Abstract
A transect along the axis of the headwaters of a tidal estuary was sampled for microbial, nutrient, and physical parameters. Chlorophylla averaged 42μg 1−1 and phytoplankton comprised an estimated 80% of the total microbial biomass as determined by adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Bacterial concentrations ranged from 0.3–53.9×106 cells ml−1 and comprised about 4% of the total living microbial biomass. Bacterial production, determined by3H-methyl-thymidine incorporation was about 0.05–2.09× 109 cells 1−1 h−1, with specific growth rates of 0.26–1.69 d−1. Most bacterial production was retained on 0.2μm pore size filters, but passed through 1.0μm filters. Significant positive correlations were found between all biomass measures and most nutrient measures with the exception of dissolved inorganic nitrogen nutrients where correlations were negative. Seasonal variability was evident in all parameters and variability among the stations was evident in most. The results suggest that bacterial production requires a significant carbon input, likely derived from autotrophic production, and that microbial trophic interactions are important.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American Public Health Association (1976) Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater. 14th ed. Washington, D.C.
Azam F, Fenchel T, Field JG, Gray JS, Meyer-Reil LA, Thingstad F (1983) The ecological role of water-column microbes in the sea. Mar Ecol Progr Ser 10:257–263
Bell CR, Albright LJ (1981) Attached and free-floating bacteria in the Fraser River Estuary, British Columbia, Canada. Mar Ecol Progr Ser 6:317–327
Bell CR, Albright LJ (1982) Attached and free-floating bacteria in a diverse selection of water bodies. Appl Environ Microbiol 43:1227–1237
Bell RT, Ahlgren GM, Ahlgren I (1983) Estimating bacterioplankton production by measuring [3H] thymidine incorporation in a eutrophic Swedish lake. Appl Environ Microbiol 45:1709–1721
Burney CM, Sieburth J McN (1977) Dissolved carbohydrates in seawater. II. A spectrophotometric procedure for total carbohydrate analysis and polysaccharide estimation. Mar Chem 5:15–28
Correll D (1975) The Rhode River program. In: Estuarine Pollution Control and Assessment. Vol I. Environmental Protection Agency Symposium. Pensacola, Florida, pp 19–27
Dobbs RA, Williams RT (1963) Elimination of chloride interference in the chemical oxygen demand test. Anal Chem 35:1064–1067
Ducklow HW (1982) Chesapeake Bay nutrient and plankton dynamics. I. Bacterial biomass and production during spring tidal destratification in the York River, Virginia estuary. Limnol Oceanogr 27:651–659
Faust MA, Correll DL (1976) Comparison of bacterial and algal utilization of orthophosphate in an estuarine environment. Mar Biol 34:151–162
Faust MA, Correll DL (1977) Autoradiographic study to determine metabolically active phytoplankton and bacteria in the Rhode River estuary. Mar Biol 41:293–305
Ferguson RL, Rublee P (1976) Contribution of bacteria to standing crop of coastal plankton. Limnol Oceanogr 21:141–145
Fuhrman JA, Azam F (1980) Bacterioplankton secondary production estimates for coastal waters of British Columbia, Antarctica, and California. Appl Environ Microbiol 39:1085–1095
Fuhrman JA, Azam F (1982) Thymidine incorporation as a measure of heterotrophic bacterioplankton production in marine surface waters: evaluation and field results. Mar Biol 66:109–120
Haines EB (1979) Interactions between Georgia salt marshes and coastal waters: a changing paradigm. In: Livingston RJ (ed) Ecological processes in coastal and marine systems. Plenum Press, New York, pp 35–46
Hanson RB, Wiebe WJ (1977) Heterotrophic activity associated with particulate size fractions in a Spartina alterniflora salt marsh estuary, Sapelo Island, Georgia, USA, and continental shelf waters. Mar Biol 42:321–330
Hobbie JE, Daley RJ, Jasper S (1977) Use of nuclepore filters for counting bacteria by fluorescence microscopy. Appl Environ Microbiol 33:1225–1228
Holm-Hansen O, Booth CR (1966) The measurement of adenosine triphosphate in the ocean and its ecological significance. Limnol Oceanogr 11:510–519
Johnson KM, Sieburth J McN (1977) Dissolved carbohydrates in seawater. I. A precise spectrophotometric analysis for monosaccharides. Mar Chem 5:1–13
King EJ (1932) The colorimetric determination of phosphorus. Biochem J 26:292–297
Kirchman D, Mitchell R (1982) Contribution of particle-bound bacteria to total microheterotrophic activity in five ponds and two marshes. Appl Environ Microbiol 43:200–209
Kirchman D, Ducklow H, Mitchell R (1982) Estimates of bacterial growth from changes in uptake rates and biomass. Appl Environ Microbiol 44:1296–1307
Maciolek JA (1962) Limnological organic analyses by quantitative dichromate oxidation. Fish Wild Serv Publ
Meyer-Reil L (1977) Bacterial growth rates and biomass production. In: Rheinheimer G (ed) Microbial ecology of a brackish water environment. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, pp 223–236
Newell SY, Fallon RD (1982) Bacterial productivity in the water column and sediments of the Georgia (USA) coastal zone: estimates via direct counting and parallel measurement of thymidine incorporation. Microb Ecol 8:33–46
Nixon SW (1981) Remineralization and nutrient cycling in coastal marine ecosystems. In: Neilson BJ, Bronin LE (eds) Estuaries and nutrients. Humana Press, Inc, pp 111–138
North BB (1975) Primary amines in California coastal waters: utilization by phytoplankton. Limnol Oceanogr 20:20–27
Owens TG, King FD (1975) The measurement of respiratory electron transport system activity in marine Zooplankton. Mar Biol 30:27–36
Palumbo AV (1980) Dynamics of bacterioplankton in the Newport River Estuary. PhD Thesis, North Carolina State University, Raleigh
Rublee PA, Merkel SM, Faust MA (in press) Nutrient flux in the Rhode River: tidal transport of microorganisms in brackish marshes. Est Coastal Shelf Sci
Rublee PA, Merkel SM, Faust MA (1983) Transport of bacteria in the sediments of a temperate marsh. Est Coastal Shelf Sci 16:501–509
Sawyer TK, MacLean SA, Coats W, Hilfiker M, Riordan P, Small EB (1976) Species diversity among sarcodine protozoa from Rhode River, Maryland following tropical storm Agnes. In: CRC Publ No 54, The effects of tropical storm Agnes on the Chesapeake Bay estuarine system, pp 531–543
Shoaf WT, Lium BW (1976) Improved extraction of chlorophylla andb from algae using dimethyl sulfoxide. Limnol Oceanogr 21:926–928
Strickland JDH (1960) Measuring the production of marine phytoplankton. Bull Fish Res Bd Canada 122:1–172
Taft JL, Taylor WR (1976) Phosphorus dynamics in some coastal plain estuaries. In: Wiley M (ed) Estuarine processes. Academic Press, New York, pp 79–90
Williams PJ leB (1981) Incorporation of microheterotrophic processes into the classical paradigm of the planktonic food web. Kiel Meeresfor Sonderh 5:1–28
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Rublee, P.A., Merkel, S.M., Faust, M.A. et al. Distribution and activity of bacteria in the headwaters of the Rhode River Estuary, Maryland, USA. Microb Ecol 10, 243–255 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02010938
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02010938