
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Fuentes-Yaco, César 
A1  - León, David Alberto Salas de 
A1  - Monreal-Gómez, María Adela 
A1  - Vera-Herrera, Francisco 
T1  - Environmental forcing in a tropical estuarine ecosystem: the Palizada River in the southern Gulf of Mexico
JF  - Marine and Freshwater Research
JO  - Mar. Freshwater Res.
Y1  - 2001
VL  - 52
IS  - 5
SP  - 735
EP  - 744
KW  - tropical ecosystem.
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1071/MF00077 
N2  - Environmental characteristics of the fluvial&#8211;deltaic&#8211;lagoon&#8211;estuarine system of the Palizada River were determined by the assessment of physical, environmental and hydrological variability. Environmental information comprised daily time series of precipitation (1971&#8211;85), Usumacinta River discharge (1948&#8211;94), sea level (1956&#8211;91) and wind patterns (1984&#8211;87). Hydrology was studied by weekly measurement of salinity, transparency,temperature, dissolved oxygen and pH at 18 stations during 19 months (September 1985 to March 1987). Water temperature reflected the climatic seasons: dry, rainy and winter frontal storms (&#8216;Nortes&#8217;). During the rainy season fresh water dominated the whole area, but during the dry season a salt wedge entered as far as Del Este Lagoon.Northern winds allowed saline water to reach intermediate regions and occasionally the upstream freshwater head of the estuary. There are annual, 6-month and 3.2-month oscillations in the environmental records: the annual signal is modulated by precipitation, fluvial discharge and sea level; the 6-month signal has an implicit periodicity driven by the changes in the wind direction that affect all other parameters; and the 3.2-month period seems to be modulated by the rainy, dry and &#8216;Nortes&#8217; seasons. Cluster analysis identified eight ecological regions based on the hydrological variables. Resumen. Las caracter&#237;sticas ambientales del sistema fluvio&#8211;delt&aacute;ico&#8211;lagunar estuarino del R&#237;o Palizada fueron determinadas a trav&#233;s del estudio de su variabilidad f&#237;sica, ambiental e hidrol&oacute;gica. La informaci&oacute;n ambiental comprende series de tiempo diarias de precipitaci&oacute;n pluvial (1971&#8211;85), descarga fluvial del R&#237;o Usumacinta (1948-94), nivel del mar (1956&#8211;91) y direcci&oacute;n y velocidad del viento (1984&#8211;87). La hidrolog&#237;a comprende mediciones semanales de salinidad, transparencia, temperatura, ox&#237;geno disuelto y pH en 18 estaciones durante 19 meses (Septiembre de 1985 a Marzo de 1987). La temperatura del agua refleja las estaciones clim&aacute;ticas: secas, lluvias y frentes invernales (&#8216;Nortes&#8217;). Durante la &#233;poca de lluvias el agua dulce predomina en toda el &aacute;rea, sin embargo durante la estaci&oacute;n de secas la cu&ntilde;a salina llega hasta la Laguna del Este. Los vientos del norte promueven el avance del agua salina a las regiones intermedias y ocasionalmente hasta la cabecera del estuario. Las oscilaciones ambientales muestran per&#237;odos anuales, semestrales y de 3.2 meses: el ciclo anual est&aacute; modulado por la precipitaci&oacute;n pluvial, la descarga fluvial y el nivel del mar; el ciclo semestral tiene una periodicidad impl&#237;cita gobernada por cambios en la direcci&oacute;n del viento que afecta los dem&aacute;s par&aacute;metros y el ciclo de 3.2 meses parece estar modulado por las estaciones clim&aacute;ticas de lluvias, secas y nortes. Los an&aacute;lisis Cluster basados en las variables hidrol&oacute;gicas permiten la identificaci&oacute;n de ocho regiones ecol&oacute;gicas. 
ER  -

