3rd UF Water Institute Symposium Abstract

Submitter's Name	Daniel Irick
Session Name	Posters - Understanding Natural, Anthropogenic and Legacy Sources of Nutrients
Category	Understanding natural, anthropogenic and legacy sources of nutrients
Poster Number	56
Author(s)	Daniel Irick,  UF, Soil and Water Science (Presenting Author)
	Yuncong Li,  UF, Soil and Water Science
	Patrick Inglett, UF, Soil and Water Science
	Binhe Gu, South Florida Water Management District
	Michael Ross, FIU, Department of Earth and Environment
	Distribution of Soil Phosphorus Forms in Everglades Tree Islands
	The Florida Everglades is considered a phosphorus (P) limited ecosystem, however large amounts of P are accumulated in tree island soil throughout the ecosystem. Recent literature has suggested tree islands may play an important role in soil nutrient distribution dynamics in the landscape as focal points of potential P sequestration and redistribution. Little data is available regarding the specific forms of P present in tree island soil and how P forms may be distributed at the intra-island scale. Tree island ecosystems in the Florida Everglades offer a unique opportunity to study distribution of soil P forms to determine if P accumulation occurs in discrete regions of islands, or diffusely throughout an islands areal extent. Characterization of the forms of soil P can provide insight of P source, and potential mobility. Surface soil (0-5 cm) from tree islands (n=5) in the Central Everglades was sequentially extracted to quantify the proportions of different forms of soil P. Total P and inorganic P are highest in the head center region and inorganic P accounts for ~60% of the total P. Organic P is the dominant form of P in soil outside of the head center region. The high proportion of inorganic P observed in the head center region of tree island soil and decrease in both total P and inorganic P in other regions of tree islands suggests current tree island nutrient dynamic hypothesis may be accurate. It appears likely that P accumulation in head center region of tree island soil is derived from an external source of inorganic P.