Hyporheic Oxygen Dynamics in the East River, Colorado: Insights From an In‐Situ, High Frequency Time Series During Two Distinct Flow Seasons

Abstract Dissolved oxygen (DO) is critical for aquatic ecosystems, however, few studies have focused on the long‐term DO dynamics in hyporheic zones, which are a function of both transport (hydrologic exchange between river and hyporheic zone) and uptake by biogeochemical reactions or respiration. W...

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Main Authors: Michael N. Gooseff, Ruby N. Ghosh, Erin Cantrell, M. Evan Matusz, Charles McIntire, Vivek Philip
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2023-07-01
Series:Water Resources Research
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR031139
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author Michael N. Gooseff
Ruby N. Ghosh
Erin Cantrell
M. Evan Matusz
Charles McIntire
Vivek Philip
author_facet Michael N. Gooseff
Ruby N. Ghosh
Erin Cantrell
M. Evan Matusz
Charles McIntire
Vivek Philip
author_sort Michael N. Gooseff
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Dissolved oxygen (DO) is critical for aquatic ecosystems, however, few studies have focused on the long‐term DO dynamics in hyporheic zones, which are a function of both transport (hydrologic exchange between river and hyporheic zone) and uptake by biogeochemical reactions or respiration. We explore the dynamics of temperature and DO at 10, 20, and 35 cm depth beneath the East River, Colorado, from July–October 2017 (relatively normal water year) and April to October 2018 (comparatively low flow year), enabled by distinctive, in‐situ, high frequency (Δt = 5 min) sensors that provided continuous time‐series from the undisturbed study site over 14 months. We expect that hyporheic DO, which has a regular daily fluctuation pattern, is supplied by the surface water (at all times we estimate downwelling) and that diurnal hyporheic DO temporal patterns should be aligned with diurnal hyporheic temperature patterns. However, this was not found to be the case. Hyporheic DO becomes depleted briefly at 20 and 35 cm depths in 2017, and at all three hyporheic depths for extended periods in 2018. Whereas diurnal temperature fluctuations have consistent timings of maxima and minima, hyporheic DO rarely has as regular a pattern, and daily ranges are inconsistent. Rainfall events caused some of these changes to diurnal hyporheic DO patterns without repeatable effects. Antecedent snowpack conditions influence streamflow dynamics and therefore hyporheic DO dynamics in this alpine river. These results also point to the strong and variable influence of hyporheic microbial communities regulating hyporheic DO.
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spelling doaj-art-1aaff82e057247bb93a2c91a9cf322f62025-08-20T02:43:13ZengWileyWater Resources Research0043-13971944-79732023-07-01597n/an/a10.1029/2021WR031139Hyporheic Oxygen Dynamics in the East River, Colorado: Insights From an In‐Situ, High Frequency Time Series During Two Distinct Flow SeasonsMichael N. Gooseff0Ruby N. Ghosh1Erin Cantrell2M. Evan Matusz3Charles McIntire4Vivek Philip5Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research University of Colorado Boulder CO USAOpti O2, LLC East Lansing MI USAInstitute of Arctic and Alpine Research University of Colorado Boulder CO USAOpti O2, LLC East Lansing MI USAOpti O2, LLC East Lansing MI USAOpti O2, LLC East Lansing MI USAAbstract Dissolved oxygen (DO) is critical for aquatic ecosystems, however, few studies have focused on the long‐term DO dynamics in hyporheic zones, which are a function of both transport (hydrologic exchange between river and hyporheic zone) and uptake by biogeochemical reactions or respiration. We explore the dynamics of temperature and DO at 10, 20, and 35 cm depth beneath the East River, Colorado, from July–October 2017 (relatively normal water year) and April to October 2018 (comparatively low flow year), enabled by distinctive, in‐situ, high frequency (Δt = 5 min) sensors that provided continuous time‐series from the undisturbed study site over 14 months. We expect that hyporheic DO, which has a regular daily fluctuation pattern, is supplied by the surface water (at all times we estimate downwelling) and that diurnal hyporheic DO temporal patterns should be aligned with diurnal hyporheic temperature patterns. However, this was not found to be the case. Hyporheic DO becomes depleted briefly at 20 and 35 cm depths in 2017, and at all three hyporheic depths for extended periods in 2018. Whereas diurnal temperature fluctuations have consistent timings of maxima and minima, hyporheic DO rarely has as regular a pattern, and daily ranges are inconsistent. Rainfall events caused some of these changes to diurnal hyporheic DO patterns without repeatable effects. Antecedent snowpack conditions influence streamflow dynamics and therefore hyporheic DO dynamics in this alpine river. These results also point to the strong and variable influence of hyporheic microbial communities regulating hyporheic DO.https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR031139hyporheic zonedissolved oxygensubalpine riverin‐situ sensing
spellingShingle Michael N. Gooseff
Ruby N. Ghosh
Erin Cantrell
M. Evan Matusz
Charles McIntire
Vivek Philip
Hyporheic Oxygen Dynamics in the East River, Colorado: Insights From an In‐Situ, High Frequency Time Series During Two Distinct Flow Seasons
Water Resources Research
hyporheic zone
dissolved oxygen
subalpine river
in‐situ sensing
title Hyporheic Oxygen Dynamics in the East River, Colorado: Insights From an In‐Situ, High Frequency Time Series During Two Distinct Flow Seasons
title_full Hyporheic Oxygen Dynamics in the East River, Colorado: Insights From an In‐Situ, High Frequency Time Series During Two Distinct Flow Seasons
title_fullStr Hyporheic Oxygen Dynamics in the East River, Colorado: Insights From an In‐Situ, High Frequency Time Series During Two Distinct Flow Seasons
title_full_unstemmed Hyporheic Oxygen Dynamics in the East River, Colorado: Insights From an In‐Situ, High Frequency Time Series During Two Distinct Flow Seasons
title_short Hyporheic Oxygen Dynamics in the East River, Colorado: Insights From an In‐Situ, High Frequency Time Series During Two Distinct Flow Seasons
title_sort hyporheic oxygen dynamics in the east river colorado insights from an in situ high frequency time series during two distinct flow seasons
topic hyporheic zone
dissolved oxygen
subalpine river
in‐situ sensing
url https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR031139
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