SpringerLink
Log in

Surface Elevation Change Dynamics in Coastal Marshes Along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico: Anticipating Effects of Rising Sea-Level and Intensifying Hurricanes

  • Coastal Wetlands
  • Published:
Wetlands Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Accelerated sea-level rise and intensifying hurricanes highlight the need to better understand surface elevation change in coastal wetlands. We used the surface elevation table-marker horizon approach to measure surface elevation change in 14 coastal marshes along the northwestern Gulf of Mexico, within five National Wildlife Refuges in Texas (USA). During the 2014–2019 study period, the mean rate of surface elevation change was 1.96 ± 0.87 mm yr−1 (range: -1.57 to 8.37 mm yr−1). Vertical accretion rates varied due to landscape proximity relative to sediment inputs from Hurricane Harvey. At most sites, vertical accretion offset subsurface losses due to shallow subsidence. However, net elevation gains were often lower than recent relative sea-level rise rates, and much lower than rates expected under future sea-level rise. Because these marshes are not kee** pace with recent sea-level rise, it is unlikely that they will be able to adjust to future accelerations. Climate change threatens these Texas coastal wetlands and the ecological and economic services they provide. By characterizing the status and prospective loss of coastal marshes, our study reinforces the value of identifying local and landscape-level adaptation mechanisms that can enhance the ability of coastal marshes to adapt to threats posed by climate change.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
EUR 32.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or Ebook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price includes VAT (Canada)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability

Texas National Wildlife Refuge sediment elevation and marker horizon data generated in this study are available at https://doi.org/10.7944/P9CBFO1C (Moon et al. 2021).

Code Availability

N/A.

References

  • Alexander HD, Dunton KH (2002) Freshwater inundation effects on emergent vegetation of a hypersaline salt marsh. Estuaries and Coasts 25:1426–1435

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Armitage AR, Highfield WE, Brody SD, Louchouarn P (2015) The contribution of mangrove expansion to salt marsh loss on the Texas Gulf Coast. PLoS ONE 10:e0125404

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Barbier EB, Hacker SD, Kennedy C, Koch EW, Stier AC, Silliman BR (2011) The value of estuarine and coastal ecosystem services. Ecological Monographs 81:169–193

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bates D, Mächler MM, Bolker BM, Walker SC (2020) lme4: Linear mixed-effects models using ‘Eigen’ and S4. R package version 1.1–26. http://CRAN.R-project.org/package=lme4

  • Baumann RH, Day JW Jr, Miller CA (1984) Mississippi deltaic wetland survival: Sedimentation versus coastal submergence. Science 224:1093–1095

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baustian JJ, Mendelssohn IA (2015) Hurricane-induced sedimentation improves marsh resilience and vegetation vigor under high rates of relative sea-level rise. Wetlands 35:795–802

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baustian JJ, Mendelssohn IA, Hester MW (2012) Vegetation’s importance in regulating surface elevation in a coastal salt marsh facing elevated rates of sea-level rise. Global Change Biology 18:3377–3382

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blake ES, Zelinsky DA (2018) Tropical Cyclone Report, Hurricane Harvey (AL092017). National Weather Service, National Hurricane Center, Miami, FL

    Google Scholar 

  • Blum M, Roberts HH (2009) Drowning of the Mississippi Delta due to insufficient sediment supply and global sea-level rise. Nature Geoscience 2:488–491

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Boesch, DF, Josselyn MN, Mehta AJ, Morris JT, Nuttle WK, Simestad CA, Swift DJP (1994) Scientific assessment of coastal wetland loss, restoration and management in Louisiana. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 20. Scientific Assessment of Coastal Wetland Loss, Restoration and Management in Louisiana:1–103

  • Borchert SM, Osland MJ, Enwright NM, Griffith KT (2018) Coastal wetland adaptation to sea-level rise: quantifying potential for landward migration and coastal squeeze. Journal of Applied Ecology 55:2876–2887

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brasher MG (2015) Review of the benefits of marsh terraces in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Ducks Unlimited, Inc., Gulf Coast Joint Venture, Lafayette, LA

