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Monitoring the fluvial palynomorph load in a lowland temperate catchment and its relationship to suspended sediment and discharge

Monitoring the fluvial palynomorph load in a lowland temperate catchment and its relationship to suspended sediment and discharge
Monitoring the fluvial palynomorph load in a lowland temperate catchment and its relationship to suspended sediment and discharge
Despite it being a component of the seston we know very little about fluvial (waterborne) pollen and spore (palynomorph) transport. This paper presents the results of a monitoring programme conducted over two years and at a catchment scale in South West England. A hierarchical monitoring network was established with flood peak samples taken at 9 sub-catchments, intra-hydrograph samples taken in two sub-catchments and time-integrated sampling undertaken at one location. In addition sampling was undertaken of probable palynomorph sources such as channel bed and bank sediments, and the airborne pollen flux was monitored using modified Tauber traps. The results support previous research in illustrating how the vast majority of fluvial pollen and spores are transported during floods (91%) and that the main control on waterborne palynomorph assemblages is the catchment vegetation and its spatial distribution but with a long-distance (extra-catchment) component. However, strong seasonal effects are also shown, and the importance of distinctive sources such as the riparian input, bed re-suspension and overland flow into drains and tributaries is revealed. Fine sediment in river pools appears to act as a selective store of damaged cereal type pollen grains derived from arable fields. Although pollen does form part of composite particles the data presented here suggest that the majority of the pollen is transported as single grains. Fluvial palynomorph loading is strongly dependant upon discharge and so concentrations in laminated or varved sediments could be regarded as a proxy for flood magnitude.
seston, fine particulate organic matter, waterborne pollen, suspended sediment, organic transport
0018-8158
27-40
Brown, A.G.
c51f9d3e-02b0-47da-a483-41c354e78fab
Carpenter, R.G.
a4c2a35d-48f3-459f-98e3-d4f4e5cdf836
Walling, D.E.
2807f50d-f0c6-42f4-999f-01031c6bd420
Brown, A.G.
c51f9d3e-02b0-47da-a483-41c354e78fab
Carpenter, R.G.
a4c2a35d-48f3-459f-98e3-d4f4e5cdf836
Walling, D.E.
2807f50d-f0c6-42f4-999f-01031c6bd420

Brown, A.G., Carpenter, R.G. and Walling, D.E. (2008) Monitoring the fluvial palynomorph load in a lowland temperate catchment and its relationship to suspended sediment and discharge. Hydrobiologia, 607 (1), 27-40. (doi:10.1007/s10750-008-9364-6).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Despite it being a component of the seston we know very little about fluvial (waterborne) pollen and spore (palynomorph) transport. This paper presents the results of a monitoring programme conducted over two years and at a catchment scale in South West England. A hierarchical monitoring network was established with flood peak samples taken at 9 sub-catchments, intra-hydrograph samples taken in two sub-catchments and time-integrated sampling undertaken at one location. In addition sampling was undertaken of probable palynomorph sources such as channel bed and bank sediments, and the airborne pollen flux was monitored using modified Tauber traps. The results support previous research in illustrating how the vast majority of fluvial pollen and spores are transported during floods (91%) and that the main control on waterborne palynomorph assemblages is the catchment vegetation and its spatial distribution but with a long-distance (extra-catchment) component. However, strong seasonal effects are also shown, and the importance of distinctive sources such as the riparian input, bed re-suspension and overland flow into drains and tributaries is revealed. Fine sediment in river pools appears to act as a selective store of damaged cereal type pollen grains derived from arable fields. Although pollen does form part of composite particles the data presented here suggest that the majority of the pollen is transported as single grains. Fluvial palynomorph loading is strongly dependant upon discharge and so concentrations in laminated or varved sediments could be regarded as a proxy for flood magnitude.

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More information

e-pub ahead of print date: 29 March 2008
Published date: July 2008
Keywords: seston, fine particulate organic matter, waterborne pollen, suspended sediment, organic transport

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 63710
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/63710
ISSN: 0018-8158
PURE UUID: d0b16966-2061-4dad-90eb-a394f62907c8
ORCID for A.G. Brown: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-1990-4654

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 24 Oct 2008
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 03:53

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Contributors

Author: A.G. Brown ORCID iD
Author: R.G. Carpenter
Author: D.E. Walling

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