Material Fluxes through the North-Inletmarsh System: Short-Term Temporal Fluctuations of Fungi and Related Parameters

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Abstract
The fluctuations of fungi in the water of a creek draining 1800 ha of marsh were examined in relation to total microbial biomass (measured as ATP), temperature, salinity, total volatile material (TVM), total fixed solids (TFS) and particulate organic carbon (POC). Synoptic samples were taken periodically over 10 h from 12 sites within a 320 m transect. Fungi fluctuated out of phase with the tide, with high values observed at low tide and low values obtained at high tide. Similar patterns of fluctuation were obtained for TVM and POC. TFS and ATP fluctuated in phase with the study period. Statistical analysis (Pearson''s r [correlation coefficient]) revealed a significant positive association between fungi and both measures of suspended organic material, TVM and POC. Conversely, significant negative correlations were found between fungi and both TFS and ATP. These data suggest that fungi are attached to particulate organic material and resuspended in the water column by ebbing tides.