    Google Scholar 

  • Braswell AE, May CA, Cherry JA (2019) Spatially-dependent patterns of plant recovery and sediment accretion following multiple disturbances in a Gulf Coast tidal marsh. Wetlands Ecology and Management 27:377–392

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR (2006) A review of major storm impacts on coastal wetland elevations. Estuaries and Coasts 29:889–898

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Reed DJ (1995) Relationships among marsh surface topography, hydroperiod, and soil accretion in a deteriorating Louisiana salt marsh. Journal of Coastal Research 11:357–369

    Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Turner RE (1989) Accretion and canal impacts in a rapidly subsiding wetland. II. Feldspar marker horizon technique. Estuaries 12:260–268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Reed DJ, Day JW Jr (1995a) Estimating shallow subsidence in microtidal salt marshes of the southeastern United States: Kaye and Barghoorn revisited. Marine Geology 128:1–9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Lynch JC, Hensel P, Boumans R, Perez BC, Segura B, Day JW Jr (2002a) High-precision measurements of wetland sediment elevation: I. Recent improvements to the sedimentation-erosion table. Journal of Sedimentary Research 72:730–733

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Lynch JC, Perez BC, Segura B, Holland RD, Stelly C, Stephenson G, Hensel P (2002b) High-precision measurements of wetland sediment elevation: II. The rod surface elevation table. Journal of Sedimentary Research 72:734–739

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Hensel P, Rybczyk J, McKee KL, Proffitt CE, Perez BC (2003) Mass tree mortality leads to mangrove peat collapse at Bay Islands, Honduras after Hurricane Mitch. Journal of Ecology 91:1093–1105

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Ford MA, Hensel PF (2004) Ecogeomorphology of Spartina patens dominated tidal marshes: soil organic matter accumulation, marsh elevation dynamics, and disturbance. In: Fagherazzi S, Marani M, Blum LK (eds) The ecogeomorphology of tidal marshes. American Geophysical Union, Washington, DC, pp 247–266

    Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Perez BC, Segura BD, Lynch JC (2011) Elevation trends and shrink–swell response of wetland soils to flooding and drying. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 91:463–474

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Lynch JC, Roman CT, Schmit JP, Skidds DE (2019) Evaluating the relationship among wetland vertical development, elevation capital, sea-level rise, and tidal marsh sustainability. Estuaries and Coasts 42:1–15

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon DR, Reed DJ, Day JW, Lynch JC, Swales A, Lane RR (2020) Applications and utility of the surface elevation table–marker horizon method for measuring wetland elevation and shallow soil subsidence-expansion. Geo-Marine Letters 40:809–815

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cahoon, DR, Reed DJ, Day JW, Steyer GD, Boumans RM, Lynch JC, McNally D, Latif N (1995b) The influence of Hurricane Andrew on sediment distribution in Louisiana coastal marshes. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No 21. Impacts of Hurricane Andrew on the Coastal Zones of Florida and Louisiana: 280–294

  • Cain MR, Hensel PF (2018) Wetland elevations at sub-centimeter precision: exploring the use of digital barcode leveling for elevation monitoring. Estuaries and Coasts 41:582–591

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Callaway JC, Cahoon DR, Lynch JC (2013) The surface elevation table–marker horizon method for measuring wetland accretion and elevation dynamics. In: DeLaune RD, Reddy KR, Richardson CJ, Megonigal JP (eds) Methods in Biogeochemistry of Wetlands. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI, pp 901–917

    Google Scholar 

  • Castañeda-Moya E, Rivera-Monroy VH, Chambers RM, Zhao X, Lamb-Wotton L, Gorsky A, Gaiser EE, Troxler TG, Kominoski JS, Hiatt M (2020) Hurricanes fertilize mangrove forests in the Gulf of Mexico (Florida Everglades, USA). PNAS 9:4831–4841

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chabreck RH (1989) Creation, restoration and enhancement of north central Gulf coast marshes. In: Kusler JA, Kentula ME (eds) Wetland creation and restoration: the status of the science, vol I. Regional reviews, EPA/600/3–89/038a. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Laboratory, Corvallis, OR

