Physical environmental data from Little Lagoon, Alabama collected from 2012-2013.

Website: https://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/723993
Data Type: Other Field Results
Version: 1
Version Date: 2018-01-16

Project
» Groundwater Discharge, Benthic Coupling and Microalgal Community Structure in a Shallow Coastal Lagoon (LittleLagoonGroundwater)
ContributorsAffiliationRole
Mortazavi, BehzadNational Science Foundation (NSF-DEB)Principal Investigator, Contact
Burnett, William C.Florida State University (FSU - EOAS)Co-Principal Investigator
Ake, HannahWoods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI BCO-DMO)BCO-DMO Data Manager

Abstract
Physical environmental data from Little Lagoon, Alabama collected from 2012-2013.


Coverage

Spatial Extent: Lat:30.241929 Lon:-87.773756
Temporal Extent: 2012-02 - 2013-02

Dataset Description

Physical environmental data from Little Lagoon, Alabama.


Methods & Sampling

Little Lagoon is a shallow coastal lagoon that is tidally connected to the Gulf of Mexico but has no riverine inputs. The water in the lagoon is replenished solely from precipitation and groundwater inputs primarily on the East end (Su et al. 2012). Because of the rapid development in Baldwin County, a large amount of NO3- enters the Little Lagoon system through SGD (Murgulet & Tick 2008). In this region, there can be rapid changes in the depth to groundwater (Fig. 4.1 inset) and episodic SGD inputs to the lagoon (Su et al.2013). Within the lagoon, three sites were selected (East, Mouth, and West) to represent the gradient that exists across the lagoon from the input of groundwater. Sites were sampled on a near-monthly basis from February 2012 to February 2013.

Abiotic Parameters

At each site, point measurements of temperature, salinity, pH, and dissolved oxygen (DO) were recorded with a YSI 556 Multiparameter Meter. Triplicate sediment porewater samples were collected with a modified coring device (2.7 cm ID), sectioned at 10 mm intervals to 60 mm, and extracted in 10 mL of 1 M NaCl (Smith & Caffrey 2009) prior to filtering and freezing. The filtered (GF/F, 0.7 micron) supernatant was analyzed for DIN (NO2 -, NO3 -, NH4 +) and phosphate (PO4 3-), and represents total extractable porewater nutrients. Standard wet chemical techniques modified for the Skalar SAN+ Autoanalyzer (Pennock & Cowan 2001) were performed for all nutrient concentration analysis. Water column and sediment chlorophyll-α content were determined fluorometrically (Welschmeyer 1994) after cold extraction in 90% acetone from filters and in triplicate, respectively.

Additional methodology can be found in:

Bernard, Rebecca & Mortazavi, Behzad & A. Kleinhuizen, Alice. (2015). Dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA) seasonally dominates NO3− reduction pathways in an anthropogenically impacted sub-tropical coastal lagoon. Biogeochemistry. 125. 47-64. 10.1007/s10533-015-0111-6


Data Processing Description

Data were flagged as below detection limits if no measurable rates were returned after calculations. See equations in methodology section of:

Bernard, Rebecca & Mortazavi, Behzad & A. Kleinhuizen, Alice. (2015). Dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA) seasonally dominates NO3− reduction pathways in an anthropogenically impacted sub-tropical coastal lagoon. Biogeochemistry. 125. 47-64. 10.1007/s10533-015-0111-6

Statistical Analysis

To test the seasonal flux variability between sites in Little Lagoon, two-way ANOVAs with site and date as independent variables were performed. When data could not be transformed to meet ANOVA assumptions, Wilcoxon/Kruskal-Wallis nonparametric tests were used. When significant differences occurred, Tukey HSD or Steel-Dwass post hoc tests were used to determine significant interactions. A Principal component analysis (PCA) was conducted on all biogeochemical parameters to identify underlying multivariate components that may be influencing N fluxes. Spearman’s rho correlation analysis was used to examine the relationship between the principal components and fluxes. Statistical significance of the data set was determined at α=0.05 and error is reported as standard error. All statistical analyses were performed in SAS JMP 10 (SAS Institute Inc.).

