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Water use patterns of estuarine vegetation in a tidal creek system

  • Community ecology - Original research
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Abstract

Water availability is a key determinant of the zonation patterns in estuarine vegetation, but water availability and the use of different water sources over space and time are not well understood. We have determined the seasonal water use patterns of riparian vegetation over an estuarine ecotone. Our aim was to investigate how the water use patterns of estuarine vegetation respond to variations in the availability of tidal creek water and rain-derived freshwater. The levels of natural stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen were assessed in the stem of the mangrove Avicennia marina (tall and scrub growth forms), Casuarina glauca and Melaleuca quinquenervia that were distributed along transects from river/creek-front towards inland habitats. The isotopic composition of plant tissues and the potential water sources were assessed in both the wet season, when freshwater from rainfall is present, and the dry season, when mangrove trees are expected to be more dependent on tidal water, and when Casuarina and Melaleuca are expected to be dependent on groundwater. Our results indicate that rainwater during the wet season contributes significantly to estuarine vegetation, even to creek-side mangroves which are inundated by tidal creek water daily, and that estuarine vegetation depends primarily on freshwater throughout the year. In contrast, high intertidal scrub mangroves were found to use the greatest proportion of tidal creek water, supplemented by groundwater in the dry season. Contrary to prediction, inland trees C. glauca and M. quinquenervia were found also to rely predominantly on rainwater—even in the dry season. The results of this study reveal a high level of complexity in vegetation water use in estuarine settings.

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Acknowledgments

This work is supported by the National Centre of Excellence for Groundwater Research and Training. We thank Vicki Bennion, Ming Chen and Nadia Gonzalez for sampling assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Centre for Groundwater Research and Training, Canberra, Australia

    Lili Wei, David A. Lockington, Seng-Chee Poh, Massimo Gasparon & Catherine E. Lovelock

  2. School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

    Lili Wei & Catherine E. Lovelock

  3. School of Civil Engineering, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

    Lili Wei & David A. Lockington

  4. School of Earth Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

    Seng-Chee Poh & Massimo Gasparon

  5. Department of Chemical Sciences, University Malaysia Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia

    Seng-Chee Poh

Authors
  1. Lili Wei
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  2. David A. Lockington
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  3. Seng-Chee Poh
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  4. Massimo Gasparon
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  5. Catherine E. Lovelock
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Correspondence to Lili Wei.

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Communicated by Marilyn Ball.

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Wei, L., Lockington, D.A., Poh, SC. et al. Water use patterns of estuarine vegetation in a tidal creek system. Oecologia 172, 485–494 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-012-2495-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-012-2495-5

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