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Biodeposition as a Factor in Sedimentation of Fine Suspended Solids in Estuaries
Haven, Dexter S. Morales-Alamo, Reinaldo
Haven, Dexter S.
Morales-Alamo, Reinaldo
Abstract
Filter feeders, such as mollusks, tunicates, and barnacles, ingest particles as small as 1 micron during their feeding process and void them in fecal pellets which range from 500 to 3,000 microns in length; these pellets settle at a much faster rate than their component particles. Feces and pseudofeces that settle to the bottom are termed biodeposits. Oyster biodeposits contain 77 to 91 percent inorganic matter, 4 to 12 percent organic carbon, and about 1.0 gram per kilogram of phosphorus. Fecal pellets are alternately deposited and resuspended by tidal currents. They settle and accumulate in areas of estuaries where the fine particles themselves would not. A portion of the biodeposits settling on sediment surfaces is mixed into subsurface deposits and may alter the textural and chemical properties of the original sediments.
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Date
1972
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Geological Society of America
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VIMS Books and Book Chapters, Fecal pellets, filter feeders, biodeposits
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Virginia Institute of Marine Science