Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

High Vertical Resolution Sampling in Density Interfaces of Estuaries and River Plumes

  • Published:
Estuaries and Coasts Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

One of the most common procedures for studying the physical and biochemical processes in highly stratified areas, such as estuaries or river plumes (which can be very thin surface layers), is to take water samples and analyze them in a laboratory. To acquire samples in these areas with enough vertical resolution to describe the major changes in the physical and biochemical parameters that can occur near the density interface is often difficult. This paper presents two devices designed to take samples with high vertical resolution in density interfaces. The first device is for sampling in plumes and regions of freshwater influence and is based on the ones presented in Naudin et al. (Journal of Marine Systems 28:203–227, 2001) and Durand et al. (Continental Shelf Research 22:267–284, 2002). This device was able to obtain an accurate description of the river plume's vertical structure, although the plume was extremely thin, <1m (Sierra et al., Continental Shelf Research 22:361–378, 2002). The second device, designed by the authors, is for sampling in estuarine interfaces. Both devices are able to take water samples at selected depths with the desired level of resolution. In this paper, some of the water samples acquired in the Ebro estuary and plume using these sampling devices are presented. To show the potential of these devices, some phosphorous data, acquired using them are compared with data obtained during previous campaigns using sampling methods that did not allow this level of resolution. Phosphorous has been selected to show the comparison as it is the limiting nutrient in most Mediterranean areas. This comparison shows peaks in the estuarine interface (also detected for other chemical and biological properties), which indicate processes (e.g., trapping of settled particulate matter, nutrient mineralization, etc.) in the interface that could not be identified in the previous campaigns and that could be analyzed with accuracy with this sampling technology. Additional and significant advantages of these devices are their low cost, their simplicity of manufacture, and the swiftness of sample acquisition. This illustrates the utility of the devices presented herein.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • APHA. 1998. Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater. Washington: American Public Health Association, American Water Works Association, Water Environment Federation, 1108 pp.

  • Boicourt, W.C., S.-Y. Chao, H.W. Ducklow, P.M. Glibert, T.C. Malone, M.R. Roman, L.P. Sanford, J.A. Fuhrman, C. Garside, and R.W. Garvine. 1987. Physics and microbial ecology of a buoyant estuarine plume on the continental shelf. EOS 68: 666–668.

    Google Scholar 

  • Caccione, D.A., D.E. Drake, M.A. Losada, and R. Medina. 1990. Bottom-boundary layer measurements on the continental shelf off the Ebro River, Spain. Marine Geology 95: 179–192.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chamberlin, W.S., C.R. Booth, D.A. Kiefer, J.H. Morrow, and R.C. Murphy. 1990. Evidence for a simple relationship between natural fluorescence, photosynthesis and chlorophyll in the sea. Deep-Sea Research 37: 951–973.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Clark, L.B., C.J. Gobler, and S.A. Sañudo-Wilhemy. 2006. Spatial and temporal dynamics of dissolved trace metals, organic carbon, mineral nutrients, and phytoplankton in a coastal lagoon: Great South Bay, New York. Estuaries and Coasts 29: 841–854.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Colbert, D., and J. McManus. 2003. Nutrient biogeochemistry in an upwelling-influenced estuary of the Pacific Northwest (Tillamook Bay, Oregon, USA). Estuaries 26: 1205–1219.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Doherty, K.W., D.E. Frye, S.P. Liberatore, and J.M. Toole. 1999. A moored profiling instrument. Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology 16: 1816–1829.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Durand, N., A. Fiandrino, P. Fraunié, S. Ouillon, P. Forget, and J.J. Naudin. 2002. Suspended matter dispersion in the Ebro ROFI: an integrated approach. Continental Shelf Research 22: 267–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Estrada, M.. 1996. Primary production in the northwestern Mediterranean. Scientia Marina 60Suppl 2: 50–64.

    Google Scholar 

  • Falco, S. 2003. Comportamiento de los nutrientes en un estuario estratificado: Caso del Delta del Ebro. Ph.D. Thesis, Universitat Politècnica de Valencia, 292 pp.

