Estuary

Partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water

For other uses, see Estuary (disambiguation).

Río de la Plata estuary Mattole River estuary Marine habitats

Coastal habitats

* Littoral zone
* Intertidal zone
* Estuaries
* Mangrove forests
* Seagrass meadows
* Kelp forests
* Coral reefs
* Continental shelf
* Neritic zone

Ocean surface

* Surface microlayer
* Epipelagic zone

Open ocean

* Pelagic zone
* Oceanic zone

Sea floor

* Seamounts
* Hydrothermal vents
* Cold seeps
* Demersal zone
* Benthic zone
* Marine sediment

* v
* t
* e

An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea.[1] Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environments and are an example of an ecotone. Estuaries are subject both to marine influences such as tides, waves, and the influx of saline water, and to fluvial influences such as flows of freshwater and sediment. The mixing of seawater and freshwater provides high levels of nutrients both in the water column and in sediment, making estuaries among the most productive natural habitats in the world.[2]

Most existing estuaries formed during the Holocene epoch with the flooding of river-eroded or glacially scoured valleys when the sea level began to rise about 10,000–12,000 years ago.[3] Estuaries are typically classified according to their geomorphological features or to water-circulation patterns. They can have many different names, such as bays, harbors, lagoons, inlets, or sounds, although some of these water bodies do not strictly meet the above definition of an estuary and could be fully saline.

Many estuaries suffer degeneration from a variety of factors including soil erosion, deforestation, overgrazing, overfishing and the filling of wetlands. Eutrophication may lead to excessive nutrients from sewage and animal wastes; pollutants including heavy metals, polychlorinated biphenyls, radionuclides and hydrocarbons from sewage inputs; and diking or damming for flood control or water diversion.[3][4]

## Definition

[edit]

New York–New Jersey Harbor Estuary River Exe estuary Estuary mouth located in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia A crowded estuary mouth in Paravur near the city of Kollam, India Estuary mouth of the Yachats River in Yachats, Oregon Amazon River estuary

The word "estuary" is derived from the Latin word aestuarium meaning tidal inlet of the sea, which in itself is derived from the term aestus, meaning tide. There have been many definitions proposed to describe an estuary. The most widely accepted definition is: "a semi-enclosed coastal body of water, which has a free connection with the open sea, and within which seawater is measurably diluted with freshwater derived from land drainage".[1] However, this definition excludes a number of coastal water bodies such as coastal lagoons and brackish seas.

A more comprehensive definition of an estuary is "a semi-enclosed body of water connected to the sea as far as the tidal limit or the salt intrusion limit and receiving freshwater runoff; however the freshwater inflow may not be perennial, the connection to the sea may be closed for part of the year and tidal influence may be negligible".[3] This broad definition also includes fjords, lagoons, river mouths, and tidal creeks. An estuary is a dynamic ecosystem having a connection to the open sea through which the sea water enters with the rhythm of the tides. The effects of tides on estuaries can show nonlinear effects on the movement of water which can have important impacts on the ecosystem and waterflow. The seawater entering the estuary is diluted by the fresh water flowing from rivers and streams. The pattern of dilution varies between different estuaries and depends on the volume of freshwater, the tidal range, and the extent of evaporation of the water in the estuary.[2]

## Classification based on geomorphology

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### Drowned river valleys

[edit]

Main article: Ria

Drowned river valleys are also known as coastal plain estuaries. In places where the sea level is rising relative to the land, sea water progressively penetrates into river valleys and the topography of the estuary remains similar to that of a river valley. This is the most common type of estuary in temperate climates. Well-studied estuaries include the Severn Estuary in the United Kingdom and the Ems Dollard along the Dutch-German border.

The width-to-depth ratio of these estuaries is typically large, appearing wedge-shaped (in cross-section) in the inner part and broadening and deepening seaward. Water depths rarely exceed 30 m (100 ft). Examples of this type of estuary in the U.S. are the Hudson River, Chesapeake Bay, and Delaware Bay along the Mid-Atlantic coast, and Galveston Bay and Tampa Bay along the Gulf Coast.[5]

### Lagoon-type or bar-built

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See also: Mouth bar

Bar-built estuaries are found in a place where the deposition of sediment has kept pace with rising sea levels so that the estuaries are shallow and separated from the sea by sand spits or barrier islands. They are relatively common in tropical and subtropical locations.

These estuaries are semi-isolated from ocean waters by barrier beaches (barrier islands and barrier spits). Formation of barrier beaches partially encloses the estuary, with only narrow inlets allowing contact with the ocean waters. Bar-built estuaries typically develop on gently sloping plains located along tectonically stable edges of continents and marginal sea coasts. They are extensive along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the U.S. in areas with active coastal deposition of sediments and where tidal ranges are less than 4 m (13 ft). The barrier beaches that enclose bar-built estuaries have been developed in several ways:

* building up of offshore bars by wave action, in which sand from the seafloor is deposited in elongated bars parallel to the shoreline,
* reworking of sediment discharge from rivers by a wave, current, and wind action into beaches, overwash flats, and dunes,
* engulfment of mainland beach ridges (ridges developed from the erosion of coastal plain sediments around 5000 years ago) due to sea level rise and resulting in the breaching of the ridges and flooding of the coastal lowlands, forming shallow lagoons,
* elongation of barrier spits from the erosion of headlands due to the action of longshore currents, with the spits growing in the direction of the littoral drift. [citation needed]

### Fjord-type

[edit]

Fjords were formed where Pleistocene glaciers deepened and widened existing river valleys so that they become U-shaped in cross-sections. At their mouths there are typically rocks, bars or sills of glacial deposits, which have the effects of modifying the estuarine circulation.

