Long-term research of groundwater level and salinity dynamics in coastal forests bordering salt marshes in Delmarva peninsula (VA): forest retreat and marsh expansion as consequences of sea level rise (SLR) flooding and salinization
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Citation
Abstract
Ghost forests and abandoned farmlands are stark indicators of the coastline ecological conversion caused by sea level rise (SLR) and storm surge. Flooding and salinization events, progressively decreasing their frequency and increasing their intensity, encourage low-lying coastal areas to retreat and consequently marshes to expand. Saltwater intrusion significantly affects the photosynthetic activity of native salt intolerant species. With increasing flooding and saltwater intrusion, forest trees and crops die allowing more tolerant invasive species expansion, forerunners of marsh vegetation establishment. Less apparent but perhaps even more important are the dynamics of the coastal critical zone (CCZ) where hydrological, ecological, geomorphological, and biogeochemical changes (HEGB) are interconnected. In this project we worked in partnership with VCR-LTER (Virginia Long Term Ecological Research) and CCZN (Coastal Critical Zone Network) to quantify the coupled processes and feedbacks governing the HEGB variations in the CCZ. In particular, we focus on determining the effects of hydrological change driven by SLR and storm surge events in a coastal forest in Virginia. Using fieldwork data of groundwater, soil moisture and light, coupled with ecological surveys we aim to estimate ecohydrological feedbacks at the marsh-forest boundary.
Description
2024
License
Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International