  • Fichez, R., T.D. Jickells, and H.M. Edmunds. 1992. Algal blooms in high turbidity, a result of the conflicting consequences of turbulence on nutrient cycling in a shallow water estuary. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 35: 577–593.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Flegal, A.R., G.J. Smith, G.A. Gill, S. Sañudo-Wilhemy, and L.C.D. Anderson. 1991. Dissolved trace element cycles in the San Francisco Bay estuary. Marine Chemistry 36: 329–363.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • García, M.A., A. Sánchez-Arcilla, J.P. Sierra, J. Sospedra, and J. Gómez. 1993. Wind waves off the Ebro Delta, NW Mediterranean. Journal of Marine Systems 4: 235–262.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Honji, H., A. Kaneko, and K. Kawatate. 1987. Self-governing profiling system. Continental Shelf Research 7: 1257–1265.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ibáñez, C., D. Pont, and N. Prats. 1997. Characterization of the Ebre and Rhone estuaries: a basis for defining and classifying salt-wedge estuaries. Limnology and Oceanography 42: 89–101.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jouanneau, J.M., and C. Latouche. 1982. Estimation of fluxes to the ocean from mega-tidal estuaries under moderate climates and the problems they present. Hydrobiologia 91: 23–29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kiefer, D.A.. 1973. Fluorescence properties of natural phytoplankton populations. Marine Biology 22: 263–269.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kistner, D.A., and N.R. Pettigrew. 2001. A variable turbidity maximum in the Kennebec estuary, Maine. Estuaries 24: 680–687.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Klug, J.L.. 2006. Nutrient limitation in the lower Housatonic River estuary. Estuaries and Coasts 29: 831–840.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Krom, M.D., N. Kress, S. Brenner, and L.I. Gorden. 1991. Phosphorus limitation of primary productivity in the eastern Mediterranean sea. Limnology and Oceanography 363: 424–432.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Luettich, R.A., W.W. Kirby-Smith, and W. Hunnings. 1993. PSWIMS, a profiling instrument system for remote physical and chemical measurements in shallow water. Estuaries 16: 190–197.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Madden, C.J. 1992. Control of phytoplankton production in a shallow, turbid estuary. Ph.D. thesis, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 195 pp.

  • Madden, C.J., and J.W. Day. 1992. An instrument system for high-speed mapping of chlorophyll a and physico-chemical variables in surface waters. Estuaries 15: 421–427.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Madden, C.J., J.W. Day, and J.M. Randall. 1988. Freshwater and marine coupling in estuaries of the Mississippi Rive deltaic plan. Limnology and Oceanography 33: 982–1004.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Morris, A.W., A.J. Bale, and R.J.M. Howland. 1981. Nutrient distributions in an estuary: evidence of chemical precipitation of dissolved silicate and phosphate. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 12: 205–216.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Morrison, A.T., J.D. Billings, K.W. Doherty, and J.M. Toole. 2000. The MvLane moored profiler: a platform for physical, biological and chemical oceanographic measurements. Proceedings of the Oceanology International 2000 Conference, Brighton, UK, 397–414.

  • Naudin, J.J., G. Cauwet, C. Fajon, L. Oriol, S. Terzic, J.L. Devenon, and P. Broche. 2001. Effect of mixing on microbial communities in the Rhone River plume. Journal of Marine Systems 28: 203–227.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pettigrew, N.R., D.W. Townsend, H. Xue, J.P. Wallinga, P.J. Brickley, and R.D. Hetland. 1998. Observations of the Eastern Maine Coastal Current and its offshore extentions in 1994. Journal of Geophysical Research 103: 30623–30639.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Purcell, M., T. Austin, R. Stokey, C. von Alt, and K. Prada. 1997. A vertical profiling system for making oceanographic measurements in coastal waters. Proceedings of Oceans'97 Conference, Columbia, Maryland, 219–224.

