Kathryn E L Smith, PhD
Kathryn Smith is a coastal ecologist at the St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center in St. Petersurg, Florida.
Biography
Dr. Kathryn Smith’s research focuses on linking geospatial and geophysical data to assess environmental change in coastal wetlands, estuaries, and barrier islands. Kathryn is responsible for leading efforts in geospatial data analysis procedures, enhancing capabilities for paleoecological assessment of coastal habitats, examining the complex dynamics of coastal sedimentary processes, and paired field and spatial modeling studies which assess the vulnerability of coastal ecosystems to storms and sea-level rise. In addition, Kathryn has maintained a teaching and graduate student advising role at the University of South Florida. Dr. Smith is a graduate of the University of Florida with a PhD in Environmental Engineering and an MS in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation. She obtained her BS from the University of Minnesota in Environmental Science.
Science and Products
Estuarine and MaRsh Geology Research Project
The goal of the Estuarine and MaRsh Geology (EMRG) Research Project is to study how and where short- and long-term marsh and estuarine coastal processes interact, how they influence coastal accretion or erosion, and how they pre-condition a marsh’s resiliency to storms, sea-level change, and human alterations along the northern Gulf of Mexico (Grand Bay and Point aux Chenes, Mississippi and St...
Sea-level and Storm Impacts on Estuarine Environments and Shorelines (SSIEES)
This project assesses the physical controls of sediment and material exchange between wetlands and estuarine environments along the northern Gulf of Mexico (Grand Bay Alabama/Mississippi and Vermilion Bay, Louisiana) and the Atlantic coast (Chincoteague Bay, Virginia/Maryland).
A geospatially resolved wetland vulnerability index: Synthesis of physical drivers
Assessing wetland vulnerability to chronic and episodic physical drivers is fundamental for establishing restoration priorities. We synthesized multiple data sets from E.B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey, to establish a wetland vulnerability metric that integrates a range of physical processes, regulatory information and physical/...
Defne, Zafer; Aretxabaleta, Alfredo; Ganju, Neil Kamal; Kalra, Tarandeep S.; Jones, Daniel K.; Smith, Kathryn E.L. Analysis of multi-decadal wetland changes, and cumulative impact of multiple storms 1984 to 2017
Land-cover classification analysis using Landsat satellite imagery acquired between 1984 and 2017 quantified short- (post-Hurricane Sandy) and long-term wetland-change trends along the Maryland and Virginia coasts between Metompkin Bay, VA and Ocean City, MD. Although there are limited options for upland migration of wetlands in the study area,...
Douglas, Steven H.; Bernier, Julie C.; Smith, Kathryn E.L.
Barrier-island and estuarine-wetland physical-change assessment after Hurricane Sandy
IntroductionThe Nation’s eastern coast is fringed by beaches, dunes, barrier islands, wetlands, and bluffs. These natural coastal barriers provide critical benefits and services, and can mitigate the impact of storms, erosion, and sea-level rise on our coastal communities. Waves and storm surge resulting from Hurricane Sandy, which made landfall...
Plant, Nathaniel G.; Smith, Kathryn E.L.; Passeri, Davina L.; Smith, Christopher G.; Bernier, Julie C. Estuarine shoreline and sandline change model skill and predicted probabilities
The Barrier Island and Estuarine Wetland Physical Change Assessment was created to calibrate and test probability models of barrier island estuarine shoreline and sandline change for study areas in Virginia, Maryland, and New Jersey. The models examined the influence of hydrologic and physical variables related to long-term and event-driven (...
Smith, Kathryn E. L.; Passeri, Davina; Plant, Nathaniel G. Historical shoreline for New Jersey (1971 to 1978): Vector digital data
This data release features a digitized historic shoreline for the New Jersey coastline (Point Pleasant, NJ to Longport, NJ) from 1971 to 1978. Imagery of the New Jersey coastline was acquired from the New Jersey Geographic Information Network (NJGIN) as two images: "1970 NJDEP Wetlands Basemap" (1971-78) and the "1977 Tidelands Basemaps" (1977-78...
Swiderski, Danielle C.; Terrano, Joseph F.; Smith, Kathryn E. L.
Ground-penetrating radar and differential global positioning system data collected from Long Beach Island, New Jersey, April 2015
Scientists from the United States Geological Survey, St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, and students from the University of Hawaii at Manoa collected sediment cores, sediment surface grab samples, ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and Differential Global Positioning...
