Influence of Seawater Inundation and Combined Ecosystem Engineering on the Spatial Variability of Soil Properties in a Salt Marsh

In this investigation, we examined the spatial heterogeneity of soil properties within a salt marsh situated in Incheon. Our results demonstrate that the soil characteristics are predominantly governed by two distinct Earth surface processes: seawater inundation and ecosystem engineering by biota. Periodic inundation by seawater was identified as a principal driver of salt (Na⁺, Mg²⁺) accumulation at the soil surface, while biotic interactions-specifically between halophytes and crabs-facilitated the localized deposition of Ca²⁺, K⁺, and organic matter, particularly beneath the decomposing biomass of Suaeda glauca. Furthermore, we employed advanced statistical techniques to address the spatial autocorrelation inherent in the soil data. From an Earth science perspective, our findings underscore the necessity of adopting a multi-scale framework that explicitly incorporates spatial autocorrelation to improve the comprehension and modeling of biogeomorphological processes.