Fjord-type estuaries are formed in deeply eroded valleys formed by glaciers. These U-shaped estuaries typically have steep sides, rock bottoms, and underwater sills contoured by glacial movement. The estuary is shallowest at its mouth, where terminal glacial moraines or rock bars form sills that restrict water flow. In the upper reaches of the estuary, the depth can exceed 300 m (1,000 ft). The width-to-depth ratio is generally small. In estuaries with very shallow sills, tidal oscillations only affect the water down to the depth of the sill, and the waters deeper than that may remain stagnant for a very long time, so there is only an occasional exchange of the deep water of the estuary with the ocean. If the sill depth is deep, water circulation is less restricted, and there is a slow but steady exchange of water between the estuary and the ocean. Fjord-type estuaries can be found along the coasts of Alaska, the Puget Sound region of western Washington state, British Columbia, eastern Canada, Greenland, Iceland, New Zealand, and Norway.

### Tectonically produced

[edit]

These estuaries are formed by subsidence or land cut off from the ocean by land movement associated with faulting, volcanoes, and landslides. Inundation from eustatic sea-level rise during the Holocene Epoch has also contributed to the formation of these estuaries. There are only a small number of tectonically produced estuaries; one example is the San Francisco Bay, which was formed by the crustal movements of the San Andreas Fault system causing the inundation of the lower reaches of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers.[6]

## Classification based on water circulation

[edit]

See also: Estuarine water circulation

### Salt wedge

[edit]

"Salt wedge" redirects here. Not to be confused with Salt wedging (geology).

See also: Saltwater intrusion

In this type of estuary, river output greatly exceeds marine input and tidal effects have minor importance. Freshwater floats on top of the seawater in a layer that gradually thins as it moves seaward. The denser seawater moves landward along the bottom of the estuary, forming a wedge-shaped layer that is thinner as it approaches land. As a velocity difference develops between the two layers, shear forces generate internal waves at the interface, mixing the seawater upward with the freshwater. An examples of a salt wedge estuary is Mississippi River[6] and the Mandovi estuary in Goa during the monsoon period.

### Partially mixed

[edit]

As tidal forcing increases, river output becomes less than the marine input. Here, current induced turbulence causes mixing of the whole water column such that salinity varies more longitudinally rather than vertically, leading to a moderately stratified condition. Examples include the Chesapeake Bay and Narragansett Bay.[6]

### Well-mixed

[edit]

Tidal mixing forces exceed river output, resulting in a well-mixed water column and the disappearance of the vertical salinity gradient. The freshwater-seawater boundary is eliminated due to the intense turbulent mixing and eddy effects. The lower reaches of Delaware Bay and the Raritan River in New Jersey are examples of vertically homogeneous estuaries.[6]

### Inverse

[edit]

Inverse estuaries occur in dry climates where evaporation greatly exceeds the inflow of freshwater. A salinity maximum zone is formed, and both riverine and oceanic water flow close to the surface towards this zone.[7] This water is pushed downward and spreads along the bottom in both the seaward and landward direction.[3] Examples of an inverse estuary are Spencer Gulf, South Australia,[8] Saloum River and Casamance River, Senegal.[9]

### Intermittent

[edit]

Estuary type varies dramatically depending on freshwater input, and is capable of changing from a wholly marine embayment to any of the other estuary types.[10][11]

## Physiochemical variation

[edit]

The most important variable characteristics of estuary water are the concentration of dissolved oxygen, salinity and sediment load. There is extreme spatial variability in salinity, with a range of near-zero at the tidal limit of tributary rivers to 3.4% at the estuary mouth. At any one point, the salinity will vary considerably over time and seasons, making it a harsh environment for organisms. Sediment often settles in intertidal mudflats which are extremely difficult to colonize. No points of attachment exist for algae, so vegetation based habitat is not established.[clarification needed] Sediment can also clog feeding and respiratory structures of species, and special adaptations exist within mudflat species to cope with this problem. Lastly, dissolved oxygen variation can cause problems for life forms. Nutrient-rich sediment from human-made sources can promote primary production life cycles, perhaps leading to eventual decay removing the dissolved oxygen from the water; thus hypoxic or anoxic zones can develop.[12]

## Implications of eutrophication on estuaries

[edit]

Further information: Eutrophication § Coastal waters

### Effects of eutrophication on biogeochemical cycles

[edit]

Processes that nitrogen undergo in estuarine systems

Nitrogen is often the lead cause of eutrophication in estuaries in temperate zones.[13] During a eutrophication event, biogeochemical feedback decreases the amount of available silica.[14] These feedbacks also increase the supply of nitrogen and phosphorus, creating conditions where harmful algal blooms can persist. Given the now off-balance nitrogen cycle, estuaries can be driven to phosphorus limitation instead of nitrogen limitation. Estuaries can be severely impacted by an unbalanced phosphorus cycle, as phosphorus interacts with nitrogen and silica availability.

