Connectivity of the Apalachicola River flow variability and the physical and bio-optical oceanic properties of the northern West Florida Shelf

Maps of satellite-derived estimates of monthly averaged chlorophyll a concentration over the northern West Florida Shelf show interannual variations concentrated near the coastline, but also extending offshore over the shelf in a tongue-like pattern from the Apalachicola River during the late winter and early spring. These anomalies are significantly correlated with interannual variability in the flow rate of the Apalachicola River, which is linked to the precipitation anomalies over the watershed, over a region extending 150–200 km offshore out to roughly the 100 m isobath. This study examines the variability of the Apalachicola River and its impacts on the variability of water properties over the northern West Florida Shelf. A series of numerical model experiments show that episodic wind-driven offshore transport of the Apalachicola River plume is a likely physical mechanism for connecting the variability of the river discharge with oceanic variability over the middle and outer shelf.