  • Reynolds-Fleming, J.V., J.G. Fleming, and R.A. Luettich. 2002. Portable autonomous vertical profiler for estuarine applications. Estuaries 25: 142–147.

    Google Scholar 

  • Romero, I. 2003. Comportamiento de nutrientes en la pluma del Río Ebro. Ph.D. Thesis, Universitat Politècnica de Valencia, 583 pp.

  • Sanford, L.P., S.E. Suttles, and J.P. Halka. 2001. Reconsidering the physics of the Chesapeake Bay estuarine turbidity maximum. Estuaries 24: 655–669.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Setser, P.J., N.L. Guisano, N.L. Condra, D.A. Weisenburg, and D.R. Schink. 1983. A deep-towed pumping system for continuous underway sampling. Environmental Science and Technology 17: 47–49.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sierra, J.P., A. Sánchez-Arcilla, J. González del Río, J. Flos, E. Movellán, C. Mösso, R. Martínez, M. Rodilla, S. Falco, and I. Romero. 2002. Spatial distribution of nutrients in the Ebro estuary and plume. Continental Shelf Research 22: 361–378.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sierra, J.P., A. Sánchez-Arcilla, P.A. Figueras, J. González del Río, E.K. Rassmussen, and C. Mösso. 2004. Effects of discharge reductions on SALT wedge dynamics of the Ebro river. River Research and Applications 20: 61–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thingstad, T.F., U. Li-Zweifel, and F. Rassoulzadegan. 1998. P limitation of heterotrophic bacteria and phytoplankton in the northwest Mediterranean. Limnology and Oceanography 431: 88–94.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Townsend, D.W., N.R. Pettigrew, and A.C. Thomas. 2001. Offshore blooms of the red tide dinoflagellate, Alexandrium sp., in the Gulf of Maine. Continental Shelf Research 21: 347–369.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Townsend, D.W., N.R. Pettigrew, and A.C. Thomas. 2005. On the nature of Alexandrium fundyense blooms in the Gulf of Maine. Deep-Sea Research Part 2 52: 2603–2630.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Treguer, P., and P. Le Corre. 1975. Manuel d'analyse des sels nutritifs dans l'eau de mer. Brest, France: Université de Bretagne Occidentale110 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vollenweider, R.A., A. Rinaldi, R. Viviani and, E. Todini. 1996. Assessment of the state of eutrophication in the Mediterranean sea. MAP Technical Reports Series no. 106. UNEP., Athens.

  • Wong, M.W., and D.W. Townsend. 1999. Phytoplankton and hydrography of the Kennebec estuary, Maine, USA. Marine Ecology Progress Series 178: 133–144.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work has been funded by the project “Preparation and integration of analysis tools towards operational forecast of nutrients in estuaries of European rivers (PIONEER)” from the EU programme MAST-3 (reference no. MAS3-CT98-0170). The authors also wish to acknowledge the support given to this work by the project FANS from the EC MAST-III Research Programme (contract no. MAS3-CT95-0037) and the CYTMAR Programme from the Spanish Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología (project MAR96-1856). Special thanks to Fernando Sánchez from EOSGIS S.L. for his kind collaboration.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratori d’ Enginyeria Marítima (LIM), Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), Campus Nord, Edifici D-1, c. Jordi Girona 1-3, 08034, Barcelona, Spain

    C. Mösso, J.P. Sierra & A. Sánchez-Arcilla

  2. Grupo de Evaluación de Impacto Ambiental, Universitat Politècnica de Valencia (UPV), Camino de Vera s/n, 46022, Valencia, Spain

    M. Rodilla, I. Romero, S. Falco & J. González del Río

Authors
  1. C. Mösso
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. J.P. Sierra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. M. Rodilla
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. I. Romero
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. S. Falco
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. J. González del Río
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. A. Sánchez-Arcilla
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to C. Mösso.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Mösso, C., Sierra, J., Rodilla, M. et al. High Vertical Resolution Sampling in Density Interfaces of Estuaries and River Plumes. Estuaries and Coasts: J CERF 31, 258–268 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-007-9009-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-007-9009-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation