Salt Marsh Communities - Term Paper Example

Salt marshes Introduction The paper d Salt Marsh Communities, argues that salt marshes form along thecoastline where water disturbance is low or moderate to allow the accumulation and the growth of the angiosperms (Pennings and Bertness 289). According to research in support of this statement, salt marshes have been seen to be more dominant and growing on the East and Gulf coasts in the United States. On the other side, the West Coast does not have a lot of salt marshes because of the narrow continental shelf, heavy surf and a terrain that resembles that of a mountain (Pennings and Bertness 289). In the global view, salt marshes are common in all latitudes, and when they have grown for many decades, the mangrove forests replace the marshes. The mangrove takes over from the marshes because they thrive well in the salty aquatic environment (Biodiversity and Garden 351). For a marsh to form, it goes through a series of biological processes. It takes time for the angiosperms to accumulate so as to form the marshes. There are types of marshes that can cover the terrestrial habitats while others can extend and expand through trapping more sediments and colonization of the sediments (Pennings and Bertness 289). However, both habitats of salt marshes can be occupied by other organisms like birds, insects, mammals and marine living organisms. There are living organisms that survive well in salty environments while others thrive well in non-salty conditions, the freshwater aquatic animals (Charton and Facts on File 276). Salt marshes are an interesting part of the ecosystem because it involves the interaction of the physical and biological factors and how they form a natural environment that can be inhabited by other living organisms. The article on Coastal Eutrophication as a Driver of Salt Marsh loss says that the salt marshes are important in the ecosystem because they help to protect the coastal cities from storms and strong waves (Deegan, et al. 1). In the recent years, the salt marshes have been seen to be decreasing in sizes and some areas along the coastal line have no marshes. The same study highlighted that the loss of the salt marshes is because of the increased nutrients in the water which has been brought by the climate change factor (Deegan, et al. 1). Increased nutrients in the water are associated with eutrophication and the increased leaf biomass. The continuous deposition of the organic matter will lead to the collapsing of a creek-bank (Deegan, et al. 1). With the increased human population, people around the coastal area are using fertilizers to boost their agricultural yield. When it rains, all these fertilizers and chemical used in the planting are drained into the ocean. Fertilizers have been seen to affect the natural environment for the accumulation of the angiosperms that later on form salt marshes. Continuous use of the fertilizers has reduced the size of the salt marshes in some coastal regions it had gone extinct (Charton and Facts on File 202). The accelerated nitrogen cycle has increased the flow of nitrogen from the land to the marine ecosystems. Nitrogen is useful in the ecosystem if released at a controlled and normal rate. High concentrations of nitrogen has led to the formation of harmful algal blooms that are poisonous to the aquatic life. This has led to a decrease in fish population and the fisherman search for fish in the deep because the shallow waters have been polluted (Biodiversity and Garden 250). Despite the efforts that have been put to protect the salt marshes, it has not been fruitful because of the continuous human activities. Not only the human factors, there are also other factors like loss of sediment supply and the sea level rise have also contributed to the marsh loss. In addition, nutrient enrichment has resulted into positive feedbacks that have led to the creek-bank stability. On the contrary, nutrient enrichment has led to a subsequent loss of the salt marsh. In the first discussed article, the loss of the salt marshes has been 80% pegged on human activities, while in the second article, the loss of salt marshes has been caused by the excessive nitrogen gas concentration being released from the land to the ocean. The excessive nitrogen has led to the enrichment of the coastal water driving away salt marshes. Therefore, my this piece of work is in the support of the second article that says that nutrient enrichment is the main course of loss of the salt marshes. The importance of the salt marshes is to protect the coastal regions from storms, to provide habitat for birds and animals, to reduce the degree of pollutants entering the ocean water and to provide a good environment for the mangroves to grow (Bailey and Facts on File 103). Scientists have conducted an intense search on the salty marshes, and they have come up with reasons to support the excessive nitrogen release from the land. Climate change has contributed to the factor of the land, releasing too much nutrient because of the extreme weather situations (Charton and Facts on File 276). Additionally, the nutrients usually originate from sewage, fertilizer and surface runoff that has hummus. To some percentage, human factor has also contributed to the loss of the salt marsh, but not as much as the nutrient concentration. The high availability of the nitrogen ion in the ecosystem is increasing the decomposition of the available biomass causing eutrophication. Eutrophication limits the amount of oxygen entering the water and hence the angiosperms will be suffocated, and they will not be able to colonize sediments to form the salt marshes (Biodiversity and Garden 206). The presence of nitrogen in water leads to a biological situation known as denitrification that is an indication of the anaerobic decomposition of the biomass. Microbial activities work well where there is insufficient oxygen because decomposition is an anaerobic process (Deegan, et al. 1). Denitrification is a process that yields high levels of heat which accelerated decomposition of the organic content in the water. During the low tide, the creek-banks stabilizes, but when high storms hit, they collapse because there are no salt marshes that can act as storm brakes and reduce the impact. The impact of storm is also felt by the people living near the coastal region. Many people have been complaining that when the storms hit, they destroy their house. Most of the people who lived in those areas have moved because the area is no longer safe. My support for the nitrogen factor is strong because it can be scientifically proven. Human activity is a wide topic that needs to be broken down to something specific like nitrogen element. The salty marshes have important roles in the ecosystem and they should be protected from destruction and nitrogen factor. They protect the coastal region from erosion, form a good environment for the growth of the mangrove forest, reduce the storm forces and provide a natural habitat for animals to live and to interact. Work cited Bailey, Jill and Inc. Facts on File. The Facts On File dictionary of botany. New York: Facts On File, 2002. Internet resource. Biodiversity, California Institute for and Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden. Habitats arealive! : an ecological guide to Californias diverse habitats. Teacher resource guide. Oakland, CA: California Institute for Biodiversity & Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, 2008. Print. Charton, Barbara and Inc. Facts on File. The Facts on File dictionary of marine science. New York: Facts on File, 2008. Internet resource. Deegan, Linda A, et al. "Coastal Eutrophication as a Driver of Salt Marsh Loss." Letter Research (2012): 9. Document. Pennings, Steven C. and Mark D. Bertness. "Salt Marsh Communities." Verhoef, Herman A and Peter J Morin. Community ecology: processes, models, and applications. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010. 500. Print. Read More