Coupling of nitrification and denitrification in two estuarine sediments

Nitrification and denitrification in estuarine sediments were measured by 15N isotopic tracer techniques at two stations in the Patuxent River estuary for April and August. A close coupling of the two processes was demonstrated directly from the evolution of labeled N2 following 15NH4+ amendments during spring experiments. In contrast, this coupled nitrification-denitrification was decreased by two orders of magnitude in the summer, even though the capacity for denitrification remained similar to spring levels. This pattern of sharply seasonal nitrification was corroborated with measurements of bacterial relative abundance. Ambient rates of nitrification-denitrification were inferred from 15N experiments in these sediments