With an abundance of nutrients in the ecosystem, plants and algae overgrow and eventually decompose, which produce a significant amount of carbon dioxide.[15] While releasing CO2 into the water and atmosphere, these organisms are also intaking all or nearly all of the available oxygen creating a hypoxic environment and unbalanced oxygen cycle.[16] The excess carbon in the form of CO2 can lead to low pH levels and ocean acidification, which is more harmful for vulnerable coastal regions like estuaries.

### Effects of eutrophication on estuarine plants

[edit]

A salt marsh with wood storks wading

Eutrophication has been seen to negatively impact many plant communities in estuarine ecosystems.[17] Salt marshes are a type of ecosystem in some estuaries that have been negatively impacted by eutrophication.[17] Cordgrass vegetation dominates the salt marsh landscape.[18] Excess nutrients allow the plants to grow at greater rates in above ground biomass, however less energy is allocated to the roots since nutrients is abundant.[17][19] This leads to a lower biomass in the vegetation below ground which destabilizes the banks of the marsh causing increased rates of erosion.[17] A similar phenomenon occurs in mangrove swamps, which are another potential ecosystem in estuaries.[19][20] An increase in nitrogen causes an increase in shoot growth and a decrease in root growth.[19] Weaker root systems cause a mangrove tree to be less resilient in seasons of drought, which can lead to the death of the mangrove.[19] This shift in above ground and below ground biomass caused by eutrophication could hindered plant success in these ecosystems.[17][19]

### Effects of eutrophication on estuarine animals

[edit]

Example of a whitefish

Across all biomes, eutrophication often results in plant death but the impacts do not end there. Plant death alters the entire food web structure which can result in the death of animals within the afflicted biome. Estuaries are hotspots for biodiversity, containing a majority of commercial fish catch, making the impacts of eutrophication that much greater within estuaries.[21] Some specific estuarine animals feel the effects of eutrophication more strongly than others. One example is the whitefish species from the European Alps.[22] Eutrophication reduced the oxygen levels in their habitats so greatly that whitefish eggs could not survive, causing local extinctions.[22] However, some animals, such as carnivorous fish, tend to do well in nutrient-enriched environments and can benefit from eutrophication.[23] This can be seen in populations of bass or pikes.[23]

### Effects of eutrophication on human activities

[edit]

Commercial fishing boat

Eutrophication can affect many marine habitats which can lead to economic consequences. The commercial fishing industry relies upon estuaries for approximately 68 percent of their catch by value because of the great biodiversity of this ecosystem.[24] During an algal bloom, fishermen have noticed a significant increase in the quantity of fish.[25] A sudden increase in primary productivity causes spikes in fish populations which leads to more oxygen being utilized.[25] It is the continued deoxygenation of the water that then causes a decline in fish populations. These effects can begin in estuaries and have a wide effect on the surrounding water bodies. In turn, this can decrease fishing industry sales in one area and across the country.[26] Production in 2016 from recreational and commercial fishing contributes billions of dollars to the United States' gross domestic product (GDP).[24] A decrease in production within this industry can affect any of the 1.7 million people the fishing industry employs yearly across the United States.

## Implications for marine life

[edit]

Estuaries are incredibly dynamic systems, where temperature, salinity, turbidity, depth and flow all change daily in response to the tides. This dynamism makes estuaries highly productive habitats, but also make it difficult for many species to survive year-round. As a result, estuaries large and small experience strong seasonal variation in their fish communities.[27] In winter, the fish community is dominated by hardy marine residents, and in summer a variety of marine and anadromous fishes move into and out of estuaries, capitalizing on their high productivity.[28] Estuaries provide a critical habitat to a variety of species that rely on estuaries for life-cycle completion. Pacific Herring (Clupea pallasii) are known to lay their eggs in estuaries and bays, surfperch give birth in estuaries, juvenile flatfish and rockfish migrate to estuaries to rear, and anadromous salmonids and lampreys use estuaries as migration corridors.[29] Also, migratory bird populations, such as the black-tailed godwit,[30] rely on estuaries.

Two of the main challenges of estuarine life are the variability in salinity and sedimentation. Many species of fish and invertebrates have various methods to control or conform to the shifts in salt concentrations and are termed osmoconformers and osmoregulators. Many animals also burrow to avoid predation and to live in a more stable sedimental environment. However, large numbers of bacteria are found within the sediment which has a very high oxygen demand. This reduces the levels of oxygen within the sediment often resulting in partially anoxic conditions, which can be further exacerbated by limited water flow.

Phytoplankton are key primary producers in estuaries. They move with the water bodies and can be flushed in and out with the tides. Their productivity is largely dependent upon the turbidity of the water. The main phytoplankton present are diatoms and dinoflagellates which are abundant in the sediment.

A primary source of food for many organisms on estuaries, including bacteria, is detritus from the settlement of the sedimentation.

