Judith Z. Drexler
Judith Drexler is a Research Hydrologist/Wetland Ecologist at the California Water Science Center. She specializes in ecosystem ecology with a special emphasis on the interactions among biogeochemical, ecological, and hydrologic processes in wetland and aquatic ecosystems.
RESEARCH
My research is focused on biological carbon sequestration and the impact of disturbance including climate change and sea-level rise, invasive species, land use change, and hydrologic alteration on ecosystem sustainability. Throughout my career, I have chosen to conduct much of this research in a wide variety of terrestrial and coastal wetlands and aquatic systems. In recent years, I have been studying how to regain critical ecosystem services, such as carbon storage and habitat for threatened and endangered species, through restoration. As part of my research, I use marsh sustainability modeling to better understand the vulnerability of wetlands to drowning under future sea-level rise scenarios. My current work on the island of Moloka‘i, Hawai‘i has allowed me to combine my interests in Western science and indigenous knowledge to evaluate potential options for restoring coastal wetlands and their critical linkages to adjacent ecosystems.
Professional Experience
I began my career at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the Drinking Water Branch. As a postdoc, I worked at the USDA Forest Service in Honolulu, Hawai‘i studying groundwater-surface water interactions in coastal wetland complexes in Micronesia. I have been at the USGS California Water Science Center since 2000.
Education and Certifications
Ph.D., Natural Resources, Cornell University
M.A., Geography, University of Colorado, Boulder
B.A., Environmental Science, University of California, Berkeley
Science and Products
Trapping of suspended sediment by submerged aquatic vegetation in a tidal freshwater region: Field observations and long-term trends
Carbon sources in the sediments of a restoring vs. historically unaltered salt marsh
Carbon stock losses and recovery observed for a mangrove ecosystem following a major hurricane in Southwest Florida
Carbon chemistry of intact versus chronically drained peatlands in the southeastern USA
Widespread global peatland establishment and persistence over the last 130,000 y
Carbon accumulation and vertical accretion in a restored vs. historic salt marsh in southern Puget Sound, Washington, United States
The approaching obsolescence of 137Cs dating of wetland soils in North America
Terrestrial wetlands
Estimation and uncertainty of recent carbon accumulation and vertical accretion in drained and undrained forested peatlands of the southeastern USA
Factors affecting marsh vegetation at the Liberty Island Conservation Bank in the Cache Slough region of the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, California
Primary production in the Delta: Then and now
Assessing wildlife benefits and carbon storage from restored and natural coastal marshes in the Nisqually River Delta: Determining marsh net ecosystem carbon balance
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 52
Trapping of suspended sediment by submerged aquatic vegetation in a tidal freshwater region: Field observations and long-term trends
Widespread invasion by non-native, submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) may modify the sediment budget of an estuary, reducing the availability of inorganic sediment required by marshes to maintain their position in the tidal frame. The instantaneous trapping rate of suspended sediment in SAV patches in an estuary has not previously been quantified via field observations. In this study, flows of watAuthorsPaul A. Work, Maureen A. Downing-Kunz, Judith Z. DrexlerCarbon sources in the sediments of a restoring vs. historically unaltered salt marsh
Salt marshes provide the important ecosystem service of carbon storage in their sediments; however, little is known about the sources of such carbon and whether they differ between historically unaltered and restoring systems. In this study, stable isotope analysis was used to quantify carbon sources in a restoring, sparsely vegetated marsh (Restoring) and an adjacent, historically unaltered marshAuthorsJudith Z. Drexler, Melanie J. Davis, Isa Woo, Susan E.W. De La CruzCarbon stock losses and recovery observed for a mangrove ecosystem following a major hurricane in Southwest Florida
Studies integrating mangrove in-situ observations and remote sensing analysis for specific sites often lack precise estimates of carbon stocks over time frames that include disturbance events. This study quantifies change in mangrove area from 1985 to 2018 with Landsat time series analysis, estimates above and belowground stored carbon using field data, and evaluates aboveground carbon stock changAuthorsElitsa I. Peneva-Reed, Ken Krauss, Eric L. Bullock, Zhiliang Zhu, Victoria Woltz, Judith Z. Drexler, Jeremy R. Conrad, Stephen V. StehmanCarbon chemistry of intact versus chronically drained peatlands in the southeastern USA
The Great Dismal Swamp (GDS) is a large temperate swamp in Virginia/North Carolina with peat soils historically resistant to microbial decomposition. However, this peatland has been subject to ~200 years of disturbance during which extensive drainage, fire suppression, and wide-spread logging have increased decomposition and dramatically decreased the distribution of Atlantic white cedar (AWC). ThAuthorsCraig A. Stricker, Judith Z. Drexler, Kevin A. Thorn, Jamie A. Duberstein, Sam RossmanWidespread global peatland establishment and persistence over the last 130,000 y
