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Winter Nutrient Pulse and Seagrass Epiphyte Bloom: Evidence of Anthropogenic Enrichment or Natural Fluctuations in the Lower Florida Keys?

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Abstract

Nutrient enrichment continues to disrupt marine ecosystem function worldwide. Assessing eutrophication in seagrass ecosystems such as the Great White Heron National Wildlife Refuge (GWHNWR), Florida Keys is critical for protecting the diverse community that depends on the intertidal and subtidal seagrass beds. We quantified water column nutrients, chlorophyll a, tissue nutrients in macroalgae and Thalassia testudinum, and epiphyte percent cover on seagrasses on tidal flats seasonally over 1 year at three sites: Howe Key, Water Keys, and Upper Harbor Key. Water column nutrients (total nitrogen, total phosphorus, nitrate–nitrite, ammonium, dissolved inorganic nitrogen, dissolved organic nitrogen, soluble reactive phosphorus, dissolved organic phosphorus) increased from fall to winter at Water Keys. These increased nutrients coincided with a bloom of the epiphyte Spyridia filamentosa on seagrasses that exceeded 40 % cover at Water Keys and Upper Harbor Key in two consecutive seasons. Seagrasses at all sites had chronic percent cover of small epiphytes exceeding 60 %. Additionally, low δ13C in T. testudinum tissues at Upper Harbor Key compared to the other sites suggested variations in carbon sources across the study area. Spatial patterns in macrophyte nitrogen-to-phosphorus (N:P) ratios point to sources of nutrients from the inhabited islands of the Keys and from the Gulf of Mexico. Water column total nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations exceeded the numeric nutrient criteria for the study area suggesting that the area should be monitored closely.

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Acknowledgments

Funding for this study was provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Florida Atlantic University and the Save Our Seas Florida State License Plate program and the Great White Heron National Wildlife Refuge. This is contribution number 1949 from Florida Atlantic University’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute. We appreciate the support of the staff at the Florida Keys Refuge complex, especially Thomas Wilmers and Phillip Hughes, and Mote Marine Lab on Summerland Key. We thank the four reviewers for their constructive feedback that greatly improved this manuscript. We acknowledge the National Oceanographic Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) and the National Ocean Service for use of the DEM. We are grateful to Leonardo Calle, Kelsey Doyle, Laura Herren, and Stacey Kalwies-Foster for their assistance in the field.

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  1. Lauri Green

    Present address: US Environmental Protection Agency, 2111 SE Marine Sciences Dr., Newport, OR, 97366, USA

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  1. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Florida Atlantic University, 5600 US Hwy 1, Fort Pierce, FL, 34946, USA

    Lauri Green & Brian E. Lapointe

  2. Environmental Science Program, Florida Atlantic University, 777 Glades Rd, Boca Raton, FL, 33431, USA

    Dale E. Gawlik

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Green, L., Lapointe, B.E. & Gawlik, D.E. Winter Nutrient Pulse and Seagrass Epiphyte Bloom: Evidence of Anthropogenic Enrichment or Natural Fluctuations in the Lower Florida Keys?. Estuaries and Coasts 38, 1854–1871 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-015-9940-8

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