Observations on the ecological importance of salt marshes in the Cumberland Basin,a macrotidal estuary in the Bay of Fundy

The Cumberland Basin, a 118 km² estuary at the head of the Bay of Fundy which has an average tidal range of about 11m, contains large tracts of salt marsh (15% of the area below highest high water). Low marsh (below about 0·9 m above mean high water) is composed almost exclusively of Spartina alterniflora while the vegetation on high marsh is more diverse but dominated by Spartina patens. Because of its higher elevation, high marsh is flooded infrequently for short periods by only extreme high tides. Low marsh is inundated much more frequently by water as much as 4m deep for periods as long as 4 h per tide. Temporal variability in the occurrence of extreme tides influences the flooding frequency of high marsh for any given month and year. Using a modification of Smalley's method, the mean annual net aerial primary production (NAPP) of low and high marsh is estimated to be 272 and 172 g C m^?2, respectively. Vegetation turnover times average 1·0 and 2·0 y for low and high marsh, respectively. Because of abundant tidal energy, much of the low marsh production appears to be exported and distributed widely about the estuary. Since high levels of turbidity suppress phytoplankton production, salt marshes produce approximately half of the carbon fixed photosynthetically in the Cumberland Basin. It is concluded that salt marshes play a major ecological role in the Cumberland Basin.     

Hydrodynamics and associated sediment transport over coastal wetlands in Quanzhou Bay,China

Coastal salt marshes represent an important coastal wetland system.In order to understand the differences between boundary layer parameters of vegetated and unvegetated areas,as well as the mechanisms of sediment transport,several electromagnetic current meters (AEM HR,products of Alec Electronics Co.Ltd.) were deployed in coastal wetlands in Quanzhou Bay,China,to measure current velocity.During the low tide phase,the surficial sediment was collected at 10 m intervals.In situ measurements show that the current velocities on the bare flat were much higher than those in the Spartina alterniflora marsh.Current velocity also varied with distance from marsh edge and plant canopy height and diameter.Around 63% of the velocity profiles in the tidal creek can be described by a logarithmic equation.Over the bare flat and Spartina alterniflora marsh,a logarithmic profile almost occurs during the flood tide phase.Sediment analysis shows that mean grain size was 6.7 Φ along the marsh edge,and surface sediments were transported from bare flat to marsh;the tidal creeks may change this sediment transport pattern.The hydrodynamics at early flood tide and late ebb tide phases determined the net transport direction within the study area.     

Winter processes on northern salt marshes: Evaluating the impact of in-situ peat compaction due to ice loading, Wells, ME

New England salt marshes are dominated by the supratidal high marsh grass, Spartina patens. This grass forms a nearly planar surface, which makes it highly vulnerable to the predicted regime of accelerated sea-level rise (SLR). If the high marsh cannot keep pace with rising sea level it will be transformed to intertidal environments, leading to unusually rapid coastal evolution. Winter processes such as ice-loading of surface peat may degrade the marsh surface. Large volumes of snow and ice compress peat, resulting in shallow compaction and a net loss of elevation in some areas.On the Webhannet marsh in Maine, a simulated ice compaction experiment indicates that thick ice can compress marsh peat (46 cm simulated ‘ice’ produced 6.9 ± 0.3 mm of compaction; 24 cm ‘ice’ produced 3.0 ± 0.8 mm). Experimental data suggest that ice thicknesses greater than 10 cm depress the marsh surface by 2 mm for each cm of total ice thickness. However, surface elevations rebounded to near-control levels within 2 weeks of the removal of simulated ‘ice’ from the surface of the marsh. Normal winter ice accumulations on New England marshes, therefore, do not appear to be sufficient to permanently compact marsh surface peat and lead to loss in marsh surface elevation.     

