Mentor/s
Dr. LaTina Steele
Participation Type
Poster
Abstract
Salt marsh restoration is key for resilient coastlines. Invertebrates are key components of salt marsh food webs, serve as water quality indicators, and provide ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling. This study collected baseline invertebrate community data in an eroding Spartina alterniflora marsh with unvegetated sediment seaward of the marsh cliff at Stratford Point, Connecticut as a reference point to assess future restoration. We hypothesized that the existing invertebrate community would resemble that of a mudflat more than a mature salt marsh. We surveyed macroinvertebrates in quadrats along four transects (higher and lower intertidal within the vegetated area; higher and lower intertidal within the unvegetated area) and collected core samples from unvegetated quadrats for infauna. Few macroinvertebrates were present in vegetated transects where slipper shells and periwinkles were most common. Macroinvertebrate densities were highest in the unvegetated higher intertidal transect while infauna density was highest in the unvegetated lower intertidal transect. Polychaetes and mud snails were among the most common macroinvertebrates in the unvegetated transects, while nematodes and copepods dominated the infauna. Overall, baseline data indicated degraded marsh conditions, and we expect the invertebrate community to change following restoration, with an increase in macroinvertebrates like bivalves, gastropods, and decapods.
College and Major available
Biology
Location
Digital Commons & West Campus 2nd Floor University Commons
Start Day/Time
4-28-2023 12:00 PM
End Day/Time
4-28-2023 2:00 PM
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License.
Prize Categories
Best Multidisciplinary Research or Collaboration
Baseline macroinvertebrate and infauna communities in an eroding salt marsh prior to restoration
Digital Commons & West Campus 2nd Floor University Commons
Salt marsh restoration is key for resilient coastlines. Invertebrates are key components of salt marsh food webs, serve as water quality indicators, and provide ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling. This study collected baseline invertebrate community data in an eroding Spartina alterniflora marsh with unvegetated sediment seaward of the marsh cliff at Stratford Point, Connecticut as a reference point to assess future restoration. We hypothesized that the existing invertebrate community would resemble that of a mudflat more than a mature salt marsh. We surveyed macroinvertebrates in quadrats along four transects (higher and lower intertidal within the vegetated area; higher and lower intertidal within the unvegetated area) and collected core samples from unvegetated quadrats for infauna. Few macroinvertebrates were present in vegetated transects where slipper shells and periwinkles were most common. Macroinvertebrate densities were highest in the unvegetated higher intertidal transect while infauna density was highest in the unvegetated lower intertidal transect. Polychaetes and mud snails were among the most common macroinvertebrates in the unvegetated transects, while nematodes and copepods dominated the infauna. Overall, baseline data indicated degraded marsh conditions, and we expect the invertebrate community to change following restoration, with an increase in macroinvertebrates like bivalves, gastropods, and decapods.
Students' Information
Madison Eaton, Biology, 2023.