Print Report

M403 Arctic Tidal Salt Marsh Macrogroup

Type Concept Sentence: This macrogroup consists of tidal saltwater herbaceous marshes dominated by Carex glareosa, Carex ramenskii, Carex subspathacea, Carex ursina, Cochlearia groenlandica, Dupontia fisheri, Puccinellia phryganodes, and Stellaria humifusa found along Alaska''s Arctic coastline from the Bering Sea to the Arctic Ocean.

Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Arctic Tidal Salt Marsh Macrogroup

Colloquial Name: Arctic Tidal Salt Marsh

Hierarchy Level:  Macrogroup

Type Concept: This macrogroup consists of herbaceous tidal salt marshes with >10% vascular species cover that are subject to regular inundation. This includes low marshes, brackish meadows, and high marshes. Common herbaceous species in the mid to lower salt marsh include Carex glareosa, Carex ramenskii, Carex subspathacea, Carex ursina, Cochlearia officinalis, Dupontia fisheri, Puccinellia phryganodes, and Stellaria humifusa. In brackish meadows inland of the mid to lower salt marsh additional species such as Calamagrostis deschampsioides, Chrysanthemum arcticum, and Salix ovalifolia commonly occur. Tidal salt marshes are associated with estuaries or coastal lagoons or other locations protected from wave action, such as the inland side of barrier islands. In the Arctic, salt marshes may occur wherever there is relatively flat land at sea level that is subjected to permafrost subsidence or storm surge inundation. They occur along Alaska''s Arctic coastline from the Bering Sea to the Arctic Ocean. The Bristol Bay lowlands in southwestern Alaska mark a major transition zone between Arctic and more temperate Pacific tidal marshes. Species common to the Pacific Coast salt marshes dominate east of the Alaska Peninsula, while species common to the Arctic salt marshes become more dominant to the west of the Alaska Peninsula and Bristol Bay.

Diagnostic Characteristics: This macrogroup is characterized by herbaceous vegetation occupying coastal marsh zones in Arctic areas of Alaska.

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: No Data Available

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: This macrogroup is defined by herbaceous, mostly graminoid vegetation but can include broad-leaved forbs or even mixed dwarf-shrub/herbaceous vegetation.

Floristics: Vegetation is generally herbaceous graminoid or mixed dwarf-shrub/herbaceous. Characteristic sedges of the Arctic salt marsh are Carex subspathacea and Carex ramenskii. Other common herbaceous species include Carex glareosa, Carex ursina, Cochlearia officinalis, Dupontia fisheri, Puccinellia andersonii, Puccinellia arctica, Puccinellia phryganodes, and Stellaria humifusa. Calamagrostis deschampsioides, Chrysanthemum arcticum, and Salix ovalifolia commonly occur in dwarf-shrub/sedge communities in the high marsh environment and on deltaic deposits. Carex ramenskii is typically the dominant salt-tolerant sedge in southwestern Alaska, while Carex subspathacea occurs throughout the Arctic. Of the species listed above, Carex ursina, Dupontia fisheri, Puccinellia andersonii, and Puccinellia arctica occur exclusively in the northern portion of the range (Chuckchi and Beaufort seacoasts). In the southern portion of the range, Carex lyngbyei may occur in slightly brackish or freshwater marshes inland of salt marshes dominated by Carex ramenskii, but Carex lyngbyei does not occur on the Coastal Plain. Other common species that occur in southwestern Alaska but not on the Arctic Coastal Plain include Argentina egedii and Triglochin palustris.

Dynamics:  Tidal marshes in western and northern Alaska are regularly inundated by storm surges which flood coastal and low-lying inland tundra. In northern Alaska, permafrost degradation along the coast allows inundation of nearshore basins and polygonal tundra resulting in the conversion of freshwater wetlands to salt marshes. Exposure of tundra vegetation to saltwater weakens or kills the resident species and allows salt-tolerant species to colonize. Additionally, an increase in ice-free days exposes the coastline to coastal erosion, ice-rafting and storm surges for a greater period of time, thereby exacerbating the cumulative impacts of these processes. Sediment deposition within river deltas can change the distribution and extent of estuarine marshes. Both northern and western Alaska Arctic salt marshes are heavily used by waterfowl during the breading season. Grazing by large flocks of snow geese has been shown to shape species composition and structure of Arctic salt marshes (Jefferies and Rockwell 2002).
Environmental Description:  This macrogroup has regular tidal inundation and includes saltwater and brackish water environments of low and high marshes. High marshes can be primarily supported by freshwater, but have regular saltwater inputs from occasional storm surges such that they retain some salt-tolerant species. Tidal marshes are associated with estuaries or coastal lagoons or other locations protected from wave action. Barrier Island lagoons with outer spits and beaches are common along the Arctic coastline of the Chuckchi and Beaufort seas. Salt marshes along Alaska''s north slope are unique from their more southerly counterparts along the western coastline of Alaska in that they form primarily as a narrow fringe (<10 m wide) along tidal river channels, inlets, tidal lagoons protected by barrier islands, and also on subsided polygonal tundra on low-lying terrain adjacent to the coast. This unique and reduced marsh development may be partially due to shallow tidal range (e.g., 0.01 m at Prudhoe Bay on the Beaufort Sea, compared to 4.5 m at Dillingham in Bristol Bay in the southern Bering Sea) and also rapid melting of the coastline due to permafrost degradation.
Geographic Range: This macrogroup occurs along Alaska''s Arctic coastline from the Bering Sea to the Arctic Ocean. The Bristol Bay lowlands and Alaska Peninsula in southwestern Alaska mark the transition zone between Arctic and Pacific tidal marshes. Pacific coastal marshes occur on the east side of the Alaska Peninsula and throughout the rugged Aleutian Chain, while Arctic salt marshes generally become predominant to the west of the Alaska Peninsula along the Bering Sea coastline. Their distribution extends across Alaska''s Coastal Plain and also throughout the Arctic coastline of Canada; however, the Canadian distribution has not yet been described.

Nations: CA,GL,IS,NO,RU,US

States/Provinces:  AK, LB, MB, NT, NU, QC, YT


Confidence Level: High

Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR

Greasons: No Data Available
Type Name Database Code Classification Code
Class 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class C02 2
Subclass 2.C Shrub & Herb Wetland Subclass S44 2.C
Formation 2.C.5 Salt Marsh Formation F035 2.C.5
Division 2.C.5.Nk Arctic Coastal Salt Marsh Division D187 2.C.5.Nk
Macrogroup 2.C.5.Nk.1 Arctic Tidal Salt Marsh Macrogroup M403 2.C.5.Nk.1
Group 2.C.5.Nk.1.a Hoppner''s Sedge - Fisher''s Tundragrass Salt Marsh Group G535 2.C.5.Nk.1.a
Concept Lineage: No Data Available

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: >< 78 Graminoid (Puccinellia phryganodes, Carex ramenskii) (Raynolds et al. 2006a) [The Raynolds et al. type includes references to salt grass meadow (Racine and Anderson 1979); 51 - tidal marsh (Swanson and Schuman 1985) (Seward Peninsula) Map Unit 14 (Talbot et al. 1985), Map Unit M15 (Tande and Jennings 1986); Map Unit 13 (Jorgenson 2]
< III.A.3.i - Halophytic wet sedge meadow (Viereck et al. 1992)
Concept Author(s): Faber-Langendoen et al. (2014)

Author of Description: T.V. Boucher, K. Boggs, M.E. Hall, G. Kittel

Acknowledgements: No Data Available

Version Date: 03-29-17
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