Glacial−interglacial variations in CO2 and methane in polar ice cores have been attributed, in part, to changes in global wetland extent, but the wetland distribution before the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, 21 ka to 18 ka) remains virtually unknown. We present a study of global peatland extent and carbon (C) stocks through the last glacial cycle (130 ka to present) using a newly compiled database ofAuthorsClaire C. Treat, Thomas Kleinen, Nils Broothaerts, April S. Dalton, Rene Dommain, Thomas A. Douglas, Judith Z. Drexler, Sarah A Finkelstein, Guido Grosse, Geoffrey Hope, Jack Hutchings, Miriam C. Jones, Peter Kuhry, Terri Lacourse, Outi Lähteenoja, Julie Loisel, Bastiaan Notebaert, Richard Payne, Dorothy M. Peteet, A. Britta K. Sannel, Jonathan M. Stelling, Jens Strauss, Graeme T. Swindles, Julie Talbot, Charles Tarnocai, Gert Verstraeten, Christopher J. Williams, Zhengyu Xia, Zicheng Yu, Minna Väliranta, Martina Hättestrand, Helena Alexanderson, Victor BrovkinCarbon accumulation and vertical accretion in a restored vs. historic salt marsh in southern Puget Sound, Washington, United States
Few comparisons exist between vertical accretion (VA) and carbon accumulation rates (CARs), in restored vs. historic (i.e., reference) marshes. Here we compare these processes in a formerly diked, sparsely vegetated, restored salt marsh (Six Gill Slough, SG), whose surface is subsided relative to the tidal frame, to an adjacent, relatively pristine, historic salt marsh (Animal Slough, AS). Six sAuthorsJudith Z. Drexler, Isa Woo, Christopher C. Fuller, Glynnis NakaiThe approaching obsolescence of 137Cs dating of wetland soils in North America
The peak fallout in 1963 of the radionuclide 137Cs has been used to date lake, reservoir, continental shelf, and wetland sedimentary deposits. In wetlands such dating is used to project the ability of wetlands to keep pace with sea level rise and develop strategies for mitigating carbon pollution using biological carbon sequestration. Here we demonstrate that reliable 137Cs profiles are increasingAuthorsJudith Z. Drexler, Christopher C. Fuller, Stacey A. ArchfieldTerrestrial wetlands
1. The assessment of terrestrial wetland carbon stocks has improved greatly since the First State of the Carbon Cycle Report (CCSP 2007) because of recent national inventories and the development of a U.S. soils database. Terrestrial wetlands in North America encompass an estimated 2.2 million km2, which constitutes about 37% of the global wetland area, with a soil and vegetation carbon pool of abAuthorsRandall Kolka, Carl Trettin, Wenwu Tang, Ken W. Krauss, Sheel Bansal, Judith Z. Drexler, Kimberly P. Wickland, Rodney A. Chimner, Dianna M. Hogan, Emily J. Pindilli, Brian Benscoter, Brian Tangen, Evan S. Kane, Scott D. Bridgham, Curtis J. RichardsonEstimation and uncertainty of recent carbon accumulation and vertical accretion in drained and undrained forested peatlands of the southeastern USA
The purpose of this study was to determine how drainage impacts carbon densities and recent rates (past 50 years) of vertical accretion and carbon accumulation in southeastern forested peatlands. We compared these parameters in drained maple-gum (MAPL), Atlantic white cedar (CDR), and pocosin (POC) communities in the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge (GDS) of Virginia/North Carolina andAuthorsJudith Z. Drexler, Christopher C. Fuller, James L. Orlando, Antonia Salas, Frederic C. Wurster, Jamie A. DubersteinFactors affecting marsh vegetation at the Liberty Island Conservation Bank in the Cache Slough region of the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, California
The Liberty Island Conservation Bank (LICB) is a tidal freshwater marsh restored for the purpose of mitigating adverse effects on sensitive fish populations elsewhere in the region. The LICB was completed in 2012 and is in the northern Cache Slough region of the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. The wetland vegetation at the LICB is stunted and yellow-green in color (chlorotic) compared to nearby wetlAuthorsJames L. Orlando, Judith Z. DrexlerPrimary production in the Delta: Then and now
To evaluate the role of restoration in the recovery of the Delta ecosystem, we need to have clear targets and performance measures that directly assess ecosystem function. Primary production is a crucial ecosystem process, which directly limits the quality and quantity of food available for secondary consumers such as invertebrates and fish. The Delta has a low rate of primary production, but it iAuthorsJames E. Cloern, April Robinson, Amy Richey, Letitia Grenier, Robin Grossinger, Katharyn E. Boyer, Jon Burau, Elizabeth A. Canuel, John F. DeGeorge, Judith Z. Drexler, Chris Enright, Emily R. Howe, Ronald Kneib, Anke Mueller-Solger, Robert J. Naiman, James L. Pinckney, Samuel M. Safran, David H. Schoellhamer, Charles A. SimenstadAssessing wildlife benefits and carbon storage from restored and natural coastal marshes in the Nisqually River Delta: Determining marsh net ecosystem carbon balance
Working in partnership since 1996, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Nisqually Indian Tribe have restored 902 acres of tidally influenced coastal marsh in the Nisqually River Delta (NRD), making it the largest estuary-restoration project in the Pacific Northwest to date. Marsh restoration increases the capacity of the estuary to support a diversity of wildlife species. Restoration also inAuthorsFrank Anderson, Brian A. Bergamaschi, Lisamarie Windham-Myers, Isa Woo, Susan De La Cruz, Judith Z. Drexler, Kristin Byrd, Karen M. Thorne - News