Decompostion in the Saltmarsh-Mangrove Ecotone

This work quantified and compared decomposition of litter aboveground, and of a standard substrate belowground, in both pure saltmarsh and saltmarsh-mangrove ecotone habitat along the Atlantic coast of Florida, U.S.A..

Avicennia germinans and Spartina alterniflora litter was incubated in mesh litter bags for 396 days. Mass remaining (%) was calculated every 3 months, and decay constants (k) were calculated after 396 days. Belowground decomposition was quantified using the Tea Bag Index (TBI) protocol put forth by Keuskamp and others (2013).