Anthropogenic impacts on nitrogen fixation rates between restored and natural Mediterranean salt marshes

To test the effects of site and successional stage on nitrogen fixation rates in salt marshes of the Venice Lagoon, Italy, acetylene reduction assays were performed with Salicornia veneta‐ and Spartina townsendii‐vegetated sediments from three restored (6–14 years) and two natural marshes. Average nitrogen fixation (acetylene reduction) rates ranged from 31 to 343 μmol C₂H₄·m^?2·h^?1 among all marshes, with the greatest average rates being from one natural marsh (Tezze Fonde). These high rates are up to six times greater than those reported from Southern California Spartina marshes of similar Mediterranean climate, but substantially lower than those found in moister climates of the Atlantic US coast. Nitrogen fixation rates did not consistently vary between natural and restored marshes within a site (Fossei Est, Tezze Fonde, Cenesa) but were negatively related to assayed plant biomass within the acetylene reduction samples collected among all marshes. Highest nitrogen fixation rates were found at Tezze Fonde, the location closest to the city of Venice, in both natural and restored marshes, suggesting possible site‐specific impacts of anthropogenic stress on marsh succession.     

Invading cord grass vegetation changes analyzed from Landsat-TM imageries: a case study from the Wanggang area, Jiangsu coast, eastern China

Cord grass colonization on the Jiangsu coast, eastern China, modifies the native salt marshes in terms of ecosystem structure. The Landsat TM images from 1992 to 2003 were analyzed to identify salt-marsh vegetation distribution patterns and their changes over this coastal region, in order to evaluate the effects of the spreading of the artificially introduced halophyte Spartina. Supervised classification was performed using Bands 3, 4 and 5 in conjunction with in situ training samples, to derive the distribution pattern of the vegetation in the study area. Further, in order to identify the intertidal areas with different tidal elevations, a data treatment procedure was designed to combine regional water level data using harmonic analysis with the waterlines on the TM images extracted by density slice. The results show that: (1) the Spartina alterniflora area has been expanding towards the sea rapidly since it was introduced, especially at initial stages; (2) in the upper part of the inter-tidal zone, the local marsh plant Suaeda salsa and the exotic species Spartina anglica were present only near the sea dyke, occupying only a small part of the entire salt marsh, and the area of these two species has been reduced by land reclamation; (3) there has been a trend for Spartina alterniflora to become the dominant species in the salt marshes in the study area; and (4) the elevation of Spartina alterniflora’s seaward fringe was close to mean high water on neaps, and its landward boundary was slightly higher than mean high water. The salt marsh environment of the study area has been modified rapidly by the Spartina vegetation for the last 12 years.     

Differential selection for vegetative structure between juvenile brown shrimp (Penaeus aztecus) and white shrimp (P. setiferus), and implications in predator-prey relationships

The distributions of juvenile brown shrimp, Penaeus aztecus, and white shrimp, P. setiferus, (57–72 mm TL) were monitored in partially vegetated laboratory enclosures to examine selection for vegetative structure. Simulated Spartina culms, composed of green straws, were used as structure in the experiments. Brown shrimp selected for this structure during the day but not at night. White shrimp showed no strong selective preference for structure during the day or night.Selection in the field was measured by examining densities of the two species of shrimp (40–80 mm TL) in a Galveston Bay, Texas, salt marsh. Brown shrimp were more abundant in vegetated habitats (Spartina alterniflora) than in adjacent non-vegetated areas. Differences in white shrimp densities between the two habitats were variable, and no consistent pattern was observed.laboratory predation experiments were conducted in non-vegetated and vegetated cages using Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus) as predators. In non-vegetated cages there was no significant selection for either species of shrimp by the fish. In partially and completely vegetated cages, fish selected white shrimp over brown shrimp. These data suggest that the presence of vegetation alters prey selection by Atlantic croaker, and this interaction may result in greater mortality of white shrimp compared with brown shrimp in salt marshes.     