Zaremba, Nicholas J.; Smith, Kathryn E.L.; Bishop, James M.; Smith, Christopher G.
Analysis of shoreline and geomorphic change for Breton Island, Louisiana, from 1869 to 2014
Many barrier islands in the United States are eroding and losing elevation substantively because of storm surge, waves, and sea-level changes. This is particularly true for the deltaic barrier system in Louisiana. Breton Island is near the mouth of the Mississippi River at the southern end of the Chandeleur barrier island chain in southeast...
Terrano, Joseph F.; Flocks, James G.; Smith, Kathryn E. L. Estuarine shoreline and barrier-island sandline change assessment
The Barrier Island and Estuarine Wetland Physical Change Assessment Dataset was created to calibrate and test probability models of barrier island sandline and estuarine shoreline change for study areas in Virginia, Maryland, and New Jersey. The models examined the influence of hydrologic and physical variables related to storm-derived overwash...
Terrano, Joseph F.; Smith, Kathryn E.L. Historical shoreline for New Jersey (1839 to 1875): T-sheets and vector digital Data
Historical shoreline surveys were conducted by the National Ocean Service (NOS), dating back to the early 1800s. The maps resulting from these surveys, often called t-sheets, provide a reference of historical shoreline position that can be compared to modern data to identify shoreline change. The t-sheets are stored at the National Archives...
Terrano, Joseph; Smith, Kathryn E
Wetland paleoecological study of southwest coastal Louisiana: sediment cores and diatom calibration dataset
Wetland sediment data were collected in 2009 and 2010 throughout the southwest Louisiana Chenier Plain as part of a pilot study to develop a diatom-based proxy for past wetland water chemistry and the identification of sediment deposits from tropical storms. The complete dataset includes forty-six surface sediment samples and nine sediment cores....
Smith, Kathryn E. L.; Flocks, James G.; Steyer, Gregory D.; Piazza, Sarai C. A GIS compilation of vector shorelines and associated shoreline change data for Breton Island, Louisiana: 1869-2014
Many barrier islands in the United States are experiencing substantive erosion and elevation loss due to storm surge, waves, and sea-level changes; this is particularly true for the deltaic barrier system in Louisiana. Breton Island is located near the mouth of the Mississippi River in the southern end of the Chandeleur Island chain in southeast...
Terrano, Joseph F.; Flocks, James G.; Smith, Kathryn E.L. Morphology, ecology and biogeography of Stauroneis pachycephala P.T. Cleve (Bacillariophyta) and its transfer to the genus Envekadea
Stauroneis pachycephala was described in 1881 from the Baakens River, Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Recently, it was found during surveys of the MacKenzie River (Victoria, Australia), the Florida Everglades (USA) and coastal marshes of Louisiana (USA). The morphology, ecology and geographic distribution of this species are described in this...
Atazadeh, Islam; Edlund, Mark B.; van de Vijver, Bart; Mills, Keely; Spaulding, Sarah A.; Gell, Peter A.; Crawford, Simon; Barton, Andrew F.; Lee, Sylvia S.; Smith, Kathryn E.L.; Newall, Peter; Potapova, Marina
Lunch & Learn: Estuarine Shoreline Change Analysis
USGS Research Ecologist, Kathryn Smith, and CNT Researcher, Joseph Terrano, have been invited to present their estuarine shoreline change analysis research at the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (GBNERR) Lunch & Learn webinar series, which will be held online on July 22nd, 2020.
Collaborative research will advance knowledge on coastal erosion hazards of marsh shorelines and the impact of living shorelines
Coastal wetland loss has been well documented and attributed to many factors, including increased shoreline erosion from human activities, sea level rise, and storms.
USGS scientists publish study documenting recent wetland-changes along Maryland and Virginia coastline
New study analyzed Landsat satellite imagery to document historical and recent (post-Hurricane Sandy) wetland changes that occurred along the Maryland and Virginia coastlines since 1984.
Big Bend Coastal Mapping Prioritization Workshop in Cedar Key, Florida
The USGS, FWRI, and FIO, as part of the Florida Coastal Mapping Program (FCMaP), are leading a coastal and seafloor mapping prioritization workshop on Sept. 7, 2018, with stakeholders from 20 different Federal, State, County, and academic entities. The group will utilize a new tool developed by NOAA and FWRI to indicate which areas of the seabed, from the shore to the shelf edge, are most...