Hurricanes fertilize mangrove forests in the Gulf of Mexico (Florida Everglades, USA).

ABSTRACT: Hurricanes are recurring high-energy disturbances in coastal regions that change community structure and function of mangrove wetlands. However, most of the studies assessing hurricane impacts on mangroves have focused on negative effects without considering the positive influence of hurricane-induced sediment deposition and associated nutrient fertilization on mangrove productivity and resilience. Here, we quantified how Hurricane Irma influenced soil nutrient pools, vertical accretion, and plant phosphorus (P) uptake after its passage across the Florida Coastal Everglades in September 2017. Vertical accretion from Irma's deposits was 6.7 to 14.4 times greater than the long-term (100 y) annual accretion rate (0.27 ± 0.04 cm y^-1). Storm deposits extended up to 10-km inland from

SUBMITTER: Castaneda-Moya E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7060680 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature