Tidal extension and sea‐level rise: recommendations for a research agenda

Ensign, Scott H.; Noe, Gregory B.

doi:10.1002/fee.1745

Cited by 57 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Disturbance events in coastal ecosystems are increasing alongside long‐term increases in sea level, saltwater intrusion, and associated biogeochemical transformations (Ensign and Noe , Tully et al ). Based on previous theoretical and empirical research that found hydrologic‐ and temperature‐driven disturbances synchronize aquatic ecosystems (Baines et al , Erlandsson et al , Kominoski and Rosemond ), we predicted that disturbance events would interact with long‐term increases in water levels in both freshwater and marine ecosystems to increase spatiotemporal similarity (i.e., synchrony) of organic matter, nutrients, and microbial activities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Marine disturbances like tidal extension and saltwater intrusion are rapidly influencing coastal ecosystem biogeochemistry (Ensign and Noe , Tully et al ). Although restoration projects are increasing freshwater flows to freshwater and marine wetlands of the Everglades (Arik et al ), sea‐level rise and storm surge continue to increase saltwater intrusion throughout estuarine and brackish wetlands (Saha et al , Zapata‐Rios and Price , Sandoval et al ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, temperate lakes with similar thermal stratification have synchronous chlorophyll a concentrations (Baines et al ), variability in flow can synchronize organic matter in streams and rivers (Erlandsson et al ), and increases in nutrients and altered flow regimes can affect the quantity, quality, and timing of basal resources (Kominoski and Rosemond ). Marine disturbances like tidal extension and saltwater intrusion are rapidly influencing coastal ecosystem biogeochemistry (Ensign and Noe , Tully et al ). In South Florida, sea levels have rapidly increased in the last decade (Wdowinski et al ), and restoration of the Everglades is recently increasing water levels in many freshwater ecosystems (Dessu et al ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Disturbance legacies increase and synchronize nutrient concentrations and bacterial productivity in coastal ecosystems

Kominoski

Gaiser

Castañeda‐Moya

et al. 2020

Ecology

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Long-term ecological research can resolve effects of disturbance on ecosystem dynamics by capturing the scale of disturbance and interactions with environmental changes. To quantify how disturbances interact with long-term directional changes (sea-level rise, freshwater restoration), we studied 17 yr of monthly dissolved organic carbon (DOC), total nitrogen (TN), and phosphorus (TP) concentrations and bacterioplankton productivity across freshwater-tomarine estuary gradients exposed to multiple disturbance events (e.g., droughts, fire, hurricanes, and low-temperature anomalies) and long-term increases in water levels. By studying two neighboring drainages that differ in hydrologic connectivity, we additionally tested how disturbance legacies are shaped by hydrologic connectivity. We predicted that disturbance events would interact with long-term increases in water levels in freshwater and marine ecosystems to increase spatiotemporal similarity (i.e., synchrony) of organic matter, nutrients, and microbial activities. Wetlands along the larger, deeper, and tidally influenced Shark River Slough (SRS) drainage had higher and more variable DOC, TN, and TP concentrations than wetlands along the smaller, shallower, tidally restricted Taylor River Slough/Panhandle (TS/Ph) drainage. Along SRS, DOC concentrations declined with proximity to coast, and increased in magnitude and variability following drought and flooding in 2015 and a hurricane in 2017. Along TS/Ph, DOC concentrations varied by site (higher in marine than freshwater wetlands) but not year. In both drainages, increases in TN from upstream freshwater marshes occurred following fire in 2008 and droughts in 2010 and 2015, whereas downstream increases in TP occurred with coastal storm surge from hurricanes in 2005 and 2017. Decreases in DOC:TN and DOC:TP were explained by increased TN and TP. Increases in bacterioplankton productivity occurred throughout both drainages following lowtemperature events (2010 and 2011) and a hurricane (2017). Long-term TN and TP concentrations and bacterioplankton productivity were correlated (r > 0.5) across a range of sampling distances (1-50 km), indicating spatiotemporal synchrony. DOC concentrations were not synchronized across space or time. Our study advances disturbance ecology theory by illustrating how disturbance events interact with long-term environmental changes and hydrologic connectivity to determine the magnitude and extent of disturbance legacies. Understanding disturbance legacies will enhance prediction and enable more effective management of rapidly changing ecosystems.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Disturbance legacies increase and synchronize nutrient concentrations and bacterial productivity in coastal ecosystems

Kominoski

Gaiser

Castañeda‐Moya

et al. 2020

Ecology

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“…To determine if the rate of migration upstream was influenced by relative sea-level rise, or other factors, a tidal extension formula (Equation (2)) was created using information provided in previous research [37]:…”

Section: Compute Physical Geography Metricsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Multi-Decadal Investigation of Tidal Creek Wetland Changes, Water Level Rise, and Ghost Forests