    Google Scholar 

  • Coplin LS, Galloway D (1999) Houston-Galveston, Texas—Managing coastal subsidence. In: Galloway D, Jones DR, Ingebritsen SE (eds) Land subsidence in the United States, USGS Circular 1182. U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA, pp 35–48

    Google Scholar 

  • Costanza R, de Groot R, Sutton P, van der Ploeg S, Anderson SJ, Kubiszewski I, Farber S, Turner RK (2014) Changes in the global value of ecosystem services. Global Environmental Change 26:152–158

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Couvillion BR, Beck H, Schoolmaster D, Fischer M (2017) Land area change in coastal Louisiana (1932 to 2016): U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3381. https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3381

  • Cressman K (2020) National Synthesis of NERR SET Data. Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, MS. https://nerrssciencecollaborative.org/resource/national-synthesis-nerr-surface-elevation-table-data. Accessed 9 Mar 2022

  • Daily GC, Matson PA, Vitousek PM (1997) Ecosystem services supplied by soil. In: Daily GC (ed) Nature’s services: Societal dependence on natural ecosystems. Island Press, Washington, DC, pp 113–132

    Google Scholar 

  • Day JW Jr, Britsch LD, Hawes SR, Shaffer GP, Reed DJ, Cahoon DR (2000) Pattern and process of land loss in the Mississippi Delta: A spatial and temporal analysis of wetland habitat change. Estuaries 23:425–438

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeLaune RD, Baumann RH, Gosselink JG (1983) Relationships among vertical accretion, coastal submergence, and erosion in a Louisiana Gulf Coast marsh. Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 53:147–157

    Google Scholar 

  • DeLaune RD, Nyman JA, Patrick WH Jr (1994) Peat collapse, ponding and wetland loss in a rapidly submerging coastal marsh. Journal of Coastal Research 10:1021–1030

    Google Scholar 

  • Du J, Park K, Dellapenna TM, Clay JM (2019) Dramatic hydrodynamic and sedimentary responses in Galveston Bay and adjacent inner shelf to Hurricane Harvey. Science of the Total Environment 653:554–564

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dunton KH, Hardegree B, Whitledge TE (2001) Response of estuarine marsh vegetation to interannual variations in precipitation. Estuaries and Coasts 24:851–861

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Engle VD (2011) Estimating the provision of ecosystem services by Gulf of Mexico coastal wetlands. Wetlands 31:179–193

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Entwistle C, Mora MA, Knight R (2018) Estimating coastal wetland gain and losses in Galveston County and Cameron County, Texas, USA. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management 14:120–129

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Enwright NM, Griffith KT, Osland MJ (2016) Barriers to and opportunities for landward migration of coastal wetlands with sea-level rise. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 14:307–316

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Enwright NM, Hartley SB, Couvillion BR, Brasher MG, Visser JM, Mitchell MK, Ballard BM, Parr MW, Wilson BC (2015) Delineation of marsh types from Corpus Christi Bay, Texas, to Perdido Bay, Alabama, in 2010: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3336. https://doi.org/10.3133/sim3336

  • ESRI (2020) ArcGIS Desktop: Release 10. Environmental Systems Research Institute, Redlands, CA

    Google Scholar 

  • Feher LC, Osland MJ, Anderson GH, Vervaeke WC, Krauss KW, Whelan KRT, Balentine KM, Tiling-Range G, Smith TJ III, Cahoon DR (2020) The long-term effects of hurricanes Wilma and Irma on soil elevation change in everglades mangrove forests. Ecosystems 23:917–931

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Forbes MG, Dunton KH (2006) Response of a subtropical estuarine marsh to local climatic change in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico. Estuaries and Coasts 29:1242–1254

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gabler CA, Osland MJ, Grace JB, Stagg CL, Day RH, Hartley SB, Enwright NM, From AS, McCoy ML, McLeod JL (2017) Macroclimatic change expected to transform coastal wetland ecosystems this century. Nature Climate Change 7:142–147

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ganju NK (2019) Marshes are the new beaches: Integrating sediment transport into restoration planning. Estuaries and Coasts 42:917–926