## Human impact

[edit]

Further information: Ecosystem service § Estuarine and coastal ecosystem services, and Marine ecosystem § Threats

Of the thirty-two largest cities in the world in the early 1990s, twenty-two were located on estuaries.[31]

As ecosystems, estuaries are under threat from human activities such as pollution and overfishing. They are also threatened by sewage, coastal settlement, land clearance and much more. Estuaries are affected by events far upstream, and concentrate materials such as pollutants and sediments.[32] Land run-off and industrial, agricultural, and domestic waste enter rivers and are discharged into estuaries. Contaminants can be introduced which do not disintegrate rapidly in the marine environment, such as plastics, pesticides, furans, dioxins, phenols and heavy metals.

Such toxins can accumulate in the tissues of many species of aquatic life in a process called bioaccumulation. They also accumulate in benthic environments, such as estuaries and bay muds: a geological record of human activities of the last century. The elemental composition of biofilm reflect areas of the estuary impacted by human activities, and over time may shift the basic composition of the ecosystem, and the reversible or irreversible changes in the abiotic and biotic parts of the systems from the bottom up.[33]

For example, Chinese and Russian industrial pollution, such as phenols and heavy metals, has devastated fish stocks in the Amur River and damaged its estuary soil.[34]

Estuaries tend to be naturally eutrophic because land runoff discharges nutrients into estuaries. With human activities, land run-off also now includes the many chemicals used as fertilizers in agriculture as well as waste from livestock and humans. Excess oxygen-depleting chemicals in the water can lead to hypoxia and the creation of dead zones.[35] This can result in reductions in water quality, fish, and other animal populations. Overfishing also occurs. Chesapeake Bay once had a flourishing oyster population that has been almost wiped out by overfishing. Oysters filter these pollutants, and either eat them or shape them into small packets that are deposited on the bottom where they are harmless. Historically the oysters filtered the estuary's entire water volume of excess nutrients every three or four days. Today that process takes almost a year,[36] and sediment, nutrients, and algae can cause problems in local waters.

Some major rivers that run through deserts historically had vast, expansive estuaries that have been reduced to a fraction of their former size, because of dams and diversions. One example is the Colorado River Delta in Mexico, historically covered with marshlands and forests, but now essentially a salt flat.

## Examples

[edit]

### Africa

[edit]

* Congo River Estuary
* Estuário do Espírito Santo
* Gambia River Estuary
* Gabon Estuary
* Lake St Lucia Estuary
* Orange River Estuary
* Pungwe River Estuary

### Asia

[edit]

* Amur River Estuary
* Adyar River Estuary
* Dawei River Estuary[37]
* Gulf of Ob Estuary
* Hangzhou Bay
* Hàn River Estuary
* Kraburi River Estuary[38]
* Meghna River Estuary[39]
* Naf River Estuary[40]
* Narmada river estuary
* Puerto Princesa Underground River
* Waeru River Estuary of Chanthaburi Province[41]
* Yangtze River estuary
* Yenisei Gulf Estuary

### Europe

[edit]

* Dee Estuary
* Dnieper-Bug Estuary
* Exe Estuary
* Firth of Clyde
* Firth of Forth
* Gironde estuary
* Golden Horn
* Humber
* Oder Estuary
* Severn Estuary
* Shannon Estuary
* Solway Firth
* Southampton Water
* Tagus Estuary
* Thames Estuary
* The Wash
* Unterelbe
* Western Scheldt

### North America

[edit]

* Albemarle Sound including Outer Banks of North Carolina
* Chesapeake Bay including Hampton Roads
* Columbia River Estuary
* Coos Bay
* Delaware Bay
* Drake's Estero
* East River
* Estuary of Saint Lawrence
* Fraser River
* Galveston Bay
* Great Bay
* Indian River Lagoon
* Laguna de Términos
* Laguna Madre
* Lake Borgne
* Lake Merritt
* Long Island Sound
* Miramichi Bay
* Mississippi River Delta
* Lake Pontchartrain
* Mobile Bay
* Narragansett Bay
* Newport Back Bay
* New York-New Jersey Harbor
* Pamlico Sound including the Outer Banks of North Carolina
* Puget Sound
* San Francisco Bay
* Sarasota Bay
* Tampa Bay

### Oceania

[edit]

* Avon Heathcote Estuary (Christchurch, New Zealand)
* Gippsland Lakes
* Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour)
* Spencer Gulf[8]

### South America

[edit]

* Amazon River[42]
* Iguape-Cananéia-Paranaguá estuary lagoon complex
* Lagoa dos Patos and Lagoon Mirim
* Mearim River
* São Marcos Bay
* São José Bay
* Rio de la Plata

## See also

[edit]

* Rivers portal
* Oceans portal
* Water portal
* Environment portal
* Wetlands portal

