The magnitude and significance of sediment oxygen demand in gravel spawning beds for the incubation of salmonid embryos

A - Papers appearing in refereed journals

Collins, A. L., Sear, D. A., Pattison, I., Smallman, D. J., Jones, J. I. and Naden, P. S. 2017. The magnitude and significance of sediment oxygen demand in gravel spawning beds for the incubation of salmonid embryos. River Research and Applications. 33 (10), pp. 1642-1654. https://doi.org/10.1002/rra.3212

AuthorsCollins, A. L., Sear, D. A., Pattison, I., Smallman, D. J., Jones, J. I. and Naden, P. S.
Abstract

Globally, salmon populations are under pressure and in those where numbers are severely depleted, density independent factors such as the accumulation of fine sediment and subsequent mortality of incubating embryos are critical factors in their conservation. Although progress has been made in identifying the processes by which fine sediment can lead to embryo mortality, this has focussed on the physical blockage of gravel pores. This paper presents new knowledge on the role of sediment‐associated organic matter in controlling the supply of dissolved oxygen to incubating salmon embryos within gravel river beds. We report a new approach to the measurement of sediment oxygen demand (SOD) from interstitial sediments accumulated within salmon redds and demonstrate this across a range of salmon river types. The effects of varying SOD on dissolved oxygen supply to incubating salmon embryos are quantified for the first time, using the physically based Sediment Intrusion and Dissolved Oxygen (SIDO‐UK) model. The results reveal the importance of the mass of accumulating sediment and sediment consumption rates (sediment oxygen consumption [SOC]), which constitute the overall SOD over time for a particular sediment sample. Higher SOC result in reductions in dissolved oxygen that are deleterious to salmonids; however, these are subordinate to the effects of sediment mass. Larger quantities of sediment accumulating within the redd not only create a higher SOD but also physically block the pores within the gravels, leading to a more drastic decline in oxygen supply through the combined effects of reduced seepage velocity and dissolved oxygen concentration. We seek to generalize the results by exploring the influence of catchment characteristics on field measures of SOD and SOC. This work makes a significant and novel contribution to improving our fundamental understanding of hyporheic processes within salmonid spawning gravels whilst providing resource managers with evidence of the deleterious effects of sediment‐associated organic matter on salmon recruitment.

Keywordsmodelling; organic matter; salmon spawning habitat; sediment oxygen consumption (SOC)
Year of Publication2017
JournalRiver Research and Applications
Journal citation33 (10), pp. 1642-1654
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1002/rra.3212
Open accessPublished as non-open access
FunderDepartment of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online10 Oct 2017
Publication process dates
Accepted12 Aug 2017
PublisherWiley-Blackwell
Wiley
Copyright licensePublisher copyright
ISSN1535-1459

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