Exploring the role of climate conditions and seasonal variation on mangrove island morphology

Mangroves are a halophytic tree or shrub that exist in tropical and subtropical ecosystems. They provide beneficial ecosystem services such as blue carbon storage, biodiversity, and coastal protection. Although mangroves provide a wide range of ecosystem services, due to mismanagement and climate forcing mangrove area has decreased within the last few decades. As climate continues to warm, soil stressors in mangrove ecosystems increases. Net-evaporation (i.e. evaporation-precipitation) affect the soil stressor concentration within a mangrove island. Seasonal variations affect the morphology of mangrove islands. We specifically study mangrove islands, which are areas in low relief environments predominantly comprised of mangroves. If an island is in a high net-evaporation zone, mangroves will undergo species zonation and die off with high levels of soil salinity. Areas in a low to negative net-evaporation zone experiences mangrove vegetation growth across the island. Through satellite imagery, we study the effects of net-evaporation on mangrove ecosystems across the Caribbean. We then build a numerical model to quantify the relationship of vegetated area and net-evaporation. We also quantify the hydraulic conductivity of an island, as it is a key driver in the flow of salt water through an island. Islands in high net-evaporation areas can experience little to no die off and this is due to the hydraulic conductivity of the island. Red mangroves have a lower critical salinity concentration tolerance; therefore, an area with more red mangroves exhibit higher hydraulic conductivity. Finally, we look at the effects of seasonal changes in mangrove ecosystems through time.