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gillins DT, Kerr D, Weaver B (2019) Evaluation of the online positioning user service for processing static GPS surveys: OPUS-Projects, OPUS-S, OPUS-Net, and OPUS-RS. ASCE Journal of Surveying Engineering 145:05019002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gough L, Grace JB (1998) Herbivore effects on plant species density at varying productivity levels. Ecology 79:1586–1594

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jadhav RS, Chen Q, Smith JM (2013) Spectral distribution of wave energy dissipation by salt marsh vegetation. Coastal Engineering 77:99–107

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kargar AR, MacKenzie RA, Fafard A, Krauss KW, van Aardt J (2021) Surface elevation change evaluation in mangrove forests using a low-cost, rapid-scan terrestrial laser scanner. Limnology and Oceanography: Methods 19:8–20

    Google Scholar 

  • Kirwan ML, Megonigal JP (2013) Tidal wetland stability in the face of human impacts and sea-level rise. Nature 504:53–60

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kirwan M, Temmerman S, Skeehan E, Guntenspergen G, Fagherazzi S (2016) Overestimation of marsh vulnerability to sea level rise. Nature Clim Change 6:253–260. https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate2909

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kossin JP, Hall T, Knutson T, Kunkel KE, Trapp RJ, Waliser DE, Wehner MF (2017) Extreme storms. In: Wuebbles DJ, Fahey DW, Hibbard KA, Dokken DJ, Stewart BC, Maycock TK (eds) Climate Science Special Report: Fourth National Climate Assessment, Volume I. U.S. Global Change Research Program, Washington, DC, pp 257–276

    Google Scholar 

  • Krauss KW, Osland MJ (2020) Tropical cyclones and the organization of mangrove forests: A review. Annals of Botany 125:213–234

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kuhn AL, Kominoski JS, Armitage AR, Charles SP, Pennings SC, Weaver CA, Maddox TR (2021) Buried hurricane legacies: increased nutrient limitation and decreased root biomass in coastal wetlands. Ecosphere 12:e03674

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuznetsova A, Brockhoff PB, Christensen RHB (2013) lmerTest: Tests for random and fixed effects for linear mixed models (lmer objects of lme4 package). R package version 2.0–0. http://CRAN.R-project.org/package=lmerTest

  • Longley WL (1994) Freshwater inflows to Texas bays and estuaries: Ecological relationships and methods for determination of needs. Texas Water Development Board and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Austin, TX

    Google Scholar 

  • Longley WL (1995) Estuaries. In: North GR, Schmandt J, Clarkson J (eds) The impact of global warming on Texas: A report to the task force on climate change in Texas. The University of Texas, Austin, TX, pp 88–118

    Google Scholar 

  • Lynch JC, Hensel P, Cahoon DR (2015) The surface elevation table and marker horizon technique: A protocol for monitoring wetland elevation dynamics, Natural Resource Report NPS/NCBN/NRR—2015/1078. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO

    Google Scholar 

  • McKee KL, Cherry JA (2009) Hurricane Katrina sediment slowed elevation loss in subsiding brackish marshes of the Mississippi River delta. Wetlands 29:2–15

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McKee KL, Grace JB (2012) Effects of prescribed burning on marsh-elevation change and the risk of wetland loss, U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2012-1031. U.S. Geological Survey, Lafayette, LA

    Google Scholar 

  • McKee K, Vervaeke WR (2018) Will fluctuations in salt marsh - mangrove dominance alter vulnerability of a subtropical wetland to sea-level rise? Glob Chang Biol 24. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.13945

  • McKee KL, Mendelssohn IA, Hester MW (2020) Hurricane sedimentation in a subtropical salt marsh-mangrove community is unaffected by vegetation type. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 239:106733

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mendelssohn IA, Byrnes MR, Kneib RT, Vittor BA (2017) Coastal habitats of the Gulf of Mexico. In: Ward C (ed) Habitat and biota of the Gulf of Mexico: Before the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Springer, New York, New York, USA, pp 359–640

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Montagna PA, Gibeaut JC, Tunnell JW Jr (2007) South Texas climate 2100: coastal impacts. In: Norwine J, John K (eds) The Changing Climate of South Texas 1900–2100: Problems and Prospects, Impacts and Implications. CREST-RESSACA. Texas A & M University, Kingsville, Texas, USA, pp 57–77

