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Net primary production and decomposition of salt marshes of the Ebre delta (Catalonia, Spain)

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Abstract

Net primary production was measured in three characteristic salt marshes of the Ebre delta: anArthrocnemum macrostachyum salt marsh,A. macrostachyum-Sarcocornia fruticosa mixed salt marsh andS. fruticosa salt marsh. Above-ground and belowground biomass were harvested every 3 mo for 1 yr. Surface litter was also collected from each plot. Aboveground biomass was estimated from an indirect non-destructive method, based on the relationship between standing biomass and height of the vegetation. Decomposition of aboveground and belowground components was studied by the disappearance of plant material from litter bags in theS. fruticosa plot. Net primary production (aboveground and belowground) was calculated using the Smalley method. Standing biomass, litter, and primary production increased as soil salinity decreased. The annual average total aboveground plus belowground biomass was 872 g m−2 in theA. macrostachyum marsh, 1,198 g m−2 in theA. macrostachyum-S. fruticosa mixed marsh, and 3,766 g m−2 in theS. fruticosa biomass (aboveground plus belowground) was 226, 445, and 1,094 g m−2, respectively. Total aboveground plus below-ground net primary production was 240, 1,172, and 1,531 g m−2 yr−1. There was an exponential loss of weight during decomposition. Woody stems and roots, the most recalcitrant material, had 70% and 83% of the original material remaining after one year. Only 20–22% of leafy stem weight remained after one year. When results from the Mediterranean are compared to other salt marshes dominated by shrubbyChenopodiaceae in Mediterranean-type climates, a number of similarities emerge. There are similar zonation patterns, with elevation and maximum aboveground biomass and primary production occurring in the middle marsh. This is probably because of stress produced by waterlogging in the low marsh and by hypersalinity in the upper marsh.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Vegetal Biology (Botany), University of Barcelona, Avda. Diagonal 645, E-08028, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

    Antoni Curcó

  2. Department of Ecology, University of Barcelona, Avda. Diagonal 645, E-08028, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

    Carles Ibàñez & Narcís Prat

  3. Department of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences and Coastal Ecology Institute, Louisiana State University, 70803, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

    John W. Day

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  1. Antoni Curcó
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Correspondence to Antoni Curcó.

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Curcó, A., Ibàñez, C., Day, J.W. et al. Net primary production and decomposition of salt marshes of the Ebre delta (Catalonia, Spain). Estuaries 25, 309–324 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02695976

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