福建罗源湾海滩互花米草盐沼中氮、磷、钾元素分布的研究

互花米草引种到福建罗源湾两年后,使海滩盐沼土有机质提高35—44%,含N量提高80%左右,总P和总K没有多大变化,速效P含量降低3.5—7%。在互花米草盐沼生态系统中,不同相中的N、P、K元素分布量的关系是:植物〉土壤〉海水。10月中旬采样测试表明,互花米草的含N量,地上部分高于地下部分;含P及含K量则相反。在对N、P、K的吸收、分布方面,三个生态型差异不显著。     

Release of dissolved organic matter during oxic and anoxic decomposition of salt marsh cordgrass

Chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM), as the light absorbing fraction of bulk dissolved organic matter (DOM), plays a number of important roles in the global and local biogeochemical cycling of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and in controlling the optical properties of estuarine and coastal waters. Intertidal areas such as salt marshes can contribute significant amounts of the CDOM that is exported to the ocean, but the processes controlling this CDOM source are not well understood. In this study, we investigate the production of DOM and CDOM from the decomposition of two salt marsh cordgrasses, Spartina patens, a C₄ grass, and Typha latifolia, a C₃ grass, in well-controlled laboratory experiments. During the seven-week incubation period of the salt marsh grasses in oxic and anoxic seawater, changes in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations, dissolved nitrogen (DN) concentrations, stable carbon isotopic composition of DOC (DOC-δ¹³C), and CDOM fluorescence demonstrate a significant contribution of DOC and CDOM to estuarine waters from salt marsh plants, such as Spartina and Typha species. In the natural environment, however, the release processes of CDOM from different cordgrass species could be controlled largely by the in situ oxic and anoxic conditions present during degradation which affects both the production and decomposition of DOC and CDOM, as well as the optical properties of CDOM in estuarine and coastal waters.     

Sources and preservation of organic matter in Plum Island salt marsh sediments (MA, USA): long-chain n-alkanes and stable carbon isotope compositions

Elemental (TOC, TN, C/N) and stable carbon isotopic (δ¹³C) compositions and n-alkane (nC_16–38) concentrations were measured for Spartina alterniflora, a C₄ marsh grass, Typha latifolia, a C₃ marsh grass, and three sediment cores collected from middle and upper estuarine sites from the Plum Island salt marshes. Our results indicated that the organic matter preserved in the sediments was highly affected by the marsh plants that dominated the sampling sites. δ¹³C values of organic matter preserved in the upper fresh water site sediment were more negative (−23.0±0.3‰) as affected by the C₃ plants than the values of organic matter preserved in the sediments of middle (−18.9±0.8‰) and mud flat sites (−19.4±0.1‰) as influenced mainly by the C₄ marsh plants. The distribution of n-alkanes measured in all sediments showed similar patterns as those determined in the marsh grasses S. alterniflora and T. latifolia, and nC₂₁ to nC₃₃ long-chain n-alkanes were the major compounds determined in all sediment samples. The strong odd-to-even carbon numbered n-alkane predominance was found in all three sediments and nC₂₉ was the most abundant homologue in all samples measured. Both δ¹³C compositions of organic matter and n-alkane distributions in these sediments indicate that the marsh plants could contribute significant amount of organic matter preserved in Plum Island salt marsh sediments. This suggests that salt marshes play an important role in the cycling of nutrients and organic carbon in the estuary and adjacent coastal waters.     

Invasive Spartina alterniflora-induced factors affecting epibenthos distribution in coastal salt marsh, China

Artificially introduced cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora, rapidly colonized the intertidal flats of the Jiangsu coast, eastern China. The epibenthos on an intertidal flat invaded by S. alterniflora were studied, to identify how local epibenthos species react to an altered environment. Epibenthic samples and surficial sediment samples were collected along a shore-normal profile in 50 quadrats at ten stations across the Spartina salt marsh; and five control quadrats for a station located on the barren sandy-mud flat. The grain size parameters of the surficial sediments show that S. alterniflora altered the grain size gradient along the profile of the intertidal zone by trapping fine-grained sediments. Spartina alterniflora could inhabit lower elevations than indigenous salt marsh vegetation, thus creating larger areas of finer surficial sediments, which was suitable for not only native epibenthic species but also species which do not exist on the barren sandy-mud flat. Correlation analyses show that the epibenthos were sensitive to sediment grain size and type, on the invaded S. alterniflora salt marsh. Further, there was an interspecific relationship affecting the distribution of epibenthos. The results show that epibenthos preferred ecological niches, within the Spartina salt marsh, even in the same sampling station.     