BCO-DMO Data Processing Notes:

- Data reorganized into one table under one set of column names from both original files
- Units removed from column names
- Column names reformatted to meet BCO-DMO standards
- Created column Year to describe to capture the metadata in the file name


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Data Files

File
abiotic.csv
(Comma Separated Values (.csv), 3.83 KB)
MD5:922f79579b5c1f25ca1ddded558dbca2
Primary data file for dataset ID 723993

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Related Publications

Bernard, R. J., Mortazavi, B., & Kleinhuizen, A. A. (2015). Dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA) seasonally dominates NO3 − reduction pathways in an anthropogenically impacted sub-tropical coastal lagoon. Biogeochemistry, 125(1), 47–64. doi:10.1007/s10533-015-0111-6
Methods
Murgulet, D., & Tick, G. R. (2008). Assessing the extent and sources of nitrate contamination in the aquifer system of southern Baldwin County, Alabama. Environmental Geology, 58(5), 1051–1065. doi:10.1007/s00254-008-1585-5
Methods
Su, N., Burnett, W.C., Eller, K.T., MacIntyre, H.L., Mortazavi, B., Leifer, J., Novoveska, L. (2012). Radon and radium isotopes, groundwater discharge and harmful algal blooms in Little Lagoon, Alabama. Interdisciplinary Studies on Environmental Chemistry, 6, 329–337.
Methods
Su, N., Burnett, W.C., MacIntyre, H.L., Liefer, J.D., Peterson, R.N., Viso, R. (2013). Natural radon and radium isotopes for assessing groundwater discharge into Little Lagoon, AL: implications for harmful algal blooms. Estuaries Coasts, 1–18
Methods

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Parameters

ParameterDescriptionUnits
YearYear ID that samples were taken unitless
DateMonth and day that samples were taken; MMM-DD unitless
avg_sediment_chlaAverage sediment chlorophyll-a content from all sites miligrams per m-2
avg_sediment_chla_SEStandard error of average sediment chlorophyll-a content miligrams per m-2
avg_waterColumn_chlaAverage water column cholorphyll-a content from all sites ug L-1
avg_waterColumn_chla_SEStandard error of average water column chlorophyll-a content ug L-1
avg_temperatureAverage temperature across sites Celsius
avg_temperature_SEStandard error of average temperatures across sites Celsius
avg_salinityAverage salinity across sites PSU
avg_salinity_SEStandard error of average salinity across sites PSU
avg_waterColumn_NoxAverage water column values for nitrate plus nitrite micromoles
avg_waterColumn_Nox_SEStandard error of average water column values for nitrate plus nitrite micromoles
avg_waterColumn_NH4Average water column values for ammonium micromoles
avg_waterColumn_NH4_SEStandard error of average water column values for ammonium micromoles
avg_waterColumn_PO4Average water column values for PO4 3- micromoles
avg_waterColumn_PO4_SEStandard error of average water column values for PO4 3- micromoles
Mouth_TemperatureTemperature sampled at the site Mouth; location of site is 30.243683, -87.738407 Celsius
East_TemperatureTemperature sampled at the site East; location of site is 30.253347, -87.724729 Celsius
West_TemperatureTemperature sampled at the site West; location of site is 30.247181, -87.767856 Celsius
Mouth_SalinitySalinity at the site Mouth; location of site is 30.243683, -87.738407 PSU
East_SalinitySalinity at the site East; location of site is 30.253347, -87.724729 PSU
West_SalinitySalinity at the site West; location of site is 30.247181, -87.767856 PSU
Mouth_sediment_chlaSediment chlorophyll-a content from the site Mouth; location of site is 30.243683, -87.738407 miligrams per m-2
Mouth_sediment_chla_SEStandard error of sediment chlorophyll-a content. miligrams per m-3
East_sediment_chlaSediment chlorophyll-a content from the site East location of site is 30.253347, -87.724729 miligrams per m-2
East_sediment_chla_SEStandard error of sediment chlorophyll-a content. miligrams per m-3
West_sediment_chlaSediment chlorophyll-a content from the site West location of site is 30.247181, -87.767856 miligrams per m-2
West_sediment_chla_SEStandard error of sediment chlorophyll-a content. miligrams per m-3
Mouth_waterColumn_NH4NH4+ concentration in the water column of site Mouth; location of site is 30.243683, -87.738407 micromoles
Mouth_waterColumn_NH4_SEStandard error of NH4+ concentration in the water column. micromoles
East_waterColumn_NH4NH4- concentration in the water column of site East; location of site is 30.253347, -87.724729 micromoles
East_waterColumn_NH4_SEStandard error of NH4+ concentration in the water column. micromoles
West_waterColumn_NH4NH4+ concentration in the water column of site West; location of site is 30.247181, -87.767856 micromoles
West_waterColumn_NH4_SEStandard error of NH4+ concentration in the water column. micromoles
Mouth_waterColumn_NO3NO3- concentration in the water column of site Mouth; location of site is 30.243683, -87.738407 micromoles
Mouth_waterColumn_NO3_SEStandard error of NO3- concentration in the water column. micromoles
East_waterColumn_NO3NO3- concentration in the water column of site East; location of site is 30.253347, -87.724729 micromoles
East_waterColumn_NO3_SEStandard error of NO3- concentration in the water column. micromoles
West_waterColumn_NO3NO3- concentration in the water column of site West; location of site is 30.247181, -87.767856 micromoles
West_waterColumn_NO3_SEStandard error of NO3- concentration in the water column. micromoles
Mouth_waterColumn_PO4PO4 3- concentration in the water column of site Mouth; location of site is 30.243683, -87.738407 micromoles
Mouth_waterColumn_PO4_SEStandard error of PO4 3- concentration in the water column. micromoles
East_waterColumn_PO4PO4 3- concentration in the water column of site East; location of site is 30.253347, -87.724729 micromoles
East_waterColumn_PO4_SEStandard error of PO4 3- concentration in the water column. micromoles
West_waterColumn_PO4PO4 3- concentration in the water column of site West; location of site is 30.247181, -87.767856 micromoles
West_waterColumn_PO4_SEStandard error of PO4 3- concentration in the water column. micromoles


