Hurricane Influences on Vegetation Community Change in Coastal Louisiana

Steyer, Gregory D.; Cretini, Kari Foster; Piazza, Sarai; Sharp, Leigh Anne; Snedden, Gregg A.; Sapkota, Sijan

Abstract:

The impacts of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 on wetland vegetation were investigated in Louisiana coastal marshes. Vegetation cover, pore-water salinity, and nutrients data from 100 marsh sites covering the entire Louisiana coast were sampled for two consecutive growing seasons after the storms. A mixed-model nested ANOVA with Tukey‘s HSD test for post-ANOVA multiple comparisons was used to analyze the data. Significantly (p<0.05) lower vegetation cover was observed within brackish and fresh marshes in the west as compared to the east and central regions throughout 2006, but considerable increase in vegetation cover was noticed in fall 2007 data. Marshes in the west were stressed by prolonged saltwater logging and increased sulfide content. High salinity levels persisted throughout the study period for all marsh types, especially in the west. The marshes of coastal Louisiana are still recovering after the hurricanes; however, changes in the species composition have increased in these marshes.

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USGS Numbered Series

ProdID:

98459

Citation Author:

Steyer, Gregory D.; Cretini, Kari Foster; Piazza, Sarai; Sharp, Leigh Anne; Snedden, Gregg A.; Sapkota, Sijan

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National Wetlands Research Center

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ENGLISH

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vi, 21 p.

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U.S. Geological Survey

Citation Series:

Open-File Report

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OFR

Citation Series Number:

2010-1105

Citation Search Results Text:

Hurricane Influences on Vegetation Community Change in Coastal Louisiana; 2010; OFR; 2010-1105; Steyer, Gregory D.; Cretini, Kari Foster; Piazza, Sarai; Sharp, Leigh Anne; Snedden, Gregg A.; Sapkota, Sijan