Biophysical self-organization of coastal wetlands: Unraveling spatial complexity on tidal flats and marshes, from the Precambrian to today

Vijsel, Roeland C. van de

doi:10.33612/diss.160081233

Cited by 2 publications

(4 citation statements)

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“…Hence, despite the simple filamentous architecture of Vaucheria, its biogeomorphic properties are more similar to root binding effect of plants (e.g., Mariotti et al, 2016;Murray & Paola, 2003;Pestrong, 1969) rather than the surficial "skin layer protection" (e.g., de Brouwer et al, 2000;Le Hir et al, 2007) provided by microbial biofilms. As soil strength highly affects landscape development (e.g., Garofalo, 1980;Perron et al, 2008Perron et al, , 2012van de Vijsel, 2021), our findings highlight the biogeomorphic importance of benthic algae like Vaucheria.…”

Section: Algal Growth Enhances Sediment Strength and Elevated Topogra...mentioning

confidence: 63%

“…Our findings hence show that the geomorphic and biogeomorphic feedback loops are very similar, but that biostabilization of elevated topography amplifies these feedbacks, similar to what was found for microbial biofilms (e.g., Blanchard et al., 2000; Lanuru et al., 2007; Williams et al., 2008; Weerman et al., 2010). Moreover, our study implies that Vaucheria widens the range of environmental conditions under which topography‐forming feedbacks can be induced, because the sediment‐binding effect of Vaucheria filaments allows these feedbacks to be triggered even when strong topographic diffusion (e.g., due to poor sediment consolidation) would impede the abiotic feedback cycle (Perron et al., 2009, 2012; van de Vijsel, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…In coastal wetlands, the often regularly spaced alternation between biotically‐stabilized hummocks/ridges and bare hollows/channels has previously been ascribed to this same two‐way action of one and the same biogeomorphic feedback (e.g., Temmerman et al., 2007; van de Vijsel et al., 2020; Weerman et al., 2010). These so‐called scale‐dependent feedbacks have been shown to give rise to self‐organized pattern formation in various ecosystems (e.g., Klausmeier, 1999; Meinhardt, 2003; Rietkerk & van de Koppel, 2008; Tarnita et al., 2017; van de Vijsel, 2021). Self‐organization strongly impacts the functioning and resilience of these ecosystems and can give rise to catastrophic state shifts (e.g., Bastiaansen et al., 2018; Liu et al., 2012, Liu, Weerman, et al., 2014; Liu, Herman, et al., 2014; Rietkerk et al., 2002; van de Koppel et al., 2005; Weerman et al., 2010, 2012).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Algal‐Induced Biogeomorphic Feedbacks Lay the Groundwork for Coastal Wetland Development

et al. 2021

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Ecosystem establishment under adverse geophysical conditions is often studied within the "windows of opportunity" framework, identifying disturbance-free periods (e.g., calm wave climate) where species can overcome establishment thresholds. However, the role of biogeophysical interactions in this framework is less well understood. The establishment of saltmarsh vegetation on tidal flats, for example, is limited by abiotic factors such as hydrodynamics, sediment stability and drainage. On tidal flats, raised sediment ridges colonized by algal mats (Vaucheria sp.) appear to accomodate high densities of plant seedlings. Such ridges were previously found to have higher sediment strength than substratum without algae. Here, we investigate whether these measurements can be explained by geophysical factors only, or that biological (Vaucheria-induced) processes influence tidal marsh establishment by forming stabilized bedforms. We performed two experiments under controlled mesocosm conditions, to test the hypotheses that (a) Vaucheria grows better on elevated topographic relief, that (b) the binding force of their algal filaments increases sediment strength, and that (c) Vaucheria consequently creates elevated topographic relief that further facilitates algal growth. Our experimental results confirm the existence of this algal-induced biogeomorphic feedback cycle. These findings imply that benthic algae like Vaucheria may contribute significantly to tidal marsh formation by creating elevated and stabilized substratum. This suggests biogeophysical feedbacks can "widen" the windows of opportunity for further ecosystem establishment. Our results could be useful for the design of managed realignment projects aimed at restoring the unique ecosystem services of coastal wetlands, such as habitat biodiversity, carbon sequestration potential and nature-based flood defense.Plain Language Summary Densely populated coastlines are exposed to flood risks due to sea-level rise and storms. Tidal marshes, sandy or muddy coastal plains colonized by plants, form a natural buffer zone that reduces flood risks. However, tidal marshes only form when plants manage to establish on unvegetated coastal plains known as tidal flats. Waves and currents wash away young plants and inundation by salt water limits plant growth. Hence, firmer sediment and higher sediment elevation are geophysical factors that increase plant survival. However, the biological processes affecting plant establishment are less well understood. In the field, we found plants concentrated on elevated sediment hummocks colonized by Vaucheria algal mats. We performed laboratory experiments, simulating tidal flat conditions, to investigate the role of these algae. We found that Vaucheria algae grow better on elevated hummocks and that hair-like algal filaments strengthen the sediment. We showed that sediment strengthening by Vaucheria creates elevated sediment hummocks, thus self-reinforcing algal growth. Our findings imply that, despite being small, algae like Vaucheria may promot...

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Section: Algal Growth Enhances Sediment Strength and Elevated Topogra...mentioning

confidence: 63%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Algal‐Induced Biogeomorphic Feedbacks Lay the Groundwork for Coastal Wetland Development

et al. 2021

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“…While biological and physical processes are often entangled with each other in the establishment and development of self-organized ecosystems, in some particular cases, they are clearly separated-purely physical processes can first create patterns and other forms of heterogeneity as "physical templates" for ecosystems [for instance, stone aggregation on the ground as driven by frost upheaval and ice needles in arctic ecosystems (16,49)], followed by biological processes (such as plant establishment) operating upon such templates. While mechanisms underlying purely physical self-organizations have attracted much interest (11,(50)(51)(52), their connections to ecosystem functioning and resilience have been mostly understudied. Here, we show that salt marsh mud cracking as a purely physical form of self-organization can create or expand the window of opportunity for vegetation establishment and increase ecosystem resilience to droughts (Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Self-organized mud cracking amplifies the resilience of an iconic “Red Beach” salt marsh

Zhang

Yan

et al. 2023

Sci. Adv.

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Self-organized patterning, resulting from the interplay of biological and physical processes, is widespread in nature. Studies have suggested that biologically triggered self-organization can amplify ecosystem resilience. However, if purely physical forms of self-organization play a similar role remains unknown. Desiccation soil cracking is a typical physical form of self-organization in coastal salt marshes and other ecosystems. Here, we show that physically self-organized mud cracking was an important facilitating process for the establishment of seepweeds in a “Red Beach” salt marsh in China. Transient mud cracks can promote plant survivorship by trapping seeds, and enhance germination and growth by increasing water infiltration in the soil, thus facilitating the formation of a persistent salt marsh landscape. Cracks can help the salt marsh withstand more intense droughts, leading to postponed collapse and faster recovery. These are indications of enhanced resilience. Our work highlights that self-organized landscapes sculpted by physical agents can play a critical role in ecosystem dynamics and resilience to climate change.

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Biophysical self-organization of coastal wetlands: Unraveling spatial complexity on tidal flats and marshes, from the Precambrian to today

Cited by 2 publications

References 0 publications

Algal‐Induced Biogeomorphic Feedbacks Lay the Groundwork for Coastal Wetland Development

Algal‐Induced Biogeomorphic Feedbacks Lay the Groundwork for Coastal Wetland Development

Self-organized mud cracking amplifies the resilience of an iconic “Red Beach” salt marsh

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