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Phragmites australis invasion and expansion in tidal wetlands: Interactions among salinity, sulfide, and hydrology

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Abstract

Through their physiological effects on ion, oxygen, and carbon balance, respectively, salinity, sulfide, and prolonged flooding combine to constrain the invasion and spread ofPhragmites in tidal wetlands. Initial sites of vigorous invasion by seed germination and growth from rhizome fragments appear limited to sections of marsh where salinity is <10‰, sulfide concentrations are less than 0.1 mM, and flooding frequency is less than 10%. In polyhaline tidal wetlands the invasion sites include the upland fringe and some high marsh creek banks. The zones of potential invasion tend to be larger in marshes occupying lower-salinity portions of estuaries and in marshes that have been altered hydrologically. Owing to clonal integration and a positive feedback loop of growth-induced modification of edaphic soil conditions, however, a greater total area of wetland is susceptible toPhragmites expansion away from sites of establishment. Mature clones have been reported growing in different marshes with salinity up to 45‰, sulfide concentration up to 1.75 mM, and flooding frequency up to 100%. ForPhragmites establishment and expansion in tidal marshes, windows of opportunity open with microtopographic enhancement of subsurface drainage patterns, marsh-wide depression of flooding and salinity regimes, and variation in sea level driven by global warming and lunar nodal cycles. To avoidPhragmites monocultures, tidal wetland creation, restoration, and management must be considered within the context of these different scales of plant-environment interaction.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biology Department and Virginia Institute of Marine Science, College of William and Mary, 23187, Williamsburg, Virginia

    R. M. Chambers

  2. Biology Department, Albright College, 19612, Reading, Pennsylvania

    D. T. Osgood

  3. Graduate Program in Ecology and Evolution, Rutgers University, 08901, New Brunswick, New Jersey

    D. J. Bart

  4. College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University, 14850, Ithaca, New York

    F. Montalto

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  1. R. M. Chambers
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  2. D. T. Osgood
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Correspondence to R. M. Chambers.

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Chambers, R.M., Osgood, D.T., Bart, D.J. et al. Phragmites australis invasion and expansion in tidal wetlands: Interactions among salinity, sulfide, and hydrology. Estuaries 26, 398–406 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02823716

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