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Salt Marsh Ecosystem Facts & Worksheets

A salt marsh is a wetland formed by tides on the coast. A salt marsh fills with water whenever a high tide causes flooding. Water drains from the salt marsh during low tide.

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A salt marsh is a wetland formed by tides on the coast. A salt marsh fills with water whenever a high tide causes flooding. Water drains from the salt marsh during low tide. Salt marshes are critical to the ecology, providing habitat and resources for many fish species while also protecting shorelines from erosion caused by waves.

See the fact file below for more information on the Salt Marsh Ecosystem, or you can download our 27-page Salt Marsh Ecosystem worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

SALT MARSH ECOSYSTEM?

  • Salt marshes are coastal wetlands flooded and drained by tide-driven salt water. Because of the heavy muck and peat in the soil, they are marshy – marsh is ground covered by water for long periods. 
  • Peat is a layer of rotting plant waste several feet thick. The peat is wet, root-infested, and highly spongy. 
  • Because tides regularly cover salt marshes and comprise a lot of decomposing plant debris, oxygen levels in the peat can get depleted, resulting in hypoxia. 
  • The proliferation of bacteria that produces the sulfurous rotten-egg smell associated with marshes and mudflats causes hypoxia.
  • Salt marshes can be found worldwide but are more common in the medium to upper latitudes. 
  • They are a typical habitat in estuaries, where they thrive along protected shorelines. Salt marshes can be on every coast in the United States. 
  • The Gulf Coast is home to over half of the country’s salt marshes.
  • These intertidal habitats are critical for healthy fisheries, coasts, communities, and our economy and culture. 
  • They also provide vital feeding, shelter, or nursery habitat for over 75% of fisheries species, including shrimp, blue crab, and finfish.
  • Salt marshes can protect shorelines from erosion by buffering wave action and retaining sediments. They help prevent flooding by delaying and absorbing rainwater and protecting water quality by filtering runoff and metabolizing excess nutrients.

PLANTS AND ANIMALS

  • Salt marsh plants have evolved to thrive in a hostile environment. Deep mud, shifting water levels, and low oxygen levels make it difficult for some plant species to grow in a salt marsh. 
  • Cordgrass, a perennial grass with flat leaves, is one species that has evolved here.
  • Other plants found in salt marsh ecosystems include:
  • Bullrush
  • Glasswort
  • Saltgrass
  • Saltwort
  • Many species thrive in salt marshes. The marsh is home to hundreds of different types of invertebrates. 
  • Fiddlers, hermits, and stone crabs join snails, mussels, and worms searching for food and shelter in the salt marsh.
  • Fish and shrimp visit salt marshes for food or a place to lay their eggs. Commercially essential species that seek refuge in the salt marsh include juvenile southern flounder and shrimp.
  • The marsh’s abundance benefits more than just marine species. Ducks, geese, and wading birds of all sizes flock here to feast on grasses, fish, and insects.
  • Mammals follow the numerous seeds and leaves of marsh plants or other animals. 
  • Coyotes and raccoons come to consume other mammals, fish, and invertebrates, while pygmy mice, rats, and nutria reach for the plant materials.
  • Salt marsh species have adapted to a low-oxygen environment, and many salt marsh animals are invertebrates or animals without a backbone.
  • The oyster, in particular, plays a vital function in the marsh ecosystem by filtering toxins from the marsh water.

LOCATION OF SALT MARSHES

  • Salt marshes are common in temperate estuarine systems around the world. 
  • They are rarely found on open shores because heavy wave action prevents their formation. Although sediment is required for salt marsh communities to grow in height and width, they can occur in places with low or no sediment supply. 
  • Seawater-soaked cliffs and slopes on exposed coasts, at the head of rocky beaches, and sea lochs are examples. 
  • Salt marshes are found from the Arctic to the coast of Australia, in Europe, Africa, America, and Asia. 
  • Salt marshes grow most extensively in estuaries with a temperate climate, an extensive tidal range, abundant fine-grained sediments, and sheltered areas where particles can settle out of the water column.
  • Salt marshes form in mid to high-latitude locations. They can form along any coastline but are most common along the United States Gulf Coast. However, salt marshes can be found all over the world.

Lagoon of the Indian River

  • The Indian River Lagoon is located in southern Florida and encompasses 10% of the salt marshes found throughout the Gulf Coast.

Argentina

  • Argentina‘s coast contains over 293,734 acres of salt marsh. Argentina has roughly 20 separate salt marsh locations.

