Project Description: A transdisciplinary study at Duck Harbor, a subbasin of the Herring River floodplain in Wellfleet and Truro, Massachusetts is proposed that will help managers better understand the short, medium, and long term impacts of recurring beach overwash events and reintroduction of tidal flow into a tidally-restricted former estuary. This study will initiate management actions to facilitate the recovery of native salt marsh habitats and integrate coastal oceanographic measurements with ecological habitat data that will provide the foundation for detailed analysis with regards to possible future conditions within both Duck Harbor (120 acres) and the broader Herring River project area (770 acres).
Data to be collected would include a systematic series of sediment cores, as well as aerial, surface, and non-invasive stratigraphic surveying (e.g., Ground Penetrating Radar), used to develop a robust sequence of stratigraphic maps to 1) determine historic (and prehistoric) ecosystem evolution throughout the Duck Harbor area; 2) understand vegetation composition throughout that evolution, particularly how it relates to belowground biomass; and 3) determine likely future ecosystem evolution based on projected natural inundation scenarios. This study is particularly timely as clearing of salt-killed vegetation at Duck Harbor is slated to begin in early 2023. Clearing of salt-killed vegetation will also take place in the adjacent Herring River Restoration Project. As such, the results of this study will directly inform management actions related to the Herring River Restoration Project.
This study has been designed as a two-year project, however, if funding for additional years were to become available, data collection (pre- and post-event elevation transects, surface and subbottom surveying, and selected additional coring) would continue and analysis would include robust multi-year trends, imperative to understanding how the Herring River continues to evolve as the restoration begins. Given the potential for a well-documented, quantitative analysis of a natural restoration of tidal flow this project provides a unique opportunity to forward the science of understanding the conversion of freshwater ecosystems to salt water due to increased storminess, sea-level rise, and other natural or anthropogenic drivers.
Lead Principal Investigator: Katie Castagno, Center for Coastal Studies
Partner Institution: Center for Coastal Studies
Federal Agency: National Park Service
Federal Agency Technical Contact: Geoffrey Sanders
Project Type: Research
Project Discipline: Natural Resources
Project Sub-Discipline(s): Physical and Earth Sciences
Start Year: 2023
End Year: 2027
Initial Funding Amount: $230,002.00
Federal Grant Number: P23AC00266
Amendments
- Amendment Number: 01, Year: 2024, Amount: $250,000.00
Location: Duck Harbor and Herring River within Cape Cod National Seashore
National Park or Protected Area: Cape Cod (NPS)
State(s): Massachusetts
Products Associated with this Project:
- No products found.