The Ecology of the Tamar Estuary III. Salinity and Temperature Conditions in the Lower Estuary

Abstract

An attempt has been made to give the range and rate of fluctuation of salinity (and, to a lesser extent, of temperature) that organisms experience at various points on the bed of the lower Tamar Estuary and in the overlying water especially near the surface. Such work until now does not seem to have been attempted. The following general facts emerge: On proceeding from high-water mark to low-water mark there is an increase in the range, rate and duration of fluctuation in salinity. Also the upper limit of the salinity range rises very slightly while the lower limit falls by a large amount, i.e. there is a more or less uniform gradient from high-water mark to low-water mark. Near high-water mark the fluctuation is less and of shorter incidence and is distributed over a higher level of the total salinity range (for the intertidal area) than near low-water mark. Owing to stratification, the farther down the intertidal area the (slightly) longer is the duration of the high salinities, especially in winter. At mid-tide mark the fluctuation is very similar to that on the bottom in mid-river, but is of twice the rate.