Coastal Wetland Hydroecology: Multi-scale Links Between Near-surface Hydrologic Processes and Vegetation

沿海湿地是重要的环境，其水文地质过程很少得到重视。我们建议进行基础水文科学研究，以了解沿海湿地植被和涉及地下水，溶解盐和热量的运输过程之间的功能联系。我们希望验证一个假设，即植物“工程师”一个有益的环境，部分是通过控制当地的盐度和土壤水分在一个正反馈系统。我们建议研究在帕洛阿尔托海湾的盐沼，在那里我们可以从事密集的实地监测，低海拔高分辨率的热和视觉遥感，并基于多尺度模拟定量分析的组合。我们的调查将包括空间和时间可变性的内在问题。三个嵌套的模型，从一个单一的植物到一个植被补丁，以更大的盐沼系统的规模将有助于量化的沼泽植物系统的物理控制。基于两年的原始现场数据进行校准，我们的模型将在多个尺度上量化水，盐和热的通量。这些模型将使我们能够测试假设，并确定对湿地水文生态的关键控制，并评估潜在的环境影响。该项目将通过提供广泛适用于其他盐沼环境的数据和多过程模型来促进水文科学。潜在的贡献包括了解特定物种的水文反应，这将提高对生态系统功能的物理控制的理解。量化的地方梯度及其原因将提供洞察近地表水文地质的作用，在绑定相邻的植物斑块到一个统一的生态群落。我们的盐沼系统模型可用于探索与恢复和环境变化相关的场景。我们的数据和模拟结果可能会提高近岸海底地下水排放的量化。将通过出版物和介绍会进行外联。贝兰兹自然解说中心已同意为我们提供一个场地，举办关于湿地水文生态学和湿地恢复科学基础的公共/私人研讨会。我们提出的研究跨越学科界限，有助于沿海生态和海洋地球化学领域，帮助更好地确定通量和潜流交换的水，溶质和热的湿地和海洋生态学家和海洋地球化学家的兴趣。我们的研究结果也感兴趣的景观生态学，植物生理学，底栖动物学，近岸海洋生态学和海岸工程领域。

Coastal wetlands are critical environments for which hydrogeologic processes are poorly appreciated. We propose fundamental hydrologic-science research to understand the functional links between coastal wetland vegetation and transport processes involving subsurface water, dissolved salt, and heat. We hope to test the hypothesis that a plant "engineers" a beneficial environment, in part by controlling local salinity and soil moisture in a positive feedback system. We propose to study a salt marsh in the Palo Alto Baylands where we can engage in a combination of intensive field monitoring, low-altitude high resolution thermal and visual remote-sensing, and quantitative analysis based on multi-scale simulation. Our investigation would include inherent matters of spatial and temporal variability. Three nested models spanning scales from a single plant to a vegetation patch to the larger salt-marsh system will aid in quantifying the physical controls on the marsh-plant system. Based on two years of original field data for calibration, our models would quantify fluxes of water, salt, and heat on multiple scales. These models will enable us to test hypothesis and identify key controls on wetland hydroecology and to evaluate potential environmental impacts. This project will contribute to hydrologic science by providing data and multi-process models that will be broadly applicable to other salt-marsh environments. Potential contributions include understanding species-specific hydrologic response, which will improve understanding of physical controls on ecosystem function. Quantification of local gradients and their causes would provide insight into the role of near-surface hydrogeology in binding adjacent plant patches into a united ecologic community. Our salt-marsh system model can be used to explore scenarios related to restoration and environmental change. Our data and modeling results might improve quantification of near-shore submarine groundwater discharge. Outreach will be achieved via publications and presentations. The Baylands Nature Interpretive Center has agreed to provide us with a venue for public/private workshops on wetland hydroecology and the scientific basis for wetland restoration. Our proposed research cuts across disciplinary boundaries by contributing to the fields of coastal ecology and biogeochemistry by helping to better identify fluxes and hyporheic exchange of water, solute, and heat that are of interest to wetland and marine ecologists and biogeochemists. Our results are also of interest to those in the fields of landscape ecology, plant physiology, benthic zoology, near-shore marine ecology, and coastal engineering.