Control of methane sediment-water bubble transport by macroinfaunal irrigation in cape lookout bight, north Carolina.

Methane transport by bubble ebullition through bubble tubes from sediments to overlying waters in Cape Lookout Bight, Outer Banks of North Carolina, occurs only in the absence of burrowing macroinfauna, which indirectly prevent saturation methane concentrations by irrigating surface sediments with dissolved sulfate. Distribution of macroinfauna in the bight is limited to bottom areas not subjected to periodic anoxic conditions.