* Beaches in estuaries and bays – Type of beaches
* Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation – U.S. nonprofit organization
* Estuarine acidification – Reducing pH values in coastal marine ecosystems
* Estuarine fish – Fish that inhabit the sea between the shoreline and the edge of the continental shelfPages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets
* Firth – Scottish word used for various coastal inlets and straits
* Liman – River estuary lagoon in Black Sea region
* List of estuaries of England – A list of estuaries in England
* List of estuaries of South Africa
* List of waterways – List of navigable rivers, canals, estuaries, lakes, and firths
* National Estuarine Research Reserve – Network of 30 protected areas in the US
* Region of freshwater influence – Coastal sea region
* River delta – Silt deposition landform at the mouth of a river
* Shell growth in estuaries
* Tidal bore – A water wave traveling upstream a river or narrow bay because of an incoming tide
* Tidal prism – Volume of water in an estuary or inlet between mean high tide and mean low tide
* Wetland – Type of land area that is flooded or saturated with water

## References

[edit]

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2. ^ a b McLusky, D. S.; Elliott, M. (2004). The Estuarine Ecosystem: Ecology, Threats and Management. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-852508-0.
3. ^ a b c d Wolanski, E. (2007). Estuarine Ecohydrology. Amsterdam: Elsevier. ISBN 978-0-444-53066-0.
4. ^ Silva, Sergio; Lowry, Maran; Macaya-Solis, Consuelo; Byatt, Barry; Lucas, Martyn C. (2017). "Can navigation locks be used to help migratory fishes with poor swimming performance pass tidal barrages? A test with lampreys". Ecological Engineering. 102: 291–302. Bibcode:2017EcEng.102..291S. doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2017.02.027.
5. ^ Kunneke, J. T.; Palik, T. F. (1984). "Tampa Bay environmental atlas" (PDF). U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv. Biol. Rep. 85 (15): 3. Retrieved January 12, 2010.
6. ^ a b c d Kennish, M. J. (1986). Ecology of Estuaries. Volume I: Physical and Chemical Aspects. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. ISBN 978-0-8493-5892-0.
7. ^ Wolanski, E. (1986). "An evaporation-driven salinity maximum zone in Australian tropical estuaries". Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. 22 (4): 415–424. Bibcode:1986ECSS...22..415W. doi:10.1016/0272-7714(86)90065-X.
8. ^ a b Gostin, V. & Hall, S.M. (2014): Spencer Gulf: Geological setting and evolution. In: Natural History of Spencer Gulf. Royal Society of South Australia Inc. p. 21. ISBN 9780959662764
9. ^ Descroix, Luc; Sané, Yancouba; Thior, Mamadou; Manga, Sylvie-Paméla; Ba, Boubacar Demba; Mingou, Joseph; Mendy, Victor; Coly, Saloum; Dièye, Arame; Badiane, Alexandre; Senghor, Marie-Jeanne; Diedhiou, Ange-Bouramanding; Sow, Djiby; Bouaita, Yasmin; Soumaré, Safietou; Diop, Awa; Faty, Bakary; Sow, Bamol Ali; Machu, Eric; Montoroi, Jean-Pierre; Andrieu, Julien; Vandervaere, Jean-Pierre (2020). "Inverse Estuaries in West Africa: Evidence of the Rainfall Recovery?". Water. 12 (3): 647. doi:10.3390/w12030647.
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12. ^ Kaiser; et al. (2005). Marine Ecology. Processes, Systems and Impacts. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199249756.
13. ^ Howarth, Robert W.; Marino, Roxanne (2006). "Nitrogen as the limiting nutrient for eutrophication in coastal marine ecosystems: Evolving views over three decades". Limnology and Oceanography. 51 (1part2): 364–376. Bibcode:2006LimOc..51..364H. doi:10.4319/lo.2006.51.1_part_2.0364. ISSN 0024-3590. S2CID 18144068.
14. ^ Howarth, Robert; Chan, Francis; Conley, Daniel J; Garnier, Josette; Doney, Scott C; Marino, Roxanne; Billen, Gilles (2011). "Coupled biogeochemical cycles: eutrophication and hypoxia in temperate estuaries and coastal marine ecosystems". Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 9 (1): 18–26. Bibcode:2011FrEE....9...18H. doi:10.1890/100008. hdl:1813/60819. ISSN 1540-9295.
15. ^ Morales-Williams, Ana M.; Wanamaker, Alan D.; Williams, Clayton J.; Downing, John A. (2021). "Eutrophication Drives Extreme Seasonal CO2 Flux in Lake Ecosystems". Ecosystems. 24 (2): 434–450. Bibcode:2021Ecosy..24..434M. doi:10.1007/s10021-020-00527-2. ISSN 1432-9840. S2CID 220856626.2+Flux+in+Lake+Ecosystems&rft.volume=24&rft.issue=2&rft.pages=434-450&rft.date=2021&rft_id=info:doi/10.1007/s10021-020-00527-2&rft_id=https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:220856626#id-name=S2CID&rft.issn=1432-9840&rft_id=info:bibcode/2021Ecosy..24..434M&rft.aulast=Morales-Williams&rft.aufirst=Ana+M.&rft.au=Wanamaker,+Alan+D.&rft.au=Williams,+Clayton+J.&rft.au=Downing,+John+A.&rft_id=https://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10021-020-00527-2&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Estuary" class="Z3988">
