Effects of eelgrass beds on advection and turbulent mixing in low current and low shoot density environments
Worcester SE. 1995. Effects of eelgrass beds on advection and turbulent mixing in low current and low shoot density environments. Marine Ecology Progress Series. 126(1-3):223-232
Field measurements were conducted to study the effects of eelgrass Zoster marina beds on the rates of horizontal transport and turbulent mixing. Mixing in the canopy is measured directly using the dye-tracking technique rather than using velocity profiles to estimate mixing. Study sites were located at Tomales Bay, California and False Bay, Washington. The effects of eelgrass Zostera marina beds on the rates of horizontal transport (advection) and turbulent mixing in the water column were measured in the field. The dye-tracking technique used in this study directly measures mixing within the canopy rather than estimating mixing from velocity profiles. Tomales Bay, California, and False Bay, Washington, USA, were characterized by slow currents (generally 0.10 m/s) and high shoot densities (>400 shoots/m super(2)). This study has shown that only parts of the paradigm from these previous studies holds in sluggish flow and sparse grass (i.e. reduced advection within the canopy) whereas other parts of the paradigm differ (i.e. turbulence within the canopy).
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Worcester, S
- Units
- PORE , SFAN
- Keywords
- California, Canopy, Eelgrass, False Bay, Hydrodynamics, Marine Algae, mass transport, San Francisco Bay Area Network, Tomales Bay, turbulent mixing, Washington, Zostera marina