American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) as wetland ecosystem carbon stock regulators.

ABSTRACT: Blue carbon refers to organic carbon sequestered by oceanic and coastal ecosystems. This stock has gained global attention as a high organic carbon repository relative to other ecosystems. Within blue carbon ecosystems, tidally influenced wetlands alone store a disproportionately higher amount of organic carbon than other blue carbon systems. North America harbors 42% of tidally influenced global wetland area, which has been identified as a critical carbon stock in the context of climate change mitigation. However, quantified associations between vertebrate biota and carbon sequestration within ecosystems are in their infancy and have been incidental, given that microbial trophic levels are thought to drive nutrient dynamics. Here, we assess the relationship between American alligator (All

SUBMITTER: Murray CM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11772824 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature