Presentation: An introduciton to the plants, soils, and hydrology of ...

Introduciton to Ecology and Regulation of
Tidal Wetlands in Central California and the San Francisco Bay
August 17, 2005
Wetland Loss in the United States
400,000,000
early 1800's
25,000,000
Wetland Loss by State
early 1800's
Wetland area (acres)
300,000,000
200,000,000
100,000,000
1980
size of Calif.
Wetland area (acres)
20,000,000
15,000,000
10,000,000
5,000,000
1980
0
United States Alaska Lower 48
0
FL LA TX MN MI NC
(Dahl 1990)
State
(Dahl 1990)
25,000,000
Wetland Loss by State
early 1800's
SF Bay Wetlands Past and Present
Wetland area (acres)
20,000,000
15,000,000
10,000,000
5,000,000
1980
ca. 1850 ca. 1998
0
CA OR WA FL LA TX MN MI NC
State
(Dahl 1990)
(from SFEI)
A Quick Introduction to Tidal Marshes
Understanding Tidal Marsh Hydrology
• Hydrology
tides
freshwater inputs
• Soils
lack of oxygen
salinity
• Vegetation
spatial patterns of distribution on a variety of scales
adaptations
common species
• Hydroperiod
frequency of inundation
duration of inundation
depth of inundation
• Critical hydrological factors
tides
freshwater inputs
Coastal Training Program Workshop
Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR)
San Francisco Bay NERR 2/10
2