Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge Climate Change: The Impact of Sea Level Rise

Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge Refuges set aside as a network of habitats to preserve native wildlife and their habitats Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge Part of Chesapeake Marshlands NWR Complex Established 1933 Approx. 28.000 acres Tidal marsh Mixed hardwood and loblolly pine forest Managed freshwater impoundments Croplands Important resting and feeding area for migrating and wintering waterfowl Atlantic Flyway Supports one of the highest concentrations of nesting bald eagles on Atlantic coast Largest endemic population of endangered Delmarva Peninsula fox squirrels 82, 163 visitors in 2011 Hunting and fishing Non-Consumptive (recreation) Pedestrian, auto tour, boat trail, bicycle, interpretation, photography Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge

Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge Established 1933 1/3 marsh, 1/3 forest, 1/3 water Freshwater impoundments, brackish tidal wetlands, open fields and mixed evergreen and deciduous forests Salinity Fresh – near zero Brackish water – 0.5 to 35 ppt (parts per thousand) Ocean – average 35 ppt Fed by Blackwater and Little Blackwater Rivers Tannins in peat soils American Bird Conservancy Over 250 bird species 85 nesting songbird species 34 waterfowl species 52 shorebird species 30 marsh and wading birds At risk birds – saltmarsh and seaside sparrows, clapper rail and black rail American bald eagle Peregrine falcon Mammals Whitetail deer, sika deer, foxes, otters, raccoons Endangered Delmarva Fox Squirrel Home-interface – marshes, borders of mixed pines and hardwood forests Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge

Sea Level Rise Mid-Atlantic – faces greatest increase in US Towson University Inundation Model 2006 Dorchester County faces greatest risk Blackwater – subsidence – 12 inches in last century (global 6 inches), 3 feet by end of 21st century Groundwater withdrawal for agriculture Less sediment accretion in marshes Predicted loss of tidal fresh water marsh, tidal swamp and brackish marsh to saltwater marsh and open water Brackish marsh – rockfish, white perch, anadromous species – herring and shad (transition from fresh to salt water) Tidal fresh marsh – minnows, carp, sunfish, crappie, and bass Habitat for shelter, food and spawning Sea Level Rise

Sea Level Rise Sediment and root growth build elevation Not keeping up with water level increase Wetlands – ½ Dorchester County Diverse types Two main vegetation zones Low marsh – flooded twice daily Smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) High march – irregularly flooded less than daily Salinity dependent – meadow cordgrass (Spartina patens), spike grass (Distichlis spicata), Smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora), black needlerush (Juncus roemerianus), Olney three-square (Scoenoplectus americanus) habitat for birds that breed only in salt marsh Sea Level Rise

Wetland Loss ≈8000 acres lost “Lake Blackwater” On average, losing about 1 acre/day Wetland Loss

Wetland Restoration 1980s – 12 acres restored 2003 - 8 acres restored at 3 sites Planted 70,000 marsh grass units Water depth – needed 1 to 1.5 ft. fill Reduce salt water intrusion Remove nutria Reduce resident Canada Geese Wetland Restoration

Teaching Resources http://www.fws.gov/blackwater/kids.html https://www.friendsofblackwater.org/kid_r es.html http://www.csc.noaa.gov/digitalcoast/tool s/slrviewer Teaching Resources

Birch, Dixie, “Global Climate Change and Wetland Loss at Blackwater NWR”, Presented at Society for Wetlands Scientists, May 28, 2008 “Sea-Level Rise and Coastal Habitats of the Chesapeake Bay”, a detailed modeling analysis commissioned by the National Wildlife Federation. For the full report, please visit www.nwf.org/sealevelrise. Carver, E. & Caudill, J. 2013 “Banking on Nature: The economic benefits to local communities of national wildlife refuge visitation.” Division of Economics, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington DC. Sources