RT Journal Article
T1 Pedogenic Processes in a Posidonia oceanica Mat
A1 Piñeiro Juncal, Nerea
A1 Leiva Dueñas, Carmen
A1 Serrano, Oscar
A1 Mateo, Miguel Ángel
A1 Martínez Cortizas, Antonio
K1 Seagrass
K1 Marine sediments
K1 Subaqueous soils
K1 Geochemistry
K1 X-ray fluorescence
AB Scientists studying seagrasses typically refer to their substratum as sediment, but recently researchers have begun to refer to it as a soil. However, the logistics of sampling underwater substrata and the fragility of these ecosystems challenge their study using pedological methods. Previous studies have reported geochemical processes within the rhizosphere that are compatible with pedogenesis. Seagrass substratum accumulated over the Recent Holocene and can reach several meters in thickness, but studies about deeper layers are scarce. This study is a first attempt to find sound evidence of vertical structuring in Posidonia oceanica deposits to serve as a basis for more detailed pedological studies. A principal component analysis on X-Ray Fluorescence-elemental composition, carbonate content and organic matter content data along a 475 cm core was able to identify four main physico-chemical signals: humification, accumulation of carbonates, texture and organic matter depletion. The results revealed a highly structured deposit undergoing pedogenetical processes characteristic of soils rather than a mere accumulation of sediments. Further research is required to properly describe the substratum underneath seagrass meadows, decide between the sediment or soil nature for seagrass substrata, and for the eventual inclusion of seagrass substrata in soil classifications and the mapping of seagrass soil resources
PB MDPI
YR 2020
FD 2020
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10347/23532
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10347/23532
LA eng
NO Piñeiro-Juncal, N.; Leiva-Dueñas, C.; Serrano, O.; Mateo, M.Á.; Martínez-Cortízas, A. Pedogenic Processes in a Posidonia oceanica Mat. Soil Syst. 2020, 4, 18
NO This work has been funded by project SUMILEN (CTM2013- 47728-R, MINECO). C. Leiva-Dueñas was supported by a PhD scholarship funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (FPU15/01934); O. Serrano was supported by an ARC DECRA DE170101524. Authors would like to thank the use of RIAIDT-USC analytical facilities. This is a paper from the Group of Benthic Ecology 2014 SGR 120
DS Minerva
RD 24 abr 2026