Phosphorus speciation and bioavailability in intertidal sediments of keunso bay, yellow sea during summer and winter

Abstract

A sequential extraction technique was used to study sediment phosphorus speciation and its relative importance in the intertidal flat of Keunso Bay during summer and winter for a better understanding of the phosphorus cycle and bioavailability in intertidal sediments. Loosely sorbed P contents were the lowest among the five P-pools and showed little seasonal or spatial variation. Although Fe-bound P contents were almost constant in winter, they decreased rapidly with sediment depth in summer. The dissolution of Fe oxides, used as an oxidant for the anaerobic respiration, ascribed the rapid decrease of Fe-bound P in summer. Al-bound P contents displayed little seasonal variation, but showed a large spatial variation, with higher values in the upper intertidal flat. Comprising about 50% of total P, Ca-bound P contents were the highest among the five P-pools. Ca-bound P contents were higher in winter than summer, but did not exhibit a clear spatial variation. Organic P contents were higher in summer than winter, which was associated with higher primary production and clam biomass in summer. Organic P contents were higher in the lower intertidal flat than the upper intertidal flat. In Keunso Bay, bioavailable P contents of the intertidal flat comprising about one third of total P ranged from 2.41 to 5.09 μmol g-1 in summer and 3.82 to 5.29 μmolg-1 in winter. The bioavailability of P contents was higher in the lower intertidal flat than the upper intertidal flat, which was attributed to the large clam production in the lower intertidal flat.