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Response of Sediment Bacterial Communities to Sudden Vegetation Dieback in a Coastal Wetland

W. Elmer,P. Thiel,B. Steven

Published 2017 in Unknown venue

ABSTRACT

There is an increasing recognition of the role coastal vegetated ecosystems play in atmospheric carbon sequestration. However, the development of sudden vegetation dieback (SVD), a phenomenon that causes the rapid death of Spartina alterniflora, followed by no or slow recovery, has affected large-scale alterations in Atlantic coastal systems. This study reports the effects of the development of SVD on the sediment microbial communities. In 1999, Hammonasset Beach State Park in Connecticut experienced the initial appearance of SVD. After more than a decade, the plants have not recovered. Yet, sediment chemistry was similar between vegetated and SVD affected sites, with the exception of water loading, which was significantly higher in the SVD affected sites. Soil CO2 flux, a proxy for soil respiration, was reduced by 64% in SVD sites compared with sites that remained vegetated. This suggests that SVD has affected large changes in carbon cycling in the wetland sediments. The microbial communities between veg...

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