    Google Scholar 

  • Moon JA, Feher LC, Lane TC, Vervaeke WC, Osland MJ, Head DM, Chivoiu BC (2021) Surface elevation change dynamics in coastal marshes along the northwestern Gulf of Mexico: building knowledge to better anticipate effects of rising sea-level and intensifying hurricanes: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service data release. https://doi.org/10.7944/P9CBFO1C

  • Morris JT, Sundareshwar PV, Nietch CT, Kjerfve B, Cahoon DR (2002) Responses of coastal wetlands to rising sea level. Ecology 83:2869–2877

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morton RA, Bernier JC, Barras JA (2006) Evidence of regional subsidence and associated interior wetland loss induced by hydrocarbon production, Gulf Coast region, USA. Environmental Geology 50:261–274

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moulton DW, Dahl TE, Dall DM (1997) Texas coastal wetlands: status and trends, mid-1950s to early 1990s. U.S. Department of Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Albuquerque, NM

    Google Scholar 

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (2019a) Tides and Water Levels. https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/. Accessed 7 Mar 2021

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (2019b) National Climatic Data Center. http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/. Accessed 16 Jan 2020

  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (2020) Tides and Currents. https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/. Accessed 3 Mar 2020

  • Natural Resource Council (2014) Reducing coastal risk on the East and Gulf Coasts. The National Academies Press, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Nicholls RJ, Leatherman SP (1995) Sea-level rise and coastal management. In: McGregor DFM, Thompson DA (eds) Geomorphology and land management in a changing environment. Wiley, New York, NY

    Google Scholar 

  • Nyman JA, Chabreck RH (2012) Managing coastal wetlands for wildlife. In: Silvy NJ (ed) The wildlife techniques manual, vol 2, 7th edn. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD, pp 133–156

    Google Scholar 

  • Nyman JA, DeLaune RD, Roberts HH, Patrick WH Jr (1993) Relationship between vegetation and soil formation in a rapidly submerging coastal marsh. Marine Ecology Progress Series 96:269–279

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nyman JA, Walters RJ, Delaune RD, Patrick WH (2006) Marsh vertical accretion via vegetative growth. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 69:370–380

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osland MJ, Enwright NM, Stagg CL (2014) Freshwater availability and coastal wetland foundation species: Ecological transitions along a rainfall gradient. Ecology 95:2789–2802

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osland MJ, Enwright NM, Day RH, Gabler CA, Stagg CL, Grace JB (2016) Beyond just sea-level rise: considering macroclimatic drivers within coastal wetland vulnerability assessments to climate change. Global Change Biology 22:1–11

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Osland MJ, Griffith KT, Larriviere JC, Feher LC, Cahoon DR, Enwright NM, Oster DA, Tirpak JM, Woodrey MS, Collini R, Baustian JJ, Breithaupt JL, Cherry JA, Conrad JR, Cormier N, Coronado-Molina CA, Donoghue JF, Graham SA, Harper JW, Hester MW, Howard RJ, Krauss KW, Kroes DE, Lane RR, McKee KL, Mendelsshon IA, Middleton BA, Moon JA, Piazza SC, Rankin NM, Sklar FH, Steyer GD, Swanson KM, Swarzenski CM, Vervaeke WC, Willis JM, Wilson KV (2017) Assessing coastal wetland vulnerability to sea-level rise along the northern Gulf of Mexico coast: gaps and opportunities for develo** a coordinated regional sampling network. PLoS ONE 12:e0183431

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Osland MJ, Gabler CA, Grace JB, Day RH, McCoy ML, McLeod JL, From AS, Enwright NM, Feher LC, Stagg CL, Hartley SB (2018) Climate and plant controls on soil organic matter in coastal wetlands. Global Change Biology 24:5361–5379

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Osland MJ, Grace JB, Guntenspergen GR, Thorne KM, Carr JA, Feher LC (2019) Climatic controls on the distribution of foundation plant species in coastal wetlands of the conterminous United States: Knowledge gaps and emerging research needs. Estuaries and Coasts 42:1991–2003

