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| Publication Type | J |
| Authors | Fraser, MW; Kendrick, GA; Grierson, PF; Fourqurean, JW; Vanderklift, MA; Walker, DI |
| Author Full Name | Fraser, Matthew W.; Kendrick, Gary A.; Grierson, Pauline F.; Fourqurean, James W.; Vanderklift, Mathew A.; Walker, Diana I. |
| Title | Nutrient status of seagrasses cannot be inferred from system-scale distribution of phosphorus in Shark Bay, Western Australia |
| Source | MARINE AND FRESHWATER RESEARCH |
| Language | English |
| Document Type | Article |
| Author Keywords | Amphibolis antarctica; calcareous; carbonate; C : N : P ratios; Halodule uninervis; river floods; salinity |
| Keywords Plus | N-P RATIOS; THALASSIA-TESTUDINUM; FLORIDA BAY; AMPHIBOLIS-ANTARCTICA; RELATIVE AVAILABILITY; POSIDONIA-AUSTRALIS; COASTAL EMBAYMENT; MASS-BALANCE; NITROGEN; LIMITATION |
| Abstract | Differences in phosphorus (P) availability can influence the ecology and physiology of seagrass communities; and are usually inferred from changes in the relative P content in seagrass leaves. Shark Bay is a subtropical marine embayment, with decreasing P concentrations in the water column and sediments from north to south across the entire embayment. We examined the P and nitrogen (N) content of seagrass leaves and P content of sediments across the Faure Sill and Wooramel delta region of Shark Bay, to determine whether the leaf content of seagrasses in Shark Bay also decreased from north to south over smaller spatial scales. Nutrient content of Amphibolis antarctica and Halodule uninervis were highly variable and were not strongly correlated with sediment P concentrations. Mean N: P ratios of seagrasses (<33.5) were not indicative of P limitation, as has been previously assumed for Shark Bay. We conclude that availability of P for uptake by seagrasses across Shark Bay may be highly localised and cannot be predicted from system-scale gradients (>100 km) of sedimentary P distributions. We suggest that P availability to seagrasses is more likely a complex function of differing nutrient inputs, rates of delivery to the plants and cycling rates. |
| Author Address | [Fraser, Matthew W.; Kendrick, Gary A.; Walker, Diana I.] Univ Western Australia, Sch Plant Biol, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia; [Fraser, Matthew W.; Kendrick, Gary A.; Walker, Diana I.] Univ Western Australia, UWA Oceans Inst, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia; [Grierson, Pauline F.] Univ Western Australia, Sch Plant Biol, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia; [Grierson, Pauline F.] Univ Western Australia, Ecosyst Res Grp, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia; [Fourqurean, James W.] Florida Int Univ, SE Environm Res Ctr, N Miami, FL 33181 USA; [Fourqurean, James W.] Florida Int Univ, Dept Biol Sci, N Miami, FL 33181 USA; [Vanderklift, Mathew A.] CSIRO Wealth Oceans Flagship, Wembley, WA 6913, Australia |
| Reprint Address | Fraser, MW (reprint author), Univ Western Australia, Sch Plant Biol, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia. |
| E-mail Address | matthew.fraser@uwa.edu.au |
| ResearcherID Number | Fourqurean, James/B-4606-2008; Kendrick, Gary/B-3460-2011; Grierson, Pauline/A-9240-2008; Vanderklift, Mathew/B-1003-2008; Fraser, Matthew/K-5302-2012 |
| ORCID Number | Fourqurean, James/0000-0002-0811-8500; Kendrick, Gary/0000-0002-0276-6064; Grierson, Pauline/0000-0003-2135-0272; Fraser, Matthew/0000-0003-2309-8074 |
| Funding Agency and Grant Number | NHT-II Caring for Country Project; Ray Hart Memorial Scholarship; School of Plant Biology, UWA; UWA Gledden Fellowship; NSF [DBI-0620409, OCE-0745606] |
| Funding Text | A NHT-II Caring for Country Project Grant coordinated by Western Australian Marine Science Institute, and awarded to DIW, GAK and MAV funded this research. Additional funding for MWF was received through the Ray Hart Memorial Scholarship, and an Honours grant from the School of Plant Biology, UWA. JWF was supported by a UWA Gledden Fellowship and a supplement to the Florida Coastal Everglades LTER program sponsored by NSF (DBI-0620409) during the study. Logistical support for this work was provided by the Shark Bay Ecosystem Research Project under the direction of Michael Heithaus, funded by NSF (OCE-0745606). We thank Fiona Parker and Doug Bearham (CSIRO), Cindy Bessey (FIU), and John Statton (UWA) for invaluable field assistance. We also thank Andrea Zavala Perez, Rhonda Hovey and Kate Bowler for assistance with sample processing and analysis. Finally, we thank two anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments. This is contribution number 580 from the Southeast Environmental Research Centre at Florida International University. |
| Cited Reference Count | 52 |
| Times Cited | 7 |
| Total Times Cited Count (WoS, BCI, and CSCD) | 8 |
| Publisher | CSIRO PUBLISHING |
| Publisher City | COLLINGWOOD |
| Publisher Address | 150 OXFORD ST, PO BOX 1139, COLLINGWOOD, VICTORIA 3066, AUSTRALIA |
| ISSN | 1323-1650 |
| 29-Character Source Abbreviation | MAR FRESHWATER RES |
| ISO Source Abbreviation | Mar. Freshw. Res. |
| Year Published | 2012 |
| Volume | 63 |
| Issue | 11 |
| Beginning Page | 1015 |
| Ending Page | 1026 |
| Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | 10.1071/MF12026 |
| Page Count | 12 |
| Web of Science Category | Fisheries; Limnology; Marine & Freshwater Biology; Oceanography |
| Subject Category | Fisheries; Marine & Freshwater Biology; Oceanography |
| Document Delivery Number | 041NU |
| Unique Article Identifier | WOS:000311409300007 |
| Plants associated with this reference |