Terrestrial exports of dissolved and particulate organic carbon affect nearshore ecosystems of the Pacific coastal temperate rainforest

Abstract

Watersheds of the coastal temperate rainforests of Pacific North America export large amounts of organic carbon (OC) to the coastal ocean. While it has been suggested that terrestrially derived organic matter could subsidize marine food webs and affect ocean biogeochemistry along the coastal margin, little work has been done to quantify and characterize OC across the freshwater to marine continuum. We conducted monthly and targeted rainfall event surveys of dissolved and particulate organic carbon (DOC and POC) quantity and quality (δ 13 C, dissolved organic matter characterization) across a freshwater to marine salinity gradient between Calvert and Hecate Islands, British Columbia, Canada. Freshwater DOC concentrations (9.97 ± 0.25 mg L −1 ) far exceeded those in marine waters (1.24 ± 0.03 mg L −1 ), while POC concentrations were similar across all sites (0.23 ± 0.01 mg L −1 ). δ 13 C‐DOC and ‐POC in freshwaters were constant, but varied seasonally at the marine stations with freshwater and marine processes. Rainfall events facilitated the rapid export of terrestrial DOC and POC to coastal waters, altering water quality and potentially subsidizing microbial productivity across marine surface waters. On an annual basis, primary production in marine waters (21–42 Gg C) exceeded total freshwater OC contributions (1.8–2.2 Gg C); however, freshwater exports were more important during the autumn and winter months, when rainfall was highest and primary production was limited by shorter days and deep turbulent mixing. Our results highlight the importance of storms for connecting the coastal temperate rainforest with surface coastal waters, especially during the summer when connectivity between the freshwater and marine ecosystems is otherwise low.

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