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Comment
. 2022 Mar 1;119(9):e2111535119.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.2111535119.

Causal relationships among sea level rise, marsh crab activity, and salt marsh geomorphology

Carol A Wilson  1 , Zoe J Hughes  2 , Duncan M FitzGerald  2
Affiliations
Comment

Causal relationships among sea level rise, marsh crab activity, and salt marsh geomorphology

Carol A Wilson et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .
No abstract available

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
(A) Headward erosion rates of creeks at Cape Romain, SC, from 1968 to 2006 (average rate of three creeks = 1.9 m/y). (B) Photo of the creek head showing the dieback region, denuded area, and tiny incipient creeks in the bare region; Inset shows stem density versus crab burrow density; a clear negative correlation exists (data from four locations at Cape Romain along a transect from marsh into bare creek head, n = 12 creeks, quad = 0.0625 m2). Image credit: Hughes et al. (2).
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
(Top) A representative marsh area in Cape Romain, SC, experienced a 23% increase in drainage density from 1958 to 2006. This increase was attributed to biophysical feedbacks of crab burrowing, Spartina dieback, and enhanced tidal flows as a consequence of sea level rise and increasing marsh flooding. (Bottom) Measurements of belowground biomass (A), inorganic sediment mass (B), shear strength (C), and redox potential (D) from the top 10 cm in marsh geomorphic zones impacted by burrowing. Image credit: Wilson et al. (3).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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References

    1. Crotty S. M., et al. , Sea-level rise and the emergence of a keystone grazer alter the geomorphic evolution and ecology of southeast US salt marshes. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 117, 17891–17902 (2020). - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hughes Z. J., et al. , Rapid headward erosion of marsh creeks in response to relative sea level rise. Geophys. Res. Lett. 36, L03602 (2009).
    1. Wilson C. A., Hughes Z. J., FitzGerald D. M., The effects of crab bioturbation on Mid-Atlantic saltmarsh tidal creek extension: Geotechnical and geochemical changes. Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci. 106, 33–44 (2012).
    1. Farron S. J., Hughes Z. J., FitzGerald D. M., Storm K. B., The impacts of bioturbation by common marsh crabs on sediment erodibility: A laboratory flume investigation. Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci. 238, 106710 (2020).
    1. Farron S., "Morphodynamic responses of salt marshes to sea-level rise: Upland expansion, drainage evolution, and biological feedbacks," PhD dissertation, Boston University, Boston, MA (2018).

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