Modeling the influence of hydroperiod and vegetation on the cross-sectional formation of tidal channels

The evolution of the cross section of a salt-marsh channel is explored using a numerical model. Deposition on the marsh platform and erosion and deposition in the channel affect the tidal prism flowing through the cross section, such that the model captures the evolution of the stage–discharge relationship as the channel and marsh platform evolve. The model also captures the growth of salt-marsh vegetation on the marsh platform, and how this vegetation affects flow resistance and the rate of sedimentation. The model is utilized to study the influence of hydroperiod and vegetation encroachment on channel cross section. Numerical results show that a reduction in hydroperiod due to the emergence of the marsh platform causes an infilling of the channel. Vegetation encroachment on the marsh surface produces an increase in flow resistance and accretion due to organic and mineral sedimentation, with important consequences for the shape of the channel cross section. Finally, modeling results indicate that in microtidal marshes with vegetation dominated by Spartina alterniflora, the width-to-depth ratio of the channels decreases when the tidal flats evolve in salt marshes, whereas the cross-sectional area remains proportional to the tidal peak discharge throughout channel evolution.     

Plant traits and spread of the invasive salt marsh grass,Spartina alterniflora Loisel., in the Great Brak Estuary,South Africa

Spartina alterniflora Loisel., widely recognised as an aggressive invader of estuaries and salt marshes around the world, was discovered growing in the temporarily open/closed Great Brak Estuary on the southern Cape coast of South Africa in 2004. This is the first record of this invasive plant in Africa as well as its first occurrence in an estuary that closes to the sea. Plant traits and sediment characteristics were measured in 2009 and 2011 and found to be comparable to those reported elsewhere. Prior to the 2011 sampling, S. alterniflora stands had been flooded for almost eight months. As a result, sediment redox potential (?268 + 4 mV) was significantly lower in 2011. Sediments were mostly clay in 2009 (71 ± 0.01%) compared to a predominance of sand in 2011 (40 ± 0.02%). These differences were related to the artificial breaching of the estuary one month prior to sampling in March 2011. The grass currently occupies 1.1 ha in the salt marsh, sandflat and mudflat habitats of the estuary where its cover is expanding at a rate of 0.162 ha y^?1. Individual stands numbered about 12 in 2006, but have increased to 24 in 2011. These stands are expanding laterally at 0.9 m y^?1 although the long period of inundation during 2010 reduced this to 0.6 m y^?1. Expansion is due to vegetative spread as an analysis of the sediment seed bank showed no S. alterniflora seeds and very few salt marsh seeds (1 132 seeds m^?2). If left unchecked, S. alterniflora has the potential to replace 42.9 ha or 41% of the total estuary habitat in the Great Brak Estuary, but also has the potential to invade other estuaries in South Africa, especially those with extensive intertidal habitat and containing S. maritima (19 estuaries in total). This study illustrates the adaptive potential of this invasive marsh plant and indicates the possibility of invasion in seasonally closed estuaries in other locations around the world.     