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osland MJ, Feher LC, Anderson GH, Vervaeke WC, Krauss KW, Whelan KRT, Balentine KM, Tiling-Range G, Smith TJ III, Cahoon DR (2020) A tropical cyclone-induced ecological regime shift: mangrove conversion to mudflat in Florida’s Everglades National Park (Florida, USA). Wetlands 40:1445–1458

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osland MJ, Stevens PW, Lamont MM, Brusca RC, Hart KM, Waddle JH, Langtimm CA, Williams CM, Keim BD, Terando AJ, Reyier EA, Marshall KE, Loik ME, Boucek RE, Lewis AB, Seminoff JA (2021) Tropicalization of temperate ecosystems in North America: The northward range expansion of tropical organisms in response to warming winter temperatures. Global Change Biology 27:3009–3034

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Osorio RJ, Linhoss A, Dash P (2020) Evaluation of marsh terraces for wetland restoration: a remote sensing approach. Water 12:336

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Paine JG (1993) Subsidence of the Texas coast: Inferences from historical and late Pleistocene sea levels. Techtonophysics 222:445–458

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pinheiro J, Bates D, Debroy S, Sarkar D (2021) nlme: Linear and non-linear mixed effects models. R package version 3.1–152. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=nlme

  • R Core Team (2019) R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. http://www.R-project.org/

    Google Scholar 

  • Ramage JK, Shah SD (2019) Cumulative compaction of subsurface sediments in the Chicot and Evangeline aquifers in the Houston-Galveston region, Texas: U.S. Geological Survey data release. https://doi.org/10.5066/P9YGUE2V

  • Rasser MK, Fowler NL, Dunton KH (2013) Elevation and plant community distribution in a microtidal salt marsh of the western Gulf of Mexico. Wetlands 33:575–583

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reed DJ (2002) Sea-level rise and coastal marsh sustainability: Geological and ecological factors in the Mississippi delta plain. Geomorphology 48:233–243

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ridd P, Sandstrom MW, Wolanski E (1988) Outwelling from tropical tidal salt flats. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 26:243–253

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Saintilan N, Khan NS, Ashe E, Kelleway JJ, Rogers K, Woodroffe CD, Horton BP (2020) Thresholds of mangrove survival under rapid sea level rise. Science 368:1118–1121

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Seneviratne SI, Zhang X, Adnan M, Badi W, Dereczynski C, Di Luca A, Ghosh S, Iskandar I, Kossin J, Lewis S, Otto F, Pinto I, Satoh M, Vicente-Serrano SM, Wehner M, Zhou B (2021) Weather and climate extreme events in a changing climate. In: Masson-Delmotte V, Zhai P, Pirani A, Connors SL, Péan C, Berger S, Caud N, Chen Y, Goldfarb L, Gomis MI, Huang M, Leitzell K, Lonnoy E, Matthews JBR, Maycock TL, Waterfield T, Yelekçi O, Yu R, Zhou R (eds) Climate change 2021: the physical science basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK

    Google Scholar 

  • Sherrod CL, McMillan C (1985) The distributional history and ecology of mangrove vegetation along the northern Gulf of Mexico coastal region. Contributions in Marine Science 28:129–140

    Google Scholar 

  • Simpson GL (2018) Modelling palaeoecological time series using generalized additive models. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2018.00149

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simpson GL (2021) gratia: Graceful 'ggplot'-based graphics and other functions for GAMs fitted using ‘mgcv.’ R package version 0.5–1. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=gratia

  • Stagg CA, Osland MJ, Moon JA, Hall CT, Feher LC, Jones WR, Couvillion BR, Hartley SB, Vervaeke WC (2020) Quantifying hydrologic controls on local- and landscape-scale indicators of coastal wetland loss. Annals of Botany 125:365–376

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stagg CL, Osland MJ, Moon JA, Feher LC, Laurenzano C, Lane TC, Jones WR, Hartley SB (2021) Extreme precipitation and flooding contribute to sudden vegetation dieback in a coastal salt marsh. Plants 10:1841

