Late- Holocene vegetation and coastal processes at a Long Island tidal marsh.

Vegetation changes at the core sites included xeric Quercus-Castanea-Carya forests with a Pteridium-heath understory, followed by more mesic Fagus-Acer assemblages. Nyssa and a shrub transition zone subsequently invaded and were replaced by high marsh. At one of the core sites, a Typha marsh followed the shrub transition zone and was replaced by Phragmites. Fossil spectra from periods when inlets were open to the sea had high Salicornia, Atriplex, Foraminifera, and hystrichosphere percentages and the presence of Limonium pollen. These taxa disappeared simultaneously when the inlet closed, and the marsh was invaded by Cyperaceae and shrub assemblages. -from Author

Duke Scholars

Author James S. Clark Environmental Sciences and Policy