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Instruments

Dataset-specific Instrument Name
pH sensor
Generic Instrument Name
pH Sensor
Dataset-specific Description
Used to determine pH
Generic Instrument Description
An instrument that measures the hydrogen ion activity in solutions. The overall concentration of hydrogen ions is inversely related to its pH.  The pH scale ranges from 0 to 14 and indicates whether acidic (more H+) or basic (less H+). 

Dataset-specific Instrument Name
YSI 556 Multiparameter Meter
Generic Instrument Name
Oxygen Sensor
Dataset-specific Description
Used to determine DO
Generic Instrument Description
An electronic device that measures the proportion of oxygen (O2) in the gas or liquid being analyzed

Dataset-specific Instrument Name
Salinity Sensor
Generic Instrument Name
Salinity Sensor
Dataset-specific Description
Used to sample salinity
Generic Instrument Description
Category of instrument that simultaneously measures electrical conductivity and temperature in the water column to provide temperature and salinity data.

Dataset-specific Instrument Name
Thermometer
Generic Instrument Name
digital thermometer
Dataset-specific Description
Used to collect temperature
Generic Instrument Description
An instrument that measures temperature digitally.


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Deployments

LittleLagoon

Website
Platform
SmallBoat_FSU
Start Date
2010-04-05
End Date
2013-08-17
Description
The sampling sites were all accessed from small boats, here amalgamated to one deployment called LittleLagoon.


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Project Information

Groundwater Discharge, Benthic Coupling and Microalgal Community Structure in a Shallow Coastal Lagoon (LittleLagoonGroundwater)

Coverage: southern Alabama, east of Mobile


 

This project investigated the link between submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) and microalgal dynamics in Little Lagoon, Alabama.  In contrast to most near-shore environments, it is fully accessible; has no riverine inputs; and is large enough to display ecological diversity (c. 14x 0.75 km) yet small enough to be comprehensively sampled on appropriate temporal and spatial scales. The PIs have previously demonstrated that the lagoon is a hot-spot for toxic blooms of the diatom Pseudo-nitzchia spp. that are correlated with discharge from the surficial aquifer. This project assessed variability in SGD, the dependence of benthic nutrient fluxes on microphytobenthos (MPB) abundance and productivity, and the response of the phytoplankton to nutrient enrichment and dilution. The work integrated multiple temporal and spatial scales and demonstrated both the relative importance of SGD vs. benthic recycling as a source of nutrients, and the role of SGD in structuring the microalgal community. (paraphrased from Award abstract)



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Funding

Funding SourceAward
NSF Division of Ocean Sciences (NSF OCE)

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