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Steyer GD (1993) Sabine Terracing Project Final Report, DNR project number 4351089. Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, Coastal Resources Division, Baton Rouge, LA

    Google Scholar 

  • Swanson K (2020) Sentinel Site Annual Report- Heron Flats, Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. Mission Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve, Port Aransas, TX

    Google Scholar 

  • Sweet WV, Kopp RE, Weaver CP, Obeysekera J, Theiler ER, Zervas C (2017) Global and regional sea-level rise scenarios for the United States, NOAA Technical Report NOS CO-OPS 083. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Silver Spring, MD

    Google Scholar 

  • Texas Comptroller Office (2020) Gulf Coast Region 2020 Regional Report, Gulf Coast Region Snapshot. https://comptroller.texas.gov/economy/economic-data/regions/2020/gulf-coast.php. Accessed 20 Jan 2021

  • Törnqvist TE, Jankowski KL, LI Y, González JL (2020) Tip** points of Mississippi Delta marshes due to accelerated sea-level rise. Sci Adv 6:aaz5512

  • Torsten H, Bretz F, Westfall P (2021) multcomp: Simultaneous inference in general parametric models. R package version 1.4–16. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=multcomp

  • Turner RE, Streever B (2002) Approaches to coastal wetland restoration: northern Gulf of Mexico. Kugler Publications, Hague, Netherlands

    Google Scholar 

  • Weaver CA, Armitage AR (2018) Nutrient enrichment shifts mangrove height distribution: Implications for coastal woody encroachment. PLoS ONE 13:e0193617

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Webb EL, Friess DA, Krauss KW, Cahoon DR, Guntenspergen GR, Phelps J (2013) A global standard for monitoring coastal wetland vulnerability to accelerated sea-level rise. Nature Climate Change 3:458–465

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams HFL (2010) Storm surge deposition by Hurricane Ike on the McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge, Texas: Implications for paleotempestology studies. Journal of Foraminiferal Research 40:210–219

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams HF, Denlinger EE (2013) Contribution of Hurricane Ike storm surge sedimentation to long-term aggradation of coastal marshes in southeastern Texas and southwestern Louisiana. Journal of Coastal Research 65:838–843

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams H, Liu K-b (2019) Contrasting Hurricane Ike washover sedimentation and Hurricane Harvey flood sedimentation in a Southeastern Texas coastal marsh. Marine Geology 417:106011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Withers K (2002) Wind-tidal flats. In: Tunnell JW, Judd FW (eds) The Laguna Madre of Texas and Tamaulipas. Texas A&M University Press, College Station, TX, pp 114–126

    Google Scholar 

  • Wood SN (2000) Modelling and smoothing parameter estimation with multiple quadratic penalties. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series B (statistical Methodology) 62:413–428

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wood SN (2017) Generalized additive models: An introduction with R, 2nd edn. CRC/Taylor & Francis, Boca Raton, FL

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Wood SN (2020) mgcv: Mixed GAM computation vehicle with automatic smoothness estimation. R package version 1.8–33. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=mgcv

  • Woodroffe CD, Rogers K, McKee KL, Lovelock CE, Mendelssohn IA, Saintilan N (2016) Mangrove sedimentation and response to relative sea-level rise. Annual Review of Marine Science 8:243–266

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yao Q, Liu K, Williams H, Joshi S, Bianchette TA, Ryu J, Dietz M (2020) Hurricane Harvey storm sedimentation in the San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge, Texas: fluvial versus storm surge deposition. Estuar Coasts 43:971–983

  • Yeates AG, Grace JB, Olker JH, Guntenspergen GR, Cahoon DR, Adamowicz S, Anisfield SC, Barrett N et al (2020) Hurricane Sandy effects on coastal marsh elevation change. Wetlands 43:1640–1657

