elliskalaidjian
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This photo was taken this past Friday behind Masonboro Island at Myrtle Grove. The lagoon and marsh ecosystems are ecologically dynamic environments, where the atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere all meet. One ecological concept I took note of involved the salt tolerance of marsh grass (Spartina alterniflora and patens), which can be seen in the background. excluding, sequestering or exuding. Spartina is known as a halophyte, or a salt-loving plant. Halophytes deal with salt in multiple ways. Some have leaves that sequester the salt in special structures which then rupture and release salt back into the environment. Other halophytes have specialized structures that have evolved to collect the salts which are then forced through pores before they reach the vascular system of the plant. Additionally, halophytes collect the salts and store them in plant cells that are less susceptible to salts than others in the plant. It is interesting to think that only a small portion of plants are salt-tolerant/loving when 96.5% of Earth's water is salt water. In addition to their tolerance to salt, Spartina are also fascinating for their roles in ecosystems as environmental engineers. Spartina grasses grows out into the water at the edge of salt marshes, and accumulate sediment, enabling other habitat-engineering species (mussels/oysters in particular) to settle and thrive. This accumulation of sediment and substrate-building species gradually builds up the level of the land at the seaward edge, and other, higher-marsh species move onto the new land. Spartina are undoubtedly crucial to marshes and fascinating subjects of research.
FullSizeRender (1)
This photo was taken this past Friday behind Masonboro Island at Myrtle Grove. The lagoon and marsh ecosystems are ecologically dynamic environments, where the atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere all meet. One ecological concept I took note of involved the salt tolerance of marsh grass (Spartina alterniflora and patens), which can be seen in the background. excluding, sequestering or exuding. Spartina is known as a halophyte, or a salt-loving plant. Halophytes deal with salt in multiple ways. Some have leaves that sequester the salt in special structures which then rupture and release salt back into the environment. Other halophytes have specialized structures that have evolved to collect the salts which are then forced through pores before they reach the vascular system of the plant. Additionally, halophytes collect the salts and store them in plant cells that are less susceptible to salts than others in the plant. It is interesting to think that only a small portion of plants are salt-tolerant/loving when 96.5% of Earth's water is salt water. In addition to their tolerance to salt, Spartina are also fascinating for their roles in ecosystems as environmental engineers. Spartina grasses grows out into the water at the edge of salt marshes, and accumulate sediment, enabling other habitat-engineering species (mussels/oysters in particular) to settle and thrive. This accumulation of sediment and substrate-building species gradually builds up the level of the land at the seaward edge, and other, higher-marsh species move onto the new land. Spartina are undoubtedly crucial to marshes and fascinating subjects of research.