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Tide-Induced Variations in the Fatty Acid Composition of Estuarine Particulate Organic Matter

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Abstract

The particulate organic matter (POM) in hydrodynamically variable habitats such as the lower reaches of estuaries can change in its content and quality on very short time scales (example, hourly), and these changes can potentially influence higher-level consumers in river-estuary-marine systems. Estuarine water samples were collected hourly for 12 h downstream in a small river to evaluate the fatty acid composition of POM over a tidal cycle. Fatty acid constituents of POM collected during the flood tide were dominated by the saturated, higher plant and bacterial fatty acids, whereas unsaturated, polyunsaturated, essential, and diatom-associated fatty acids dominated the POM collected during the ebb tide. Elevated algal biomass (as indicated by high chlorophyll a concentrations), diatom, and freshness indices in the POM indicated enhanced fresh autochthonous-origin materials that dominated the mixed organic pool during the ebb tide compared to more degraded detritus during the flood tide. Tidal retention of organic matter and algal primary production were the most influential factors that differentiated the fatty acid composition of estuarine POM over the short time scale. The results of this study have important implications on the quality of POM at the time of sampling, especially in estuaries where mixed organic pools have multiple inputs and are strongly influenced by tidal cycles.

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Acknowledgments

E.S.A. and the research were funded by the South African National Research Foundation and Rhodes University. The comments and suggestions by the anonymous reviewers and the editor that greatly improved the quality of this paper are greatly appreciated. We are grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Tyson for the use of their backyard as our temporary field laboratory in Port Alfred. We thank G. Schaal and R.T. Ndhlovu for the assistance during sampling and B. Hubbart, L. Chari and S. Moyo for the technical assistance.

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  1. Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, 6140, South Africa

    Emily S. Antonio & Nicole B. Richoux

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  1. Emily S. Antonio
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  2. Nicole B. Richoux
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Correspondence to Emily S. Antonio.

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Communicated by Marianne Holmer

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Antonio, E.S., Richoux, N.B. Tide-Induced Variations in the Fatty Acid Composition of Estuarine Particulate Organic Matter. Estuaries and Coasts 39, 1072–1083 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-015-0049-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-015-0049-x

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