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20. ^ Guest, Michaela A.; Connolly, Rod M. (2005). "Fine-scale movement and assimilation of carbon in saltmarsh and mangrove habitat by resident animals". Aquatic Ecology. 38 (4): 599–609. Bibcode:2005AqEco..38..599G. doi:10.1007/s10452-005-0442-9. ISSN 1386-2588. S2CID 20771999.
21. ^ Waltham, Nathan J.; McCann, Jack; Power, Trent; Moore, Matt; Buelow, Christina (2020). "Patterns of fish use in urban estuaries: Engineering maintenance schedules to protect broader seascape habitat". Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. 238: 106729. Bibcode:2020ECSS..23806729W. doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2020.106729. ISSN 0272-7714. S2CID 216460098.
22. ^ a b Vonlanthen, P., Bittner, D., Hudson A.G., et al. (2012). Eutrophication causes speciation reversal in whitefish adaptive radiations. Nature. 482, 337–362. DOI: 10.1038/nature0824.
23. ^ a b Jeppesen, Erik; Peder Jensen, Jens; Søndergaard, Martin; Lauridsen, Torben; Junge Pedersen, Leif; Jensen, Lars (1997), "Top-down control in freshwater lakes: The role of nutrient state, submerged macrophytes and water depth", Shallow Lakes '95, Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, pp. 151–164, doi:10.1007/978-94-011-5648-6_17, ISBN 978-94-010-6382-1, retrieved 2022-04-20
24. ^ a b Lellis-Dibble, K.A. (2008). "Estuarine Fish and Shellfish Species in US commercial and Recreational Fisheries: Economic Value as an Incentive to Protect and Restore Estuarine Habitat". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
25. ^ a b Gao, Yang; Lee, Jeong-Yeol (2012-12-30). "Compensatory Responses of Nile Tilapia Oreochromis niloticus under Different Feed-Deprivation Regimes". Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. 15 (4): 305–311. doi:10.5657/fas.2012.0305. ISSN 2234-1749.
26. ^ Fay, Gavin; DePiper, Geret; Steinback, Scott; Gamble, Robert J.; Link, Jason S. (2019). "Economic and Ecosystem Effects of Fishing on the Northeast US Shelf". Frontiers in Marine Science. 6. doi:10.3389/fmars.2019.00133. ISSN 2296-7745.
27. ^ Osborn, Katherine (December 2017). Seasonal fish and invertebrate communities in three northern California estuaries (M.S. thesis). Humboldt State University.
28. ^ Allen, Larry G. (1982). "Seasonal abundance, composition and productivity of the littoral fish assemblage in Upper Newport Bay, California" (PDF). Fishery Bulletin. 80 (4): 769–790.
29. ^ Gillanders, BM; Able, KW; Brown, JA; Eggleston, DB; Sheridan, PF (2003). "Evidence of connectivity between juvenile and adult habitats for mobile marine fauna: An important component of nurseries". Marine Ecology Progress Series. 247: 281–295. Bibcode:2003MEPS..247..281G. doi:10.3354/meps247281. hdl:2440/1877. JSTOR 24866466.
30. ^ Gill, Jennifer A.; Norris, Ken; Potts, Peter M.; Gunnarsson, Tómas Grétar; Atkinson, Philip W.; Sutherland, William J. (2001). "The buffer effect and large-scale population regulation in migratory birds". Nature. 412 (6845): 436–438. Bibcode:2001Natur.412..436G. doi:10.1038/35086568. PMID 11473317. S2CID 4308197.
31. ^ Ross, D. A. (1995). Introduction to Oceanography. New York: Harper Collins College Publishers. ISBN 978-0-673-46938-0.
32. ^ Branch, George (1999). "Estuarine vulnerability and ecological impacts". Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 14 (12): 499. doi:10.1016/S0169-5347(99)01732-2.
33. ^ García-Alonso, J.; Lercari, D.; Araujo, B.F.; Almeida, M.G.; Rezende, C.E. (2017). "Total and extractable elemental composition of the intertidal estuarine biofilm of the Río de la Plata: Disentangling natural and anthropogenic influences". Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. 187: 53–61. Bibcode:2017ECSS..187...53G. doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2016.12.018.
34. ^ "Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North, Siberia and Far East: Nivkh" Archived 2009-08-07 at the Wayback Machine by Arctic Network for the Support of the Indigenous Peoples of the Russian Arctic
35. ^ Gerlach, Sebastian A. (1981). Marine Pollution: Diagnosis and Therapy. Berlin: Springer. ISBN 978-0387109404.
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38. ^ "สัณฐานชายฝั่ง - ระบบฐานข้อมูลทรัพยากรทางทะเลและชายฝั่ง กรมทรัพยากรทางทะเลและชายฝั่ง". km.dmcr.go.th.
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42. ^ "The Amazon River Estuary". etai's web.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Estuaries.