广东和广西滨海盐沼遥感调查与分析

滨海盐沼作为重要的湿地生态系统,有极大的社会、经济和生态价值。文章采用多源国产高空间分辨率卫星数据,结合野外现场调查,对广东和广西滨海盐沼开展遥感调查与分析。2019年年底,广东和广西滨海盐沼分布面积分别为1 258.00 hm2和1 450.36 hm2。广东14个沿海市除茂名市外均有滨海盐沼分布,珠海市、江门市、湛江市的分布面积分别为438.89 hm2、331.83 hm2和162.36 hm2,占广东滨海盐沼总面积的34.89%、26.38%和12.91%。广西3个沿海市均有滨海盐沼分布,北海市、防城港市和钦州市的分布面积分别为1 354.87 hm2、49.73 hm2和45.76 hm2,占广西滨海盐沼总面积的93.41%、3.43%和3.16%。广东和广西互花米草分布面积分别为327.96 hm2和1 312.02 hm2。广东海岸带互花米草主要分布在江门市、阳江市、湛江市和潮州市,分布面积分别为179.07 hm2、73.64 hm2、69.72 hm2和5.52 hm2。广东近5年海岸带互花米草面积较为稳定,没有大范围暴发式扩散。广西海岸带互花米草主要分布在北海市和钦州市,分布面积分别为1 309.04 hm2和2.98 hm2。广西海岸带互花米草面积比最早引种时增加了1 311.08 hm2。互花米草在广西北海东海岸、铁山港、廉州湾和大风江口不断扩张,廉州湾的互花米草仍处于种群扩散的暴发期,需加强对互花米草的监测和防控工作。     

Spatial and temporal variations in aboveground and belowground biomass of Spartina maritima (small cordgrass) in created and natural marshes

Spartina species are commonly used for salt marsh manipulative projects, where aboveground and belowground biomasses are functional traits that play important roles, showing high spatial and temporal variations. This work analyses variations in AGB and BGB of Spartina maritima and abiotic environmental parameters along a chronosequence of six marshes created from 1997 to 2003 with disparate sediment dynamics, and adjacent natural marshes and unvegetated tidal flats. S. maritima behaved as an autogenic engineer, as its colonization of bare sediments yielded abiotic environmental changes: specifically, bed level rise accompanied by higher oxygenation and salinity. These modifications of the environment were site-specific, depending mainly on sedimentary dynamics. At the same time, abiotic environmental changes determined biomass production rates of S. maritima that were higher in more-accreting marshes; however, AGB was kept constant from early in its development (2 years). The increase in BGB with elevation seemed to be related to the inhibition of subsurface tissue development in anoxic sediments. Biomass accumulation and production varied markedly, depending on the spatial scale, indicating the relevance of the plot size chosen for the analysis of biomass of cordgrasses. Our results show that managers of salt marshes should consider sedimentary dynamics carefully when setting realistic expectations for success criteria of created and restored wetlands.     

米草属植物Spartina angilica和Spartina alterniflora引种后江苏海岸湿地生态演化的初步探讨

选取江苏王港潮滩的盐蒿滩、大米草滩及互花米草滩,分析这三类滩面的地面以上生物量、初级生产力、动物洞穴参数和沉积物粒度,探讨大米草和互花米草引种区的湿地生态系统相对于盐蒿滩的变化.分析结果表明,互花米草滩的生物量远大于盐蒿滩和大米草滩;单位面积上动物洞穴数量相近,但洞穴大小有一定差异,互花米草滩动物洞穴稍大,数量也相对较多,这可能与初级生产力的提高有关.表层底质的粒径以互花米草滩为最细,盐蒿滩最粗,这种分布状况与互花米草引种前不同,说明互花米草促进了细颗粒物质的堆积.互花米草的引种在江苏海岸具有促淤和提高初级生产力的作用,而它对湿地生态系统的结构和功能的影响需要进一步研究.     