    Google Scholar 

  • Zedler JB (1982) The ecology of southern California coastal salt marshes: a community profile, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service report FWS/OBS-81/54. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Biological Services Program, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank Larry Allain, Jeremy Edwardson, Sue Wilder, Dr. Grant Harris, Thomas Adams, Roland Davis, Stephen LeJeune, Bryan Carethers, Ronald DeRoche, Jim Steinbaugh, Andrew Stetter, Colt Sanspree, Maxwell Boyle, Stephanie Goehring, Amanda Chesnutt, Nancy Brown, Caitlyn Wade, Julia Scruggs, Stacey Kinney, Meghan Maurin, Douglas Head I, and Dena McNeil for assistance with either installing surface elevation table study sites or assisting with data collection. We also thank USFWS staff from the Texas Chenier Plain, Texas Mid-Coast NWR Complexes and Aransas NWR for providing logistical and field support for the project. This work was made possible by the financial support of USFWS NWR System. This work was supported in part by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Ecosystems, Climate R&D, and Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystem Science Programs. We appreciate the swift and thorough review of our manuscript by Grant Harris and Scott Jones. The findings and conclusions in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Texas National Wildlife Refuge sediment elevation and marker horizon data generated in this study are available as a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service data release (Moon et al. 2021) at https://doi.org/10.7944/P9CBFO1C.

Funding

This work was made possible by the financial support of USFWS NWR System. This work was also supported in part by the USGS Ecosystems, Climate R&D, and Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystem Science Programs.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1035 Buccaneer Drive, Winnie, TX, 77665, USA

    Jena A. Moon

  2. U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Lafayette, LA, 70506, USA

    Laura C. Feher, William C. Vervaeke, Michael J. Osland & James B. Grace

  3. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Florida Ecological Services, Jacksonville, FL, 32256, USA

    Tiffany C. Lane

  4. National Park Service, 13165 Mt. Pleasant Rd., Jacksonville, FL, 32225, USA

    William C. Vervaeke

  5. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 7950 S. Gulfway Drive, Sabine Pass, TX, 77655, USA

    Douglas M. Head

  6. Cherokee Nations Systems Solutions, contracted to U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, Lafayette, LA, 70506, USA

    Bogdan C. Chivoiu & Darren J. Johnson

  7. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 500 Gold Ave SW, Albuquerque, NM, 87103, USA

    David R. Stewart & Kristine L. Metzger

  8. U.S. Geological Survey, 1064 E. Lowell Street, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA

    Kristine L. Metzger

  9. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1875 Century Blvd NE, Atlanta, GA, 30345, USA

    Nicole M. Rankin

Authors
  1. Jena A. Moon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Laura C. Feher
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Tiffany C. Lane
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. William C. Vervaeke
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Michael J. Osland
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Douglas M. Head
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Bogdan C. Chivoiu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. David R. Stewart
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Darren J. Johnson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. James B. Grace
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. Kristine L. Metzger
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Nicole M. Rankin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

Jena A. Moon, William C. Vervaeke, Douglas M. Head, Kristine L. Metzger, and Nicole M. Rankin conceived and designed the study. Jena A. Moon, Tiffany C. Lane, William C. Vervaeke, Douglas M. Head, Laura C. Feher, and Bogdan C. Chivoiu collected data. Jena A. Moon, Laura C. Feher, Tiffany C. Lane, William C. Vervaeke, Douglas M. Head, and Bogdan C. Chivoiu organized and prepared data for analyses. Laura C. Feher conducted data analyses with feedback from Michael J. Osland, Jena A. Moon, William C. Vervaeke, David R. Stewart, Darren J. Johnson, and James B. Grace. Jena A. Moon, Michael J. Osland, Laura C. Feher, Tiffany C. Lane, William C. Vervaeke wrote the first manuscript draft. All authors provided comments on subsequent drafts. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jena A. Moon.

Ethics declarations

Ethics Approval

N/A.

Consent to Participate

N/A.

Consent for Publication

Yes.

Conflicts of Interest/Competing Interests

No conflict of interest or competing interest to report.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Supplementary Information

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary file1 (DOCX 1331 KB)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Moon, J.A., Feher, L.C., Lane, T.C. et al. Surface Elevation Change Dynamics in Coastal Marshes Along the Northwestern Gulf of Mexico: Anticipating Effects of Rising Sea-Level and Intensifying Hurricanes. Wetlands 42, 49 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-022-01565-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-022-01565-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation