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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Modeling Vegetation Effects On Barrier Island Evolution, Eric W. Schoen
Modeling Vegetation Effects On Barrier Island Evolution, Eric W. Schoen
Theses and Dissertations
Barrier islands play a significant role in protecting coastlines and harboring coastal habitats. In an effort to study and better understand the evolution of barrier island systems, a cellular model capturing various meteorological and environmental processes is proposed. Erosion due to wind, gravity, and marine processes are coupled with plant population effects. We demonstrate the inhibition of plant cover on sediment mobility, island migration, and erosion in the presence of sea level rise.
Plant Communities In Dynamic Systems: How Disturbance Influences Coastal Plant Community Structure And Function, Joseph K. Brown
Plant Communities In Dynamic Systems: How Disturbance Influences Coastal Plant Community Structure And Function, Joseph K. Brown
Theses and Dissertations
As the climate continues to change it is difficult to predict how barrier island function will respond to global change drivers accompanying predicted climate change. Disturbance frequency and nutrient enrichment in coastal regions are drivers of plant community change that increase with climate change. Plant communities on barrier islands are not only tightly connected to barrier island function but are also some of the first communities affected by environmental change, making them a critical piece in understanding how current drivers of global change will impact the future of barrier islands. The objective of my dissertation was to observe and manipulate …