Graduate Thesis Or Dissertation
 

Plant communities and succession in Oregon coastal salt marshes

Public Deposited

Downloadable Content

Download PDF
https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/concern/graduate_thesis_or_dissertations/2v23vx42t

Descriptions

Attribute NameValues
Creator
Abstract
  • The purpose of this study was to determine plant species composition, community structure, successional relationships, vegetational development and plant distributions in estuarine salt marshes on the Pacific Coast of Oregon. Quadrat and transect samples of plant presence and cover, collected from April 1971 - June 1974, were subjected to phytosociological analysis and ordination, resulting in the identification of 6 salt marsh vegetation types comprised of 28 communities. The vegetation types include: Low Sand Marshes, Low Silt Marshes, Sedge Marshes, Bulrush and Sedge Marshes, Immature High Marshes and Mature High Marshes. The locations and extent of these types were mapped for 16 major Oregon estuaries. Total undiked salt marsh area in Oregon is 29 km 2, an area significantly smaller than prior to diking and filling of marshlands. Three major patterns of plant succession were apparent, including those on sand and silt substrates and in areas subject to fresh­water runoff, Carex lyngbyei is an intermediate in all modes of succession, and this sedge typifies Oregon salt marshes in general. A few major species, including Triglochin maritimum, Salicornia virginica, Carex lyngbyei and Deschampsia caespitosa, rapidly accrete sediments. The oldest carbon date obtained for undiked marsh was 770 ± 85 years. Plant distributions were related to elevation, and phenology to tidal exposure and salinity, soil and soil water salinity, and water table depths. In Oregon, salt marshes extend from above mean tide level upward to extreme high water level, Oregon coastal salt marshes are a transition between subarctic and temperature marshes, and are similar in physiognomy to boreal salt marshes in Scandinavia.
Resource Type
Date Available
Date Issued
Degree Level
Degree Name
Degree Field
Degree Grantor
Commencement Year
Advisor
Academic Affiliation
Non-Academic Affiliation
Subject
Rights Statement
Publisher
Peer Reviewed
Language
File Format
File Extent
  • 2740182 bytes
Digitization Specifications
  • Master files scanned at 600 ppi (256 Grayscale, 24-bit Color) using Capture Perfect 3.0 on a Canon DR-9080C in TIF format. PDF derivative scanned at 300 ppi (256 B&W, 24-bit Color), using Capture Perfect 3.0, on a Canon DR-9080C. CVista PdfCompressor 3.1 was used for pdf compression and textual OCR.
Replaces

Relationships

Parents:

This work has no parents.

In Collection:

Items

Thumbnail Title Date Uploaded Visibility Actions
file details Jefferson_Carol_A_1974.pdf 2017-08-14 Public Download