CIMA researchers Katerina Kombiadou, A. Rita Carrasco, Susana Costas and Ana Matias, along with CIMA technician Margarida Ramires analyse the processes of backbarrier marsh establishment and growth in Culatra Island, in their recently published article in the Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science journal. In the paper, titled ‘The birth of backbarrier marshes in Culatra Island (Ria Formosa, South Portugal)’, traditional methods, like mapping from aerial photos and surface and subsurface sediment analysis, were used to: a) identify present-day topography, plant zonation and recent sedimentation; b) assess long-term backbarrier marsh dynamics in terms of horizontal expansion, vertical growth and sediment composition since plant establishment; and c) identify the main controls, phases and related timescales during the early stages of backbarrier marsh development.
The full paper was published as open access and is available through the link https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2023.108589
