Consequences of Climate Change on the Ecogeomorphology of Coastal Wetlands |
| |
| Authors: | John W Day Robert R Christian Donald M Boesch Alejandro Yáñez-Arancibia James Morris Robert R Twilley Larissa Naylor Linda Schaffner Court Stevenson |
| |
| Institution: | (1) Deparment of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences, School of the Coast and Environment, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA;(2) Biology Department, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, USA;(3) Center for Environmental Science, University of Maryland, P.O. Box 775, Cambridge, MD 21613, USA;(4) Institute of Ecology A.C., Km 2.5 Carretera Antigua Coatepec No. 351, Xalapa, 91070, Ver., Mexico;(5) Department of Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA;(6) Department of Geography, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 9EZ, UK;(7) Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences, P.O. Box 1346, Gloucester Point, VA 23062, USA |
| |
| Abstract: | Climate impacts on coastal and estuarine systems take many forms and are dependent on the local conditions, including those
set by humans. We use a biocomplexity framework to provide a perspective of the consequences of climate change for coastal
wetland ecogeomorphology. We concentrate on three dimensions of climate change affects on ecogeomorphology: sea level rise,
changes in storm frequency and intensity, and changes in freshwater, sediment, and nutrient inputs. While sea level rise,
storms, sedimentation, and changing freshwater input can directly impact coastal and estuarine wetlands, biological processes
can modify these physical impacts. Geomorphological changes to coastal and estuarine ecosystems can induce complex outcomes
for the biota that are not themselves intuitively obvious because they are mediated by networks of biological interactions.
Human impacts on wetlands occur at all scales. At the global scale, humans are altering climate at rapid rates compared to
the historical and recent geological record. Climate change can disrupt ecological systems if it occurs at characteristic
time scales shorter than ecological system response and causes alterations in ecological function that foster changes in structure
or alter functional interactions. Many coastal wetlands can adjust to predicted climate change, but human impacts, in combination
with climate change, will significantly affect coastal wetland ecosystems. Management for climate change must strike a balance
between that which allows pulsing of materials and energy to the ecosystems and promotes ecosystem goods and services, while
protecting human structures and activities. Science-based management depends on a multi-scale understanding of these biocomplex
wetland systems. Causation is often associated with multiple factors, considerable variability, feedbacks, and interferences.
The impacts of climate change can be detected through monitoring and assessment of historical or geological records. Attribution
can be inferred through these in conjunction with experimentation and modeling. A significant challenge to allow wise management
of coastal wetlands is to develop observing systems that act at appropriate scales to detect global climate change and its
effects in the context of the various local and smaller scale effects. |
| |
| Keywords: | |
| 本文献已被 SpringerLink 等数据库收录！ |
|
