Nutrient exchange and denitrification on reef balls in the Chesapeake Bay

IF 4.1 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ECOLOGY

Ecological Engineering Pub Date : 2025-09-29 DOI:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2025.107818

Jeffrey C. Cornwell , Michael S. Owens , Melanie Jackson , Allison M. Colden

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Oyster restoration provides valuable ecosystem services to coastal ecosystems, including nutrient removal through enhanced microbial denitrification assimilation of N and P into tissue and shell. The production of biodeposits and their subsequent decomposition can provide a source of nitrogen and generate the redox gradients required for the production of N₂. Reef balls, large concrete structures often used for fish refuge, provide an opportunity to introduce oysters into nutrient-stressed shallow marine ecosystems. In the Chesapeake Bay, ex-situ incubations of whole reef balls were used to examine whether they enhance nitrogen removal through denitrification. High rates of oxygen uptake, production of dissolved inorganic C, and chlorophyll uptake indicate that reef balls with oysters and other attached filter-feeding organisms concentrate suspended materials and create hot spots of benthic metabolism. Denitrification was greatly increased relative to sediments, but the overall efficiency of the process was somewhat less than observed in other oyster restoration approaches. Further examination of the water quality effects of oyster deployment on structures is recommended.

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切萨皮克湾礁球的营养交换和反硝化作用

牡蛎恢复为沿海生态系统提供了有价值的生态系统服务，包括通过增强微生物反硝化作用将N和P同化到组织和壳中来去除营养物质。生物沉积物的产生及其随后的分解可以提供氮的来源，并产生生产N2所需的氧化还原梯度。珊瑚球是一种大型混凝土结构，通常用于鱼类避难所，为牡蛎进入营养紧张的浅海生态系统提供了机会。在切萨皮克湾，整个珊瑚球的非原位孵育被用来检查它们是否通过反硝化作用增强氮的去除。高吸氧率、溶解无机C的产生和叶绿素的吸收表明，有牡蛎和其他附着的滤食性生物的珊瑚球浓缩了悬浮物质，并创造了底栖生物代谢的热点。相对于沉积物，反硝化作用大大增加，但该过程的总体效率略低于其他牡蛎恢复方法。建议进一步检查牡蛎对结构物的水质影响。

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来源期刊

Ecological Engineering 环境科学-工程：环境

CiteScore

8.00

自引率

5.30%

发文量

293

审稿时长

57 days

期刊介绍： Ecological engineering has been defined as the design of ecosystems for the mutual benefit of humans and nature. The journal is meant for ecologists who, because of their research interests or occupation, are involved in designing, monitoring, or restoring ecosystems, and can serve as a bridge between ecologists and engineers. Specific topics covered in the journal include: habitat reconstruction; ecotechnology; synthetic ecology; bioengineering; restoration ecology; ecology conservation; ecosystem rehabilitation; stream and river restoration; reclamation ecology; non-renewable resource conservation. Descriptions of specific applications of ecological engineering are acceptable only when situated within context of adding novelty to current research and emphasizing ecosystem restoration. We do not accept purely descriptive reports on ecosystem structures (such as vegetation surveys), purely physical assessment of materials that can be used for ecological restoration, small-model studies carried out in the laboratory or greenhouse with artificial (waste)water or crop studies, or case studies on conventional wastewater treatment and eutrophication that do not offer an ecosystem restoration approach within the paper.