Along with the general trend of decreasing salinity as you move upstream in an estuary, variations in salinity occur due to tidal action moving seawater further inshore during rising tide, and fresher water moving further seaward during falling tide. Attached or sessile organisms must be able to cope with this ever-changing salinity regime. Increased freshwater outflow due to rain within the watershed adds another variable. As you can see, the chemical conditions of any one spot in an estuary can be quite variable due to normal, natural phenomena. The bottom of shallow tidal creeks is very soft mud, and even if it could be sampled, the bottom dwelling biota is mostly polychaete worms and small crustaceans.
Any ideas are welcome.
Adaptations to the standard AAS chemical monitoring protocol for the coastal region include adding salinity as one of the basic tests, and adding Secchi disk readings as a means to quantify water clarity. Estuary monitoring in coastal Georgia presents its own set of challenges, and increasingly more and more people and groups are being trained to meet those challenges. We might not get to deal with riffles and runs, but we might get to see dolphins from time to time. This site is hosted by Rivers Alive . Please forward all comments and suggestions .