Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
Publications
Controls on sediment distribution in the coastal zone of the central California transform continental margin, USA
We use >10,000 km of high-resolution seismic-reflection data together with multibeam bathymetry to document complex and highly variable post-Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) sediment distribution and thickness in the coastal zone (~10 m isobath to 5.6 km offshore) along a ~800 km section of central California's transform...
Johnson, Samuel; Beeson, Jeffrey W.; Watt, Janet; Sliter, Ray; Papesh, Antoinette Seasonal variation in sediment delivery across the bay-marsh interface of an estuarine salt marsh
Sediment transport across bay–marsh interfaces depends on wave energy, vegetation, and marsh-edge morphology, and varies over a range of timescales. We investigated these dynamics in a tidal salt marsh with a gently-sloped, vegetated edge adjacent to northern San Francisco Bay. Spartina foliosa (cordgrass) inhabits the lower marsh and Salicornia...
Lacy, Jessica R.; Foster-Martinez, Madeline R.; Allen, Rachel (Contractor); Ferner, Matthew C.; Callaway, John C. Pulse sediment event does not impact the metabolism of a mixed coral reef community
Sedimentation can bury corals, cause physical abrasion, and alter both spectral intensity and quality; however, few studies have quantified the effects of sedimentation on coral reef metabolism in the context of episodic sedimentation events. Here, we present the first study to measure coral community metabolism - calcification and photosynthesis...
Keisha Bahr; Ku'ulei Rodgers; Paul Jokiel; Prouty, Nancy G.; Storlazzi, Curt D. Plate boundary localization, slip-rates and rupture segmentation of the Queen Charlotte Fault based on submarine tectonic geomorphology
Linking fault behavior over many earthquake cycles to individual earthquake behavior is a primary goal in tectonic geomorphology, particularly across an entire plate boundary. Here, we examine the 1150-km-long, right-lateral Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault system using comprehensive multibeam bathymetry data acquired along the Queen Charlotte...
Brothers, Daniel; Miller, Nathaniel C.; Vaughn Barrie; Haeussler, Peter; H. Gary Greene; Andrews, Brian D.; Olaf Zielke; Dartnell, Peter
National assessment of shoreline change—Historical shoreline change along the north coast of Alaska, Icy Cape to Cape Prince of Wales
Beach erosion is a persistent problem along most open-ocean shores of the United States. Along the Arctic coast of Alaska, coastal erosion is widespread and threatens communities, defense and energy-related infrastructure, and coastal habitat. As coastal populations continue to expand and infrastructure and habitat are increasingly threatened by...
Gibbs, Ann E.; Snyder, Alexander G.; Richmond, Bruce M. What determines the downstream evolution of turbidity currents?
Seabed sediment flows called turbidity currents form some of the largest sediment accumulations, deepest canyons and longest channel systems on Earth. Only rivers transport comparable sediment volumes over such large areas; but there are far fewer measurements from turbidity currents, ensuring they are much more poorly understood. Turbidity...
Heerema, Catharina; Talling, Peter J.; Cartigny, Matthieu J.B.; Paull, Charles K.; Bailey, Lewis; Simmons, Stephen; Parsons, Daniel; Clare, Michael; Gwiazda, Roberto; Lundsten, Eve M.; Anderson, Krystle; Maier, Katherine L.; Xu, Jingping; Sumner, Esther J; Rosenberger, Kurt J.; Gales, Jenny; McGann, Mary; Carter, Lionel; Pope, Ed
Recent sandy deposits at five northern California coastal wetlands—Stratigraphy, diatoms, and implications for storm and tsunami hazards
A recent geological record of inundation by tsunamis or storm surges is evidenced by deposits found within the first few meters of the modern surface at five wetlands on the northern California coast. The study sites include three locations in the Crescent City area (Marhoffer Creek marsh, Elk Creek wetland, and Sand Mine marsh), O’rekw marsh in...
Eileen Hemphill-Haley; Harvey M. Kelsey; Nicholas Graehl; Casso, Michael; Dylan Caldwell; Casey Loofbourrow; Michelle Robinson; Jessica Vermeer; Edward Southwick Shallow-water foraminifera and other microscopic biota of Clipperton Island, tropical eastern Pacific
The recent foraminiferal fauna and associated microbiota of Clipperton Island (10.2833°N, 109.2167°W) were investigated at 20 sites collected in the intertidal zone around the perimeter of the island and from the edge of the inner brackish-water lagoon. Due to the island’s geographic location in a low productivity zone, a lack of variable habitats...
McGann, Mary; Schmieder, Robert W; Loncke, Louis-Philippe Santa Barbara area coastal ecosystem vulnerability assessment
The Santa Barbara Area Coastal Ecosystem Vulnerability Assessment (SBA CEVA) is a multidisciplinary research project that investigates future changes to southern Santa Barbara County climate, beaches, watersheds, wetland habitats and beach ecosystems. The target audience is local land use planners and decision makers. The main objective is to...
Myers, M.R.; Cayan, D.R.; Iacobellis, S.F.; Melack, J.M.; Beighley, R.E.; Barnard, Patrick L.; Dugan, J.E.; Page, H.M. Simple metrics predict salt-marsh sediment fluxes
The growth (or decay) of salt marshes depends on suspended-sediment flux into and out of the marsh. Suspended-sediment concentration (SSC) is a key element of the flux, and SSC-based metrics reflect the long-term sediment-flux trajectories of a variety of salt marshes. One metric, the flood–ebb SSC differential, correlates with area-normalized...
Nowacki, Daniel J. ; Ganju, Neil Kamal A ship's ballasting history as an indicator of foraminiferal invasion potential--An example from Prince William Sound, Alaska, USA
We investigated the potential role of ballast sediment from coastal and transoceanic oil tankers arriving and de-ballasting in Port Valdez as a vector for the introduction of invasive benthic foraminifera in Prince William Sound, Alaska. Forty-one ballast sediment samples were obtained in 1998-1999 from 11 oil tankers that routinely discharged...
McGann, Mary; Ruiz, Gregory M.; Hines, Anson H.; Smith, George D.
Managing sand along the Colorado River to protect cultural sites downstream of Glen Canyon Dam
The construction of Glen Canyon Dam in northern Arizona has greatly reduced the supply of sand to the Colorado River corridor through Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park, hereafter referred to as Glen Canyon and Grand Canyon, respectively. This deficit has strongly affected the natural sediment cycle in this iconic...
Cook, Terri; East, Amy; Fairley, Helen; Sankey, Joel B.