Research Article| August 01, 2013 How a marsh is built from the bottom up John R. Gunnell; John R. Gunnell 1Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 3202 Venable Hall, CB 3300, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-3300, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar A.B. Rodriguez; A.B. Rodriguez 2Institute of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 3431 Arendell Street, Morehead City, North Carolina 28557, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar B.A. McKee B.A. McKee 1Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 3202 Venable Hall, CB 3300, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-3300, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information John R. Gunnell 1Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 3202 Venable Hall, CB 3300, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-3300, USA A.B. Rodriguez 2Institute of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 3431 Arendell Street, Morehead City, North Carolina 28557, USA B.A. McKee 1Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 3202 Venable Hall, CB 3300, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599-3300, USA Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 23 Aug 2012 Revision Received: 19 Mar 2013 Accepted: 21 Mar 2013 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 © 2013 Geological Society of America Geology (2013) 41 (8): 859–862. https://doi.org/10.1130/G34582.1 Article history Received: 23 Aug 2012 Revision Received: 19 Mar 2013 Accepted: 21 Mar 2013 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation John R. Gunnell, A.B. Rodriguez, B.A. McKee; How a marsh is built from the bottom up. Geology 2013;; 41 (8): 859–862. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G34582.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Salt marshes are valuable yet fragile ecosystems, disappearing globally at an alarming rate. Facing this crisis, it becomes increasingly important to understand what forces drive their formation. Previous studies of marsh ontogeny relied on stratigraphy and physical monitoring, depending on inferences from multi-century and daily time scales, respectively. In this study, vertical accretion rates are evaluated at the same time resolution as a marsh’s lateral expansion, providing the first comprehensive view of a laterally expanding marsh’s sedimentary trajectory. 210Pb-derived (half-life, t1/2, of 22.3 yr) accretion rates are examined in a marsh at the Newport River (North Carolina, United States), a location experiencing ongoing emergence of new marshland over the past century. Accretion rates at all marsh sampling sites begin with slow sedimentation characteristic of the bay bottom, then shift to rapid, persistent sedimentation, eventually progressing from submerged mudflat to marsh table. Acceleration of vertical accretion occurs asynchronously across the marsh and prior to vegetative colonization, indicating a physical mechanism. We hypothesize that extant marsh tables act as promontories, effectively shielding adjacent mudflats from erosive forces, dictating the trajectory of marsh emergence, and yielding the pattern of alongshore marsh emergence at the Newport River. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.