Aboveground biomass distributions and vegetation composition changes in Louisiana's Wax Lake Delta

Abstract The Wax Lake Delta (WLD) is an actively prograding delta in the Mississippi River Plain that otherwise experiencing widespread degradation and submergence of its coastal wetlands. WLD accumulating mineral organic sediment increases soil surface elevation, changing emergent wetland communities as young develops. There uncertainty how dynamics community composition respond to net changes elevation determine aboveground biomass carbon storage. This study utilizes high resolution imaging spectrometer data captured on October 17, 2016, map delta's dominant vegetation species types. We validated this (overall accuracy = 77.62%, Kappa = 0.72) compared it with a published used WorldView-2 collected five years earlier 16, 2011. allowed us resulting from development forest (Salix nigra), two herbaceous (Colocasia esculenta Polygonum punctatum), various grass species. Results show increase C. marginal forested wetlands (S. nigra). esculenta's expansion occurred largely island heads toward fringes into area previously occupied by P. punctatum, which saw corresponding decline. Additionally, leveraged these distributions (AGB) dataset examine plant types' growth patterns across elevational gradients. characterized variability AGB marsh platform different zones categorized hydroperiod, or hydrogeomorphic zones. found peak low intertidal zone decrease before increasing slightly higher elevations, consistent previous field-based mesocosm experiments for esculenta. With distributions, succession, characterized, may inform future restoration efforts throughout regarding emerge following deposition.