Impact of dynamic feedbacks between sedimentation,sea-level rise,and biomass production on near-surface marsh stratigraphy and carbon accumulation

Salt marshes accrete both organic and inorganic sediments. Here we present analytical and numerical models of salt marsh sedimentation that, in addition to capturing inorganic processes, explicitly account for above- and belowground organic processes including root growth and decay of organic carbon. The analytical model is used to examine the bias introduced by organic processes into proxy records of sedimentation, namely ¹³⁷Cs and ²¹⁰Pb. We find that accretion rates estimated using ²¹⁰Pb will be less than accretion rates estimated using the ¹³⁷Cs peak in steadily accreting marshes if (1) carbon decay is significant and (2) data for ²¹⁰Pb extend below the ¹³⁷Cs peak. The numerical model expands upon the analytical model by including belowground processes such as compaction and root growth, and by explicitly tracking the evolution of aboveground biomass and its effect on sedimentation rates. Using the numerical model we explore how marsh stratigraphy responds to sediment supply and the rate of sea-level rise. It is calibrated and tested using an extensive data set of both marsh stratigraphy and measurements of vegetation dynamics in a Spartina alterniflora marsh in South Carolina, USA. We find that carbon accumulation in marshes is nonlinearly related to both the supply of inorganic sediment and the rate of sea-level rise; carbon accumulation increases with sea-level rise until sea-level rise reaches a critical rate that drowns the marsh vegetation and halts carbon accumulation. The model predicts that changes in carbon storage resulting from changing sediment supply or sea-level rise are strongly dependent on the background sediment supply: if inorganic sediment supply is reduced in an already sediment poor marsh the storage of organic carbon will increase to a far greater extent than in a sediment-rich marsh, provided that the rate of sea-level rise does not exceed a threshold. These results imply that altering sediment supply to estuaries (e.g., by damming upstream rivers or altering littoral sediment transport) could lead to significant changes in the carbon budgets of coastal salt marshes.     

Environmental limitations on recruitment from seed in invasive Spartina densiflora on a southern European salt marsh

The South American cordgrass, Spartina densiflora, has invaded a range of different habitats that can support different native species assemblages on salt marshes in the Gulf of Cadiz, Spain. Little is known about the mechanisms of invasion. We examined the potential for seed germination and recruitment in a field transplant experiment, representing a wide range of environments, on elevational gradients across marshes with muddy and sandy sediments. The biotic resistance of native, perennial vegetation (where present) to recruitment of the alien was also investigated. Spartina densiflora seeds were able to germinate over a greater than 2-m range of elevation in the tidal frame. Germination success on unvegetated muddy sediments was related to sediment redox potential, with poor germination at strongly negative redox potentials on the lower sites. On sandy, well-drained sediments, germination was apparently constrained by water availability at the highest elevations. Comparison of vegetated and cleared plots on the upper marsh showed that there was a negative relationship between the presence of Atriplex portulacoides and germination on the muddy sediments. Recruitment (survival of seedlings for 12 weeks) was seen only on unvegetated muddy sediments at the highest elevation. Hence the invasive success and wide elevational tolerance of S. densiflora on the marshes of the Gulf of Cadiz are not reflected in its short-term ability to become established from its prolific seed production. Colonization of sub-optimal habitats may be largely by vegetative propagules and clonal growth.     

三沙湾互花米草(Spartina alterniflora)入侵对大型底栖动物群落结构的影响

为探讨互花米草(Spartinaalterniflora)入侵对三沙湾光滩、红树林湿地的生态影响,分别于2013年10月和2014年9月在三沙湾选择了2条互花米草断面、2条红树林断面和1条光滩进行底栖生物生态调查,分析了大型底栖动物群落分布的时空差异、底栖动物与环境因子之间的关系。经鉴定,该调查海域大型底栖动物共68种,隶属于7门40科,其中短拟沼螺(Assiminea brevicula)为互花米草区优势物种;宁波泥蟹(Ilyoplaxningpoensis)为光滩的优势物种;巴林虫(Barantollasp.)为红树林区优势物种。对各生境大型底栖动物物种数、生物量和栖息密度组成进行双因素无重复方差分析(two-way ANOVA),结果显示不同生境大型底栖动物物种数差异极显著(P0.01),互花米草入侵红树林后,大型底栖动物物种数稍有下降,但是互花米草入侵光滩后,大型底栖动物物种数有所增加;不同生境大型底栖动物生物量差异极显著(P0.01),栖息密度差异不显著(P0.05)。利用大型底栖动物的ABC曲线分析群落结构的稳定性,显示光滩群落结构稳定,互花米草入侵后,优势物种变化显著,双齿围沙蚕数量迅速增加,降低了原有大型底栖动物群落结构的稳定性。除生境影响外,互花米草入侵的潮位区域、生长密度差异、入侵阶段等也均会对大型底栖动物造成影响。     

