Abstract
More than 98% of the detrital material exported from the investigated Gulf Coast salt marsh is made up of amorphous aggregates. These detrital aggregates, averaging 25–50 µm in diameter, are produced by the benthic microflora of the marsh, rather than by microbial decomposition of the dominant vascular plant Juncus roemerianus as the prevailing view holds. Rising tides lift films of the aggregate material from the dense community of benthic algae that carpet the mud surface of the marsh. Ebbing tides transport the floating films into the tidal creeks where even mild water surface disturbances effect the dispersal of the films, which then sink as detrital aggregates into the water column. Ebb tides occurring during daylight hours carry larger quantities of detrital aggregates than tides that ebb during darkness. Detrital aggregate production follows an annual cycle with high production rates in late summer and low rates in the winter. Vascular plant tissue is decomposed beneath the layer of benthic algae and is retained in the marsh. Previously accepted concepts that stress the role of the decomposers in the production of detritus in tidal marshes are examined.
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Ribelin, B.W., Collier, A.W. (1979). Ecological Considerations of Detrital Aggregates in the Salt Marsh. In: Livingston, R.J. (eds) Ecological Processes in Coastal and Marine Systems. Marine Science, vol 10. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-9146-7_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-9146-7_4
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