Look up estuary in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

* Animated documentary on Chesapeake Bay NOAA.
* "Habitats: Estuaries – Characteristics". www.onr.navy.mil. Archived from the original on 2009-05-17. Retrieved 2009-11-17.
* The Estuary Guide (Based on experience and R&D within the UK)

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Aquatic ecosystems

General components and freshwater ecosystems

| General|

* Acoustic ecology
* Algal bloom
* Anoxic waters
* Aquatic adaptation
* Aquatic animal
* Insect
* Mammal
* Water bird
* Aquatic biomonitoring
* Aquatic plant
* Aquatic population dynamics
* Aquatic predation
* Aquatic respiration
* Aquatic science
* Aquatic toxicology
* Benthos
* Bioluminescence
* Biomass
* Cascade effect
* Colored dissolved organic matter
* Dead zone
* Ecohydrology
* Eutrophication
* Fisheries science
* Food chain
* Food web
* GIS and aquatic science
* Hydrobiology
* Hypoxia
* Macrobenthos
* Meiobenthos
* Microbial ecology
* Microbial food web
* Microbial loop
* Nekton
* Neuston
* Particle
* Pelagic zone
* Photic zone
* Phytoplankton
* Plankton
* Pleuston
* Productivity
* Ramsar Convention
* Sediment trap
* Shoaling and schooling
* Siltation
* Spawn
* Stable isotope analysis in aquatic ecosystems
* Substrate
* Thermal pollution
* Trophic level
* Underwater camouflage
* Water column
* Zooplankton

|
|

Freshwater|

* Freshwater biology
* Freshwater biome
* Freshwater environmental quality parameters
* Freshwater fish
* Hyporheic zone
* Limnology
* Lake ecosystem
* Lake stratification
* Macrophyte
* Pond
* Fish pond
* Rheotaxis
* River ecosystem
* Stream bed
* Stream pool
* Trophic state index
* Upland and lowland
* Water garden
* Wetland
* Bog
* Brackish marsh
* Fen
* Freshwater marsh
* Freshwater swamp forest

Ecoregions|

* List of freshwater ecoregions (WWF)
* Africa and Madagascar
* Latin America and the Caribbean
* List of marine ecoregions
* Specific examples
* Everglades
* Maharashtra
* North Pacific Subtropical Gyre
* San Francisco Estuary

Marine ecosystems

| General|

* Deep scattering layer
* Diel vertical migration
* f-ratio
* Iron fertilization
* Large marine ecosystem
* Marine biology
* Marine chemistry
* Marine food web
* Marine primary production
* Marine snow
* Ocean fertilization
* Oceanic physical-biological process
* Ocean turbidity
* Photophore
* Thorson's rule
* Upwelling
* Viral shunt
* Whale fall

|
|

Marine life|

* Census of Marine Life
* Deep-sea community
* Deep-water coral
* Marine fungi
* Marine invertebrates
* Marine larval ecology
* Seagrass
* Seashore wildlife
* Wild fisheries

Microorganisms|

* Marine bacteriophage
* Marine prokaryotes
* Marine protists
* Marine viruses
* Paradox of the plankton

Vertebrates|

* Marine mammal
* Marine reptile
* Saltwater fish
* Coastal fish
* Coral reef fish
* Deep-sea fish
* Demersal fish
* Pelagic fish
* Seabird

Marine habitats|

* Bay mud
* Marine coastal ecosystem
* Coastal biogeomorphology
* Cold seep
* Coral reef
* Davidson Seamount § Ecology
* Estuary
* Intertidal ecology
* Intertidal wetland
* Kelp forest
* Hydrothermal vent
* Lagoon
* Mangrove
* Marine biomes
* Mudflat
* Oyster reef
* Rocky shore
* Salt marsh
* Salt pannes and pools
* Seagrass meadow
* Sponge ground
* Sponge reef
* Tide pool

Conservation|

* Coral bleaching
* Ecological values of mangroves
* Fisheries and climate change
* HERMIONE
* Human impact on marine life
* Marine conservation activism
* Marine pollution
* Marine protected area

* Lakes portal
* Oceans portal
* Category

* v
* t
* e

Coastal geography

Landforms|

* Anchialine pool
* Archipelago
* Atoll
* Avulsion
* Ayre
* Barrier island
* Bay
* Bight
* Bodden
* Brackish marsh
* Cape
* Channel
* Cliff
* Coast
* Coastal plain
* Coastal waterfall
* Continental margin
* Continental shelf
* Coral reef
* Cove
* Dune
* cliff-top
* Estuary
* Firth
* Fjard
* Fjord
* Freshwater marsh
* Fundus
* Gat
* Geo
* Gulf
* Gut
* Hapua
* Headland
* Inlet
* Intertidal wetland
* Island
* Islet
* Isthmus
* Lagoon
* Machair
* Mudflat
* Natural arch
* Peninsula
* Reef
* Ria
* Salt marsh
* Shoal
* Skerry
* Sound
* Spit
* Stack
* Strait
* Strand plain
* Submarine canyon
* Tidal island
* Tidal marsh
* Tide pool
* Tied island
* Tombolo
* Waituna
* Windwatt

Beaches|

* Beach cusps
* Beach evolution
* Beach ridge
* Beach wrack
* Beaches in estuaries and bays
* Beachrock
* Coastal morphodynamics
* Pocket beach
* Raised beach
* Recession
* Shell beach
* Shingle beach
* Storm beach
* Wash margin