Role of different salt marsh plants on metal retention in an urban estuary (Lima estuary,NW Portugal)

The aim of the present work was to understand the role different salt marsh plants on metal distribution and retention in the Lima River estuary (NW Portugal), which to our knowledge have not been ascertained in this area yet. The knowledge of these differences is an important requirement for the development of appropriate management strategies, and is poorly described for Eurosiberian estuaries, like the one selected. In addition it is important to understand the difference among introduced and native salt marsh plants. In this work, metal levels (Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) were surveyed (by atomic absorption spectrometry) in sediments from sites vegetated with Juncus maritimus, Spartina patens, Phragmites australis and Triglochin striata (rhizo-sediments), in non-vegetated sediments and in the different tissues of the plants (roots, rhizomes and aerial shoots). In general, rhizo-sediments had higher metal concentrations than non-vegetated sediments, a feature that seems common to sediments colonized by salt marsh plants of different estuarine areas. All plants concentrated metals, at least Cd, Cu and Zn (and Pb for T. striata) in their belowground structures ([M]_{belowground tissues}/[M]_{non-vegetated sediment} > 1). However, when considered per unit of salt marsh area, the different selected plants played a different role on sediment metal distribution and retention. Triglochin striata retained a significant metal burden in it belowground structures (root plus rhizomes) acting like a possible phyto-stabilizer, whereas P. australis had an higher metal burden in aboveground tissues acting as a possible phyto-extractor. As for J. maritimus and S. patens, metal burden distribution between above and belowground structures depended on the metal, with J. maritimus retaining, for instance, much more Cd and Cu in the aboveground than in the belowground structures. Therefore, the presence of invasive and exotic plants in some areas of the salt marsh may considerably affect metal distribution and retention in the estuarine region.     

基于卫星遥感的潮滩植被、高程、潮沟空间关系探讨-以崇明东滩为例

The analysis of vegetation-environment relationships has always been a study hotspot in ecology. A number of biotic, hydrologic and edaphic factors have great influence on the distribution of macrophytes within salt marsh.Since the exotic species Spartina alterniflora(S. alterniflora) was introduced in 1995, a rapid expansion has occurred at Chongming Dongtan Nature Reserve(CDNR) in the Changjiang(Yangtze) River Estuary, China.Several important vegetation-environment factors including soil elevation, tidal channels density(TCD),vegetation classification and fractional vegetation cover(FVC) were extracted by remote sensing method combined with field measurement. To ignore the details in interaction between biological and physical process,the relationship between them was discussed at a large scale of the whole saltmarsh. The results showed that Scirpus mariqueter(S. mariqueter) can endure the greatest elevation variance with 0.33 m throughout the marsh in CDNR. But it is dominant in the area less than 2.5 m with the occurrence frequency reaching 98%. S. alterniflora has usually been found on the most elevated soils higher than 3.5 m but has a narrow spatial distribution. The rapid decrease of S. mariqueter can be explained by stronger competitive capacity of S. alterniflora on the high tidal flat. FVC increases with elevation which shows significant correlation with elevation(r=0.30, p0.001). But the frequency distribution of FVC indicates that vegetation is not well developed on both elevated banks near tidal channels from the whole scale mainly due to tidal channel lateral swing and human activities. The significant negative correlation(r=–0.20, p0.001) was found between FVC and TCD, which shows vegetation is restricted to grow in higher TCD area corresponding to lower elevation mainly occupied by S. mariqueter communities. The maximum occurrence frequency of this species reaches to 97% at the salt marsh with TCD more than 8 m/m2.