Questions and Answers Estuaries and You!

What is an estuary? Where river meets the sea Slow water (low energy) Low-lying lands Salt tolerant plants and animals

What is a salt marsh? low, wet area flooded by salt water during high tides

Common Plants and Animals

Why is the bottom of the salt marsh muddy? Calm water Decaying matter

How were the salt marshes formed? Began forming after last Ice Age (~10,000 ya) when eroded soils from newly formed mountains were deposited along the coast. Today, sediment trapped by grasses continues expands our marshes.

How have plants & animals adapted? SALT Only some have actually adapted to the salt water Some can excrete salt Most have developed ways to store fresh water TIDES Some move to escape rising water Some dig Some have gills that can work as long as they are wet

Why is the salt marsh important to sea animals ? Nursery Food source

Can marshland be re-created once it is destroyed? Efforts can be made to clean up and replant Better to avoid destroying them in the first place

Why is the estuary and salt marsh important to people? Food Buffer Zone Filters Economy

What are your ideas???

Here is what to do! Work as a group to create a plan to save, preserve, clean, or restore a marshland. Include a story behind your idea for your presentation to your peers. Make a poster to promote your idea to the public. Make sure the poster illustrates both the problem and the solution.