River mouths|

* Debouch
* Mouth bar
* River delta
* mega
* regressive

Processes|

* Blowhole
* Cliffed coast
* Coastal biogeomorphology
* Coastal erosion
* Concordant coastline
* Current
* Cuspate foreland
* Discordant coastline
* Emergent coastline
* Feeder bluff
* Flat coast
* Graded shoreline
* Ingression coast
* Large-scale coastal behaviour
* Longshore drift
* Marine regression
* Marine transgression
* Raised shoreline
* Rip current
* Rocky shore
* Sea cave
* Sea foam
* Shoal
* peresyp
* Steep coast
* Submergent coastline
* Surf break
* Surf zone
* Surge channel
* Swash
* Undertow
* Volcanic arc
* Wave-cut platform
* Wave shoaling
* Wind fetch
* Wind wave

Management|

* Accretion
* Coastal management
* Integrated coastal zone management
* Submersion

Related|

* Bulkhead line
* Coastal engineering
* Grain size
* boulder
* clay
* cobble
* granule
* gravel
* pebble
* sand
* shingle
* silt
* Intertidal zone
* Littoral zone
* Physical oceanography
* Region of freshwater influence
* River plume

* Category

* v
* t
* e

River morphology

Large-scale features|

* Alluvial plain
* Drainage basin
* Drainage system (geomorphology)
* Estuary
* Strahler number (stream order)
* River valley
* River delta
* River sinuosity

Alluvial rivers|

* Anabranch
* Avulsion (river)
* Bar (river morphology)
* Braided river
* Channel pattern
* Cut bank
* Floodplain
* Meander
* Meander cutoff
* Mouth bar
* Oxbow lake
* Point bar
* Riffle
* Rapids
* Riparian zone
* River bifurcation
* River channel migration
* River mouth
* Slip-off slope
* Stream pool
* Thalweg

Bedrock river|

* Canyon
* Knickpoint
* Plunge pool

Bedforms|

* Ait
* Antidune
* Dune
* Current ripple

Regional processes|

* Aggradation
* Base level
* Degradation (geology)
* Erosion and tectonics
* River rejuvenation

Mechanics|

* Deposition (geology)
* Water erosion
* Exner equation
* Hack's law
* Helicoidal flow
* Playfair's law
* Sediment transport
* List of rivers that have reversed direction

* Category

* v
* t
* e

Wetlands

Types and landforms|

| Natural|

* Backswamp
* Bayou
* Beach meadow
* Blackwater river
* Bofedales
* Bog
* Blanket bog
* Cataract bog
* Coastal bog
* Kermi bog
* Plateau bog
* Polygonal bog
* Raised bog
* String bog
* Upland bog
* Callows
* Carr
* Alder carr
* Ciénega
* Clearwater river
* Cypress dome
* Dambo
* Fen
* Fen-meadow
* Poor fen
* Rich fen
* Flark
* Flood-meadow
* Flooded grasslands and savannas
* Grass valley
* Guelta
* Hamun
* Igapó
* Ings
* Interdunal wetland
* Intertidal wetland
* Kettle
* Lagg
* Marsh
* Brackish marsh
* Freshwater marsh
* Inland salt marsh
* Salt marsh
* Tidal marsh
* High marsh
* Low marsh
* Mere
* Misse
* Moorland
* Mudflat
* Muskeg
* Oasis
* Pakihi
* Palsa
* Palustrine wetland
* Peatland, mire, and quagmire
* Pocosin
* Pond
* Pothole
* Reed bed
* Salt pannes and pools
* Slough
* Swamp
* Coniferous swamp
* Freshwater swamp forest
* Mangrove forest
* Myristica swamp
* Peat swamp forest
* Shrub swamp
* Wet meadow
* Várzea forest
* Vernal pool
* Whitewater river
* Yaéré

|

Artificial|

* Bog garden
* Constructed wetland
* Converted wetland
* Swale
* Water-meadow

Life|

* List of wetland plants
* List of fen plants
* Sphagnum

Soil mechanics|

* Acrotelm
* Histosol
* Peat
* Sapric or muck
* Tropical peat
* Hydric soil
* Marsh gas
* Ombrotrophic

Processes|

* Halosere
* Hydrosere
* Paludification
* Salt marsh dieback

Classifications|

* A Directory of Important Wetlands in Australia
* National Wetlands Inventory
* Ramsar Classification System for Wetland Type

Conservation|

* Clean Water Act
* Greenhouse gas emissions from wetlands
* Marsh organ
* Ramsar Convention
* Ramsar site
* List
* Salt marsh die-off
* Wetland indicator status

Organizations|

* Bangladesh Haor and Wetland Development Board
* Delta Waterfowl Foundation
* Ducks Unlimited
* Irish Peatland Conservation Council
* Meadowview Biological Research Station
* Society of Wetland Scientists
* Wetlands International
* Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust

Related articles|

* Aquatic ecosystem
* Bog body
* Bog butter
* Bog iron
* Bog-wood
* List of bogs
* Drainage basin
* Estuary
* Riparian zone
* River delta
* Telmatology
* Turbary
* Will-o'-the-wisp

* Wetlands portal
* Category

Authority control databases: National |

* Germany
* United States
* France
* BnF data
* Czech Republic
* Israel

|

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