Molina Cora, Priscilla N.

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    Observations of sargassum carbon influx and biogeochemical impact in La Parguera Marine Reserve
    (2024-07-08) Molina Cora, Priscilla N.; Morell, Julio; College of Arts and Sciences - Sciences; Chardón Maldonado, Patricia; García Troche, Erick; Armstrong, Roy; Department of Marine Sciences; Amador Ramírez, André
    The massive influx of pelagic Sargassum spp. species, also known as Sargassum inundations, first arrived at the Caribbean's coastal waters in 2011. These events have been linked to hypoxia and fish killings, among other ecological disturbances. Here, we report 2022 season on an assessment of the magnitude of organic carbon load arising from the Sargassum arrivals into the La Parguera Marine Reserve basin (LPMRB) on the southwest coast of Puerto Rico and into an embayment in a nearshore mangrove key, Monsio Jose Key Bay (MJKB) within the reserve. Sargassum biomass influx to both locations is here contrasted with estimates for two primary carbon sources in the study area: seagrass leaf growth and mangrove litterfall. Both have been well documented in LPMRB. Weekly measurements of Sargassum input rate, oxygen concentration, and ocean acidification were taken. Results indicate that in 2022, the Sargassum carbon influx to LPMRB totaled 171,985 kgC year -1, representing about a 24 % increase over the combined net organic carbon input from seagrasses and mangrove litter. Contrastingly, Sargassum carbon input rates into MJKB during the 2022 Sargassum season (April to November), representing a 75-fold increase in carbon loading over mangrove litterfall net production, the predominant organic carbon sources at the site over the same period. Sargassum loading there was followed by sustained hypoxia (<2 mg. L-1) and critically acidic conditions (Aragonite saturation, Ω<2.0) extending from mid-June to September. Findings here highlighted the vulnerability of coastal ecosystems in areas prone to Sargassum inundations and where geomorphology effectively entrains buoyant material.