Coupling and decoupling of soil carbon and nutrients cycles at different salinity levels in a mangrove wetland: Insights from CUE and enzymatic stoichiometry

Summary

This 2024 study investigates how increasing salinity in mangrove wetland soils affects the synchronisation of carbon and nutrient cycling processes, drawing on microbial metabolic efficiency and enzyme activity patterns. As suggested by the title, the authors employed enzymatic stoichiometry—the relative activities of carbon-, nitrogen- and phosphorus-acquiring enzymes—to reveal whether microbial communities maintain balanced nutrient uptake or exhibit nutrient limitation under salinity stress. The findings appear to indicate that elevated salinity disrupts the typical coupling between carbon and nutrient cycles, with implications for ecosystem functioning in coastal wetlands.

UK applicability

Direct applicability to UK agriculture is limited, as mangrove wetlands are tropical and subtropical ecosystems absent from the UK. However, insights into salinity-driven decoupling of soil biogeochemical cycles may be relevant to UK saltmarsh restoration projects and coastal wetland management, particularly in regions affected by soil salinisation from seawater intrusion or agronomic practices.

Key measures

Carbon use efficiency (CUE), enzymatic stoichiometry, soil microbial activity, carbon mineralisation, nutrient cycling rates across salinity gradients

Outcomes reported

The study examined how soil carbon and nutrient cycles become coupled or decoupled at different salinity levels in mangrove wetlands, using carbon use efficiency (CUE) and enzymatic stoichiometry as analytical frameworks. The research measured microbial metabolic processes and nutrient cycling dynamics in response to environmental salinity gradients.

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