Long-term (11 years) study of water balance, flushing times and water chemistry of a coastal wetland undergoing restoration, Everglades, Florida, USA

Sandoval, Estefania; Price, René M.; Whitman, Dean; Melesse, Assefa M.

doi:10.1016/j.catena.2016.05.007

Cited by 15 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Marine disturbances like tidal extension and saltwater intrusion are rapidly influencing coastal ecosystem biogeochemistry (Ensign and Noe , Tully et al ). Although restoration projects are increasing freshwater flows to freshwater and marine wetlands of the Everglades (Arik et al ), sea‐level rise and storm surge continue to increase saltwater intrusion throughout estuarine and brackish wetlands (Saha et al , Zapata‐Rios and Price , Sandoval et al ). Different regions of the Everglades were considerably drier and wetter than under pre‐drainage conditions, as short‐hydroperiod marshes upstream of canals have longer inundation and long‐hydroperiod marshes downstream of canals have shorter inundation periods (McVoy et al , Kominoski et al ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Disturbance legacies increase and synchronize nutrient concentrations and bacterial productivity in coastal ecosystems

Kominoski

Gaiser

Castañeda‐Moya

et al. 2020

Ecology

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Long-term ecological research can resolve effects of disturbance on ecosystem dynamics by capturing the scale of disturbance and interactions with environmental changes. To quantify how disturbances interact with long-term directional changes (sea-level rise, freshwater restoration), we studied 17 yr of monthly dissolved organic carbon (DOC), total nitrogen (TN), and phosphorus (TP) concentrations and bacterioplankton productivity across freshwater-tomarine estuary gradients exposed to multiple disturbance events (e.g., droughts, fire, hurricanes, and low-temperature anomalies) and long-term increases in water levels. By studying two neighboring drainages that differ in hydrologic connectivity, we additionally tested how disturbance legacies are shaped by hydrologic connectivity. We predicted that disturbance events would interact with long-term increases in water levels in freshwater and marine ecosystems to increase spatiotemporal similarity (i.e., synchrony) of organic matter, nutrients, and microbial activities. Wetlands along the larger, deeper, and tidally influenced Shark River Slough (SRS) drainage had higher and more variable DOC, TN, and TP concentrations than wetlands along the smaller, shallower, tidally restricted Taylor River Slough/Panhandle (TS/Ph) drainage. Along SRS, DOC concentrations declined with proximity to coast, and increased in magnitude and variability following drought and flooding in 2015 and a hurricane in 2017. Along TS/Ph, DOC concentrations varied by site (higher in marine than freshwater wetlands) but not year. In both drainages, increases in TN from upstream freshwater marshes occurred following fire in 2008 and droughts in 2010 and 2015, whereas downstream increases in TP occurred with coastal storm surge from hurricanes in 2005 and 2017. Decreases in DOC:TN and DOC:TP were explained by increased TN and TP. Increases in bacterioplankton productivity occurred throughout both drainages following lowtemperature events (2010 and 2011) and a hurricane (2017). Long-term TN and TP concentrations and bacterioplankton productivity were correlated (r > 0.5) across a range of sampling distances (1-50 km), indicating spatiotemporal synchrony. DOC concentrations were not synchronized across space or time. Our study advances disturbance ecology theory by illustrating how disturbance events interact with long-term environmental changes and hydrologic connectivity to determine the magnitude and extent of disturbance legacies. Understanding disturbance legacies will enhance prediction and enable more effective management of rapidly changing ecosystems.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Disturbance legacies increase and synchronize nutrient concentrations and bacterial productivity in coastal ecosystems

Kominoski

Gaiser

Castañeda‐Moya

et al. 2020

Ecology

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“…ENP is located at the southern terminus of the GEE flow path and encompasses an oligotrophic ecotone at the nexus of marsh and mangroves which is highly sensitive to changes in salinity and nutrients (Briceño et al, 2014; Michot et al, 2011; Rivera‐Monroy et al, 2011). SRS covers 1,700 km 2 (Saha et al, 2012) and is the primary drainage of ENP, while TS is considerably smaller, with the southern portion covering just 446 km 2 (Sandoval et al, 2016). For the freshwater marsh sites, SRS is characterized by deep organic‐rich peat soils and longer hydro‐periods, while TS sites are located in wet prairies with shallow, less organic‐rich marl soils and much shorter hydro‐periods (Obeysekera et al, 2014; Saha et al, 2012; Sandoval et al, 2016).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Inflow rates were calculated for SRS as monthly average discharge for the sum of the four S12 water control structures located along the northern border of ENP ( Figure 1). TS inflows were calculated as monthly average discharge for the sum of 23 culverts running underneath the ENP park road, following Sandoval et al (2016). Water depth values used for cumulative sum analysis were calculated from water level and surface elevation data collected from specific EDEN gages (P36 for SRS2; TSB for TS2,) rather than transect-wide spatial averages.…”

