Bacterial decomposition of detritus in a tropical seagrass (Syringodium isoetifolium) ecosystem, measured with (Methyl- super-³H)thymidine

Abstract

The bacterial decomposition of detritus was measured in a tropical seagrass meadow (Syringodium isoetifolium) off Dravuni Island, Fiji, and compared with the seagrass and algal productivity. Our estimates of bacterial decomposition of organic matter was based on the rate at which the bacteria divided, and this was measured by the rate at which [methyl-³H]thymidine was incorporated into the bacterial DNA. Bacterial activity was greatest in the top 1 cm of the seagrass sediments. The number of bacteria, their specific growth rate, and their productivity were 6.3 ± 0.3 × 10⁹ cells cm^-3 , 0.04± 0.005 h^-1, and 0.671 g C day^-1 m^-2 (depth-integrated over 30 cm), respectively.

At the sediment surface, bacterial activity coincided with the daily light intensities during the day. Benthic microalgal production seemd to be coupled to the heterotrophic bacterial activity. However, the amount of organic carbon passing through the bacterial decomposition process was small compared with the total autotrophic production. The net bacterial productivity was only between 4 and 6% of that of microalgae and 6% of that of the seagrass. The bacteria appeared to play a minor role in the transfer of organic carbon between the primary producers and the higher trophic groups. Much of the microalgal production could have been directly consumed by the benthic infauna, whereas the seagrass production may have been translocated, via the seagrass roots and rhizomes, to other parts of the plant and/or converted into more refractory or storage compounds.