Magolan

Halls

2020

Remote Sensing

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Coastal wetlands play a vital role in protecting coastlines, which makes the loss of forested and emergent wetlands devastating for vulnerable coastal communities. Tidal creeks are relatively small hydrologic areas that feed into larger estuaries, are on the front lines of the interface between saltwater and freshwater ecosystems, and are potentially the first areas to experience changes in sea level. The goal of this study was to investigate wetland changes through time at two tidal creeks (Smith Creek and Town Creek) of the Cape Fear River estuary in southeastern North Carolina, USA, to determine if there is a spatial relationship between habitat change, physical geography characteristics, and the rate of wetland migration upstream. Historic aerial photography and recent satellite imagery were used to map land cover and compute change through time and were compared with derived physical geography metrics (sinuosity, creek width, floodplain width, floodplain elevation, and creek slope). The primary results were: (1) there was a net gain in emergent wetlands even accounting for the area of wetlands that became water, (2) wetlands have migrated upstream at an increasing rate through time, (3) land cover change was significantly different between the two creeks (P = 0.01) where 14% (67.5 ha) of Smith Creek and 18% (272.3 ha) of Town Creek transitioned from forest to emergent wetland, and (4) the transition from emergent wetland to water was significantly related to average change in creek width, floodplain elevation, and average water level. In conclusion, this research correlated habitat change with rising water level and identified similarities and differences between neighboring tidal creeks. Future research could apply the methodologies developed here to other coastal locations to further explore the relationships between tides, sea level, land cover change, and physical geography characteristics.The coastal counties surrounding the Cape Fear River have experienced a large increase in urban population where, from 1970 to 2010, New Hanover County experienced a 144% increase in population and Brunswick County a 343% increase [24]. With population growth, and the potential loss of natural areas including forested wetlands, there is an increased coastal vulnerability to storm surge inundation and pluvial flooding. To investigate land cover change under increasing tidal range, relative sea-level rise, and urban development, two tidal creeks of the Cape Fear River estuary, Smith Creek (34.257029, -77.929373) and Town Creek (34.135822, -78.001620) were investigated in this study (Figure 1). Town Creek, 33 km from the mouth of the Cape Fear River, is characterized by expansive wetlands, and is very long for a tidal creek at 53 km [25]. Further upstream, 18 km from Town Creek, is Smith Creek which is much shorter in length (17 km) and is surrounded by urban development. While Smith Creek and Town Creek have notable differences, these creeks were chosen because: (1) they are in close proximity, which is good for compari...

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“…Sequence pre-processing, operational taxonomic unit (OTU) table construction, and phylogenetic tree building were performed using an in-house pipeline, Hundo . Briefly, sequence demultiplexing was done using ea-utils (Aronesty, 2013), reads quality filtered with BB-Duk2 (Bushnell, 2018), and was merged using USEARCH (Edgar, 2010). Sequence de-replication and clustering was performed, taxonomy was assigned to the operational taxonomic unit (OTU), and chimeras were removed using USE-ARCH.…”

Section: Ecological Modelingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial gradients in the characteristics of soil-carbon fractions are associated with abiotic features but not microbial communities

et al. 2019

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Coastal terrestrial-aquatic interfaces (TAIs) are dynamic zones of biogeochemical cycling influenced by salinity gradients. However, there is significant heterogeneity in salinity influences on TAI soil biogeochemical function. This heterogeneity is perhaps related to unrecognized mechanisms associated with carbon (C) chemistry and microbial communities. To investigate this potential, we evaluated hypotheses associated with salinity-associated shifts in organic C thermodynamics; biochemical transformations; and nitrogen-, phosphorus-, and sulfur-containing heteroatom organic compounds in a first-order coastal watershed on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington, USA. In contrast to our hypotheses, thermodynamic favorability of water-soluble organic compounds in shallow soils decreased with increasing salinity (43-867 µS cm −1 ), as did the number of inferred biochemical transformations and total heteroatom content. These patterns indicate lower microbial activity at higher salinity that is potentially constrained by accumulation of less-favorable organic C. Furthermore, organic compounds appeared to be primarily marine-or algae-derived in forested floodplain soils with more lipid-like and protein-like compounds, relative to upland soils that had more lignin-, tannin-, and carbohydrate-like compounds. Based on a recent simulation-based study, we further hypothesized a relationship between C chemistry and the ecological assembly processes governing microbial community composition. Null

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Tidal extension and sea‐level rise: recommendations for a research agenda

Cited by 57 publications

References 36 publications

Disturbance legacies increase and synchronize nutrient concentrations and bacterial productivity in coastal ecosystems

Disturbance legacies increase and synchronize nutrient concentrations and bacterial productivity in coastal ecosystems

A Multi-Decadal Investigation of Tidal Creek Wetland Changes, Water Level Rise, and Ghost Forests

Spatial gradients in the characteristics of soil-carbon fractions are associated with abiotic features but not microbial communities

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