Transcript Bio 126 Marsh and Wetlands

Bio 126
Marsh and Wetlands
Current state:
In California we have lost 90% of our
wetlands
–Much
of the Great Central valley was a
seasonal marsh
–Our Largest lakes with miles of marshy
shoreline were by Bakersfield. They had
2,100 miles of marshy shoreline
–40% of the SF Bay has been
filled in with land.
–Rivers have been channelized, shoreline
reduced
Types of Marshes:
Salt water – marine or sea water marshes – along
bays and sea shore
Mangrove swamps, important for island building in warm
waters
Brackish – mix of salt or sea water and fresh water
– locations may vary by seasonal flow
Estuaries – river meets a bay, or sea
Fresh water – along streams and lakes
Ecological Roles of Wetlands:
High productivity
Filters water – Laminar flow
Fisheries
Migrating & resident birds
Food, cover, nesting sites
Traps nutrients, pollutants
Salt Marsh Plants
Halophytes at leading edge
Plants adapted to salty conditions
Many have Salt glands
Succulents have swollen tissues that
store water – like Pickleweed
Anatomy of Salt Marsh
Open sea water
Mudflats – still under water
Salt marsh – above ground by inches,
right next to mudflats.
Salt content of soil high
Fresh water marsh, higher up, and
farther back from mud flats
Salt content of soil very low
Mudflats
Forms new land by silting,
Limited by high-tide line
Area still under water at high tides
Wind blows dust, plant trap sediments
settling down & slowly build up soil
Differences in compaction create tidal
meanders – deeper channels
Highest salt content – same as sea
Eel grass and sea lettuce- dominants
Wading birds eat animals in mud
Salt Marsh edge with sea water
Cordgrass dominates
Hollow stems, 2-3 ft. tall
Rhizomes trap detritus, and sediments add to soil
Highly productive
Has nitrogen fixing bacteria in roots
Few things eat cordgrass
Fuels a detrivore based food chain
Decays in mud, microorganism eat detritus
Worms, snails, fish larvae eat microorganisms
Birds, larger fish, eat worms etc.
Salt Marsh farther inland
Salt in soil is less than 2%
Saltgrass most common
Other salt-tolerant species may be
present such as:
Saltbush
Sea Blite
Marsh Grindelia – a “gum weed”
Fresh Water Marsh
On inflow of creeks into salt marshes
Around lakes streams inland
Deltas of rivers
Fresh Water Marsh Plants
Floating plants – microphytes
Duckweed and Water-ferns
Water hyacinth an introduce weedy species
Tule – Bullrush small spike of flowers and
seeds
Triangular stems up to 6 ft.
Cattails – column of small flowers / feather
seeds
Round hollow stems up to 10 ft.
Can not tolerate water deeper than 4 ft.
Shrubs and Trees – Riparian areas
may include Willows, Alder, Cottonwood, Sycamore
A Saltwater Marsh in California
Good website to view
marshplants
www.msnucleus.org/.../
mudslough/mudplants.html
Cord grass
Pickleweed
Marsh Grindelia
Gumplant
Cattails
Bull rush - Tule
Marsh Birds
Northern Harrier
Rails
Black Phoebe
Kingfishers
Egrets, Herons
Ducks
Western Meadowlark
Smaller Waders: Stilts, Avocet, Peeps
Brewers and Red-winged Black birds
Northern Harrier
the marsh Hawk
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Great Blue Heron
Green Heron
Belted Kingfisher
American White Pelican
Canvasback Duck
Lesser Scuap
Ruddy Duck
Pintail Duck
American Wigeon
Common
Golden Eye
Barrow’s Golden Eye
Northern Shoveler
Pied Billed Grebe
Bufflehead
Double Crested Cormorant
American Avocet
Black necked Stilt
Killdeer
Green winged teal
Blue winged teal
Cinnamon Teal
Experimental field research in Marsh Ecology
Other Marsh Animals
Black-tailed Jack Rabbit
Tule Elk
Racoons
Skunks
Muskrats
Otters
Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse
Norway Rats
Introduced red fox – hunts marsh birds
Harrier, Northern
A new Dawn for the Delta
Glen Martin
SF Chronicle December 30, 2005
SAN FRANCISCO BAY
Bonanza of birds on
the bay
Tidal marshes'
recovery has brought
record counts
Jane Kay, Chronicle
Environment Writer
Saturday, March 26, 2005
SAN FRANCISCO BAY
Bay researchers try to mow down
enemy
Invasive hybrid weed is
suffocating mudflat habitats
Glen Martin, Chronicle Environment
Writer
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Spartina alternifolia-
Atlantic Smooth Cord Grass