh Systems

Invasive Spartina anglica Greatly Alters the Rates and Pathways of Organic Carbon Oxidation and Associated Microbial Communities in an Intertidal Wetland of the Han River Estuary, Yellow Sea

Crab contributions as an ecosystem engineer to sediment turnover in the Yellow River Delta

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