Herring River

The Herring River estuary (Wellfleet, Cape Cod, Massachusetts) has been tidally restricted for over a century by a dike constructed near the mouth of the river. Behind the dike, the tidal restriction has caused the conversion of salt marsh wetlands to various other ecosystems including impounded freshwater marshes, flooded shrub land, drained forested upland, and wetlands dominated by Phragmites australis. This estuary is now managed by the National Park Service, and replacement of the existing dike has begun with the objective to restore tidal flow to the estuary. To assist National Park Service land managers with restoration planning and implementation, study collaborators have been investigating differences in soil properties, carbon [...]