Habitat Destruction: Loss of Estuaries ALICIA CALLENDER BIOL INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGY II UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON-DOWNTOWN

Definition n. bodies of water and their surrounding coastal habitats typically found where rivers meet the sea

Characteristics ~ Various habitats are found in and around estuaries, including shallow open waters, freshwater and salt marshes, swamps, sandy beaches, mud and sand flats, rocky shores, oyster reefs, mangrove forests, river deltas, tidal pools, and seagrasses. ~Four main types: 1. Coastal Plain- are created by the sea level rising and filling an existing river valley. This type includes the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland and the harbor in Charleston, South Carolina 2. Tectonic - are created by the folding or faulting of land surfaces. Examples are found along major fault lines, like the San Francisco Bay area in California. 3. Bar Built - develop when a shallow lagoon or bay is protected from the ocean by a sand bar or barrier island. Examples of these are found along the Eastern Seaboard and the Gulf Coast of North America. 4. Fjords- are U-shaped valleys formed by glacial action. Examples of fjords are found in areas with long histories of glacier activity, like northern Europe, Alaska and Canada.

Ecological Impact What is the role of an estuary? ~Breeding grounds for animals ~Variety of habitats and lots of biodiversity ~Area where sediments and waters are recycled ~ As buffer zones to filter pollutants ~ Are endangered areas

Economic Impact ~Estuaries are often central to the economy of coastal communities ~Estuaries also serve as significant recreational areas ~Many estuaries play an important role in transportation and international commerce ~Estuaries are the basis for many industries and provide jobs ~Estuaries provide landowners protection from flood water and serve as buffers to maintain water quality by filtering runoff

Current Research/Focus An Examination of the Fluxes of Nitrogen and Phosphorus in Temperate and Tropical Estuaries: Current Estimates and Uncertainties Abstract In a number of regions of the world, enhanced flows of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from land to sea are of major concern because of the observable deterioration in the quality of many nearshore marine waters. Estuaries receive N and P from river and other runoff, from waste discharges, from the atmosphere and ocean and from exchange with coastal groundwaters (which in all likelihood results in a net input to the estuary). For rivers that do not discharge directly onto the continental shelf, seaward fluxes of N and P will be modified by within-estuary transformations of reactive species, the burial of particulate N and P in sediments (sub/intertidal, saltmarsh, mangrove) and the loss of gaseous N and P species by bacterial reduction.

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