DEVELOPMENT AND FUNCTION

  • The following are the conditions for the formation of salt marshes:
    • They require a steady supply of fine-grained sediments.
    • They must be protected from rough seas.
    • To grow, they require salty (but not hypersaline) environments. They are halotolerant and have adapted to these environments.
    • They require a moderate or cool environment. Unexpected freezing temperatures do not harm the plants.
    • They require a wide tidal range. This is significant because it minimizes erosion, allows sediment deposition, and creates a well-defined zonation.
  • Other ecosystem services provided by saltmarshes include:
    • Stabilization of the coastline. Salt marshes are effective sediment traps that aid in coastal stabilization.
    • The standard of water. Saltmarshes improve water quality by filtering it and keeping extra nutrients, harmful compounds, and pathogens. Nitrates and phosphates are removed from rivers and streams that receive wastewater discharge.
    • Groundwater recharge and outflow regulate water supply.
    • The role of the habitat. Salt marshes provide larvae and other tiny organisms with nursery grounds and shelter and food, and nesting opportunities for wading birds and other organisms.
    • Blue carbon sequestration is a type of carbon sequestration.

GEOLOGY AND HYDROLOGY

  • The terrain where a salt marsh grows is often flat and protected by estuaries. 
  • Estuaries are shallow bodies of water generated when a river flows into the sea. 
  • When these estuaries are flooded by high tides from the ocean, the saltwater fills a salt marsh. 
  • A salt marsh ecology is influenced by an area’s climate and average quantity of rainfall since rainfall affects the amount of water present in a salt marsh.

THREATS

  • The total number and area of salt marshes have been decreasing for many years. 
  • The main culprit is a dam, which prevents tidal inundation of the salt marsh environment. 
  • This is most common in regions where the soil level is high enough and the area large enough for a dam to occur. It is destroyed when the salt marsh is put to other uses, particularly intensive agriculture. 
  • Embankment causes more significant marsh loss when sea levels rise. It stops salt marsh from migrating landward (a process known as a coastal squeeze).
  • Other dangers include:
    • Overgrazing (primarily by agricultural animals, but also by wild geese, crabs, and snails)
    • Urbanization
    • Recreation
    • Erosion of the coast.
    • Pollution from industry and wastewater.
    • Changes in hydrologic regimes.
    • Species invasions (particularly Spartina anglica and Elytrigia invasions in eutrophic salt marshes).
    • Eutrophication is caused by agricultural effluents, which increases microbial degradation of organic soil material and renders salt marshes more vulnerable to erosion.

Salt Marsh Ecosystem Worksheets

This fantastic bundle includes everything you need to know about the Salt Marsh Ecosystem across 27 in-depth pages. These ready-to-use worksheets are perfect for teaching kids about Salt Marsh Ecosystems. Salt marshes are critical to the ecology, providing habitat and resources for many fish species while also protecting shorelines from erosion caused by waves.

Complete List of Included Worksheets

Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.

  1. Salt Marsh Ecosystem Facts
  2. Salt Marsh Terminology 
  3. Looking in the Marshes
  4. Guardians of the Coast
  5. Salt Marsh Inhabitants
  6. Name it, Paste it!
  7. Marsh Food Webs
  8. Different Seasons
  9. Exploring Salt Marshes
  10. Where Land and Sea Embrace
  11. Salt Marshes are…

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a salt marsh ecosystem?

A salt marsh ecosystem is a coastal wetland characterized by its unique combination of saltwater and freshwater influence. It consists of low-lying areas flooded by tidal waters, where salt-tolerant plants thrive in the transition zone between land and sea.

What role do salt marshes play in coastal ecosystems?

Salt marshes play several important roles in coastal ecosystems. They act as natural buffers, reducing the impact of storm surges by absorbing and dissipating wave energy. They also serve as valuable habitats for a variety of fish, birds, and other wildlife species, and they contribute to nutrient cycling and water filtration.

How do plants in salt marshes adapt to the challenging environment?

Plants in salt marshes have evolved various adaptations to survive in the harsh environment. They possess salt glands to excrete excess salt, and their leaves often have a waxy coating to reduce water loss. Some plants, like cordgrass, have underground rhizomes that help stabilize the soil and prevent erosion.

Why are salt marshes important for migratory birds?

Salt marshes provide essential stopover points for migratory birds during their journeys. These ecosystems offer abundant food sources in the form of insects, small invertebrates, and fish, making them crucial for birds to rest and refuel before continuing their migrations.

How do human activities impact salt marsh ecosystems?

Human activities can have both positive and negative impacts on salt marsh ecosystems. Drainage for development can disrupt natural tidal flows and lead to habitat loss. Pollution from runoff can degrade water quality. On the positive side, conservation efforts, such as restoration and protected areas, can help maintain and restore the health of salt marshes.

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Link will appear as Salt Marsh Ecosystem Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, August 28, 2023

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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