Diurnal Oxygen Curve and Ecosystem Metabolism in an Urban Caribbean Coastal Lagoon.
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| Title: | Diurnal Oxygen Curve and Ecosystem Metabolism in an Urban Caribbean Coastal Lagoon. |
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| Authors: | Ortega-Castillo, Camilo1 (AUTHOR), Mancera-Pineda, José Ernesto1 (AUTHOR), Zea, Sven2 (AUTHOR) sezeas@unal.edu.co |
| Source: | Estuaries & Coasts. Sep2026, Vol. 49 Issue 5, p1-15. 15p. |
| Abstract: | Ecosystem metabolism, represented by primary production and respiration, is a valuable indicator of the functioning and condition (autotrophic or heterotrophic) of a water body. Coastal lagoons produce organic matter predominantly through aerobic photosynthesis, releasing oxygen, and process this autochthonous matter and the influx of allochthonous organic matter, predominantly through aerobic respiration, consuming oxygen. Therefore, dissolved oxygen represents a window into metabolic processes, and a model of the site-specific daily cycle constitutes an important tool for evaluating ecosystem condition. To develop such a model, we used La Escollera, a man-made, small and shallow tropical urban coastal lagoon surrounded by implanted mangroves, in the city of Santa Marta, Colombian Caribbean. The diurnal oxygen curve method was applied to the dissolved oxygen series obtained during the dry season. Oxygen cycled daily on average from hypoxic (< 2 mg L− 1) to normal (> 4 mg L− 1, seldom saturated), and net ecosystem production was almost always negative (mean − 3.75 g C m− 2 d− 1) owing to a high respiration (mean 6.16 g C m− 2 d− 1). The metabolic condition of the water body and its bottom was thus heterotrophic and a net carbon dioxide source. At La Escollera, the consumption of allochthonous organic matter was not coupled to primary production and therefore, the latter was exceeded by oxygen consumption. The potential contributions of turbidity, allochthonous organic matter and nutrients, in fueling bacterial biomass and production, could explain the heterotrophic metabolism that characterizes this urban coastal lagoon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Database: | Energy & Power Source |
| Abstract: | Ecosystem metabolism, represented by primary production and respiration, is a valuable indicator of the functioning and condition (autotrophic or heterotrophic) of a water body. Coastal lagoons produce organic matter predominantly through aerobic photosynthesis, releasing oxygen, and process this autochthonous matter and the influx of allochthonous organic matter, predominantly through aerobic respiration, consuming oxygen. Therefore, dissolved oxygen represents a window into metabolic processes, and a model of the site-specific daily cycle constitutes an important tool for evaluating ecosystem condition. To develop such a model, we used La Escollera, a man-made, small and shallow tropical urban coastal lagoon surrounded by implanted mangroves, in the city of Santa Marta, Colombian Caribbean. The diurnal oxygen curve method was applied to the dissolved oxygen series obtained during the dry season. Oxygen cycled daily on average from hypoxic (< 2 mg L− 1) to normal (> 4 mg L− 1, seldom saturated), and net ecosystem production was almost always negative (mean − 3.75 g C m− 2 d− 1) owing to a high respiration (mean 6.16 g C m− 2 d− 1). The metabolic condition of the water body and its bottom was thus heterotrophic and a net carbon dioxide source. At La Escollera, the consumption of allochthonous organic matter was not coupled to primary production and therefore, the latter was exceeded by oxygen consumption. The potential contributions of turbidity, allochthonous organic matter and nutrients, in fueling bacterial biomass and production, could explain the heterotrophic metabolism that characterizes this urban coastal lagoon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| ISSN: | 15592723 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s12237-026-01741-2 |
