Ecosystem Impacts
Ecosystem Impacts
Healthy coastal ecosystems support vibrant coastal economies and recreational opportunities. Our coastal ecosystems were shaped by and depend on the cycle of disturbance and regeneration brought by hurricanes. Ecological impacts of hurricanes such as downed trees, sediment deposition, defoliation and seed dispersal are necessary for coastal ecosystems to persist. Now, the persistence of many
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Post-Hurricane Sandy Vegetation Recovery in the Presence of a Hyper-abundant Deer Population
The Challenge: The primary dune along barrier island beaches protects leeward vegetation from tidal fluctuation, salt spray and storm surge. However, storm surges like those experienced during Hurricane Sandy can obliterate the primary dune, transporting sand inland and burying existing vegetation. The dune rebuilds naturally as recovering vegetation traps wind-blown and waterborne sand. The rate...
Response of Migrating Birds to Hurricane Sandy
The Challenge: Each autumn, millions of landbirds migrate southward from breeding areas in the U.S. and Canada. Because these migrations occur during hurricane season, the impacts of hurricanes on migrating birds and their en route resting and foraging sites (stopover sites) are a real concern. Hurricane Sandy occurred late in the landbird migration season. By the time the storm made landfall in...
Hurricane Sandy Impacts on Coastal Wetland Resilience in the Northeast United States
The Challenge: The high winds and storm surge associated with Hurricane Sandy impacted coastal wetlands from Virginia to Maine. Understanding the ecological and geological impacts of hurricanes on coastal wetlands and their interactive effects with local conditions is important for identifying resilience of these communities to predicted global sea-level rise. Given the projected increase in...
Assessment of Wetland Area Change and Shoreline Erosion Due to Hurricane Sandy
Significant damage to coastal communities and surrounding wetlands of the north Atlantic states was caused by Hurricane Sandy in late October 2012, mostly tied to an associated storm surge of record extent and impact.
Promoting USGS Research on Environmental Impacts of a Major Storm – Hurricane Sandy
Support tasks performed by the WARC Advanced Applications Team for Hurricane Sandy-related projects include aerial imagery capture and processing, standards-compliant data formatting and transformation, metadata creation, and visualization of data in a spatial context.
Predicting the Long-Term Impact of Hurricane Sandy on Spatial Patterns of Wetland Morphology in Salt Marshes of Jamaica Bay, New York
USGS scientists are working with collaborators to understand how Hurricane Sandy impacted wetlands in Jamaica Bay, New York.
Forecasting Biological Vulnerabilities: Modeling Jamaica Bay Wetland Morphology under Future Hurricanes
In light of the increase in hurricane frequency and intensity, there is concern about the resilience and sustainability of coastal wetlands. Models can be used to investigatethe impacts of future hurricanes on wetland morphology along the northeast coasts in areas like Jamaica Bay, New York, an area impacted by Hurricane Sandy.