Section: Ancillary Data Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Average values of relevant hydrologic parameters for 2002-2008, based on hydrologic budgets constructed for the two studied transects, SRS (Saha et al, 2012) and TS (Sandoval et al, 2016), are presented in Table S2. Inflow and groundwater discharge values are reported from Saha et al (2012) and Sandoval et al (2016) in mm/year (discharge normalized to cross-sectional area). The two primary freshwater inputs to ENP are rainfall (natural freshwater delivery) and inflows through water control structures along the borders of ENP (managed freshwater delivery).…”

Section: Hydrologic Characteristics By Transectmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Linking Hydrology and Dissolved Organic Matter Characteristics in a Subtropical Wetland: A Long‐Term Study of the Florida Everglades

Regier

Larsen

Cawley

et al. 2020

Global Biogeochemical Cycles

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Dissolved organic matter (DOM) acts as an important biogeochemical component of aquatic ecosystems that controls nutrient cycling, influences water quality, and links terrestrial and oceanic carbon pools, yet long-term studies of how changing environmental drivers alter its abundance and composition are rare. Using a 10-year, spatially explicit data set from Everglades National Park, a globally significant wetland, we investigated the relationships between DOM quality/quantity and hydrologic/climatic drivers along two contrasting marsh-estuarine transects based on generalized linear modeling and a cumulative sums analysis. Analyses revealed distinct spatial, seasonal, and interannual patterns in variability of DOC and optical properties. Landscape-scale seasonal patterns showed an enrichment in microbial-like and protein-like DOM during the dry season relative to the wet season. While some compositional constituents varied with the solar calendar, responsive to temperature and photoperiod, others varied with the hydrologic calendar. Independent water level and discharge effects indicated strong hydrologic control on DOM quality that differed between the two transects, evidencing differences in their connectivity to areas of high agricultural activity. Across all sites, a significant long-term increasing trend in the fluorescence index was observed, associated with a positive correlation with precipitation and also potential changes in agricultural inputs, with other features associated with drought and hurricanes. Lastly, the cumulative sums analysis revealed differences between the two transects in the sensitivity of DOM composition to decreased water levels associated with 30-year climate scenarios, with the less hydrologically dynamic transect exhibiting greater potential sensitivity.

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“…On the basis of empirical measurements, the low elevation and flat topography of south Florida produces a gentle hydraulic gradient of 0.00005 for the Everglades region (Price & Swart, 2006). The near horizontal slope causes surface water to move slowly in the sloughs before it drains into Florida Bay and the Gulf of Mexico (Sandoval, 2016).…”

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the Effects of Land-Cover Change on the Hydrologic Conditions of a Restored Agricultural Area in Everglades National Park

Reio¹

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In the Florida Everglades, remodeling of natural wetlands to promote agriculture and human settlement, have profoundly altered its hydrologic regime. As a result of anthropogenic changes, many restoration programs have been initiated to restore hydrologically controlled wetland ecosystems. One such restoration project that has been ongoing for the past 27 years is the Hole-in-the-Donut restoration program in Everglades National Park. The restoration program is unique in that it utilized an unorthodox technique to restore the landscape. The viability of the restoration technique was assessed by coupling long-term hydrologic and evapotranspiration data with water chemistry analyses. Key results indicated that the restoration method did not change groundwater levels within and down gradient of the restored sites. Evapotranspiration rates were significantly reduced as a function of restoration. Concentrations of ions and nutrients were significantly different in groundwater and surface water within the restored areas compared to outside the restored areas. v

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Long-term (11 years) study of water balance, flushing times and water chemistry of a coastal wetland undergoing restoration, Everglades, Florida, USA

Cited by 15 publications

References 23 publications

Disturbance legacies increase and synchronize nutrient concentrations and bacterial productivity in coastal ecosystems

Disturbance legacies increase and synchronize nutrient concentrations and bacterial productivity in coastal ecosystems

Linking Hydrology and Dissolved Organic Matter Characteristics in a Subtropical Wetland: A Long‐Term Study of the Florida Everglades

Investigating the Effects of Land-Cover Change on the Hydrologic Conditions of a Restored Agricultural Area in Everglades National Park

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