Salt Marsh Habitat Loss
Many drivers contribute to salt marsh degradation and erosion including sea level rise, eutrophication, wind wave stress, and herbivory. With partners at Buzzards Bay Coalition, Buzzards Bay National Estuary Program, Woodwell Climate Research Center, and USGS, and the Northeast Climate Adaptation Science Center we are mapping salt marsh extent, loss, and stressors across space and time. To accomplish this project partners are mapping salt marsh coverages at multiple time points for all of Buzzards Bay using a longterm record of aerial imagery. These maps will be combined with over 25 years of water quality data collected by the Buzzards Bay Coalition's Baywatchers Program; with data on salt marsh geomorphic change and erosion derived from a longterm record of aerial imagery; LiDAR elevation data; and field survey data of vegetation, invertebrates, and elevations from marshes around Buzzards Bay.
Salt marsh degradation and loss leaves coastal communities more vulnerable to flooding and storm events, harms fisheries, and reduces habitat availability and quality for wildlife. In a new extension of our work, we will combine field-based data, existing knowledge on wildlife habitat requirements, and machine-learning geospatial analysis to better understand how these changes in salt marshes will impact Saltmarsh sparrows, Willet, and Diamond-back Terrapin. These 3 species are of high conservation concern in Massachusetts, and all rely on salt marsh habitat for breeding.
Salt marsh degradation and loss leaves coastal communities more vulnerable to flooding and storm events, harms fisheries, and reduces habitat availability and quality for wildlife. In a new extension of our work, we will combine field-based data, existing knowledge on wildlife habitat requirements, and machine-learning geospatial analysis to better understand how these changes in salt marshes will impact Saltmarsh sparrows, Willet, and Diamond-back Terrapin. These 3 species are of high conservation concern in Massachusetts, and all rely on salt marsh habitat for breeding.