1. Characteristics of major types of coastal zones
By Rema Faddoul

2. Major Types Include:
Estuary – Chesapeake Bay largest estuary in the United States is located off the Atlantic Ocean.
Salt Marshes Along the Heathcote River, Christchurch, New Zealand
Mud Flats Cobequid Bay, Nova- Scotia

3. Estuaries
Partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers/streams flowing into it and a free connection to the open sea
Economically significant as seaports, centers of ocean commerce and commercial fisheries
They exist today because sea level has risen approximately 120 m since the glaciers started melting 18,000 years ago

4. 4 Major Classes of Estuaries
Coastal Plain Estuary
Fjord
Bar-Built Estuary
Tectonic Estuary

5. Coastal Plain Estuary
Form when sea level rises and floods existing river valleys
Ex. Chesapeake Bay in Maryland and Virginia

6. Fjord (pronounced Fee-yord)
Forms when sea level rises and floods a glaciated valley
Typically has a U-shape with steep walls
Common in Alaska, Canada, New Zealand, Chile and Norway

7. Ex. Pamlico Sound in North Carolina
Bar-Built Estuary
Shallow and separated from open ocean by sand bars parallel to the coast
Lagoons that separate barrier islands from main land are bar built estuaries.
Ex. Pamlico Sound in North Carolina

8. Ex. San Francisco Bay due to movements along the San Andrea Fault
Tectonic Estuary
Forms when faulting/folding of rocks creates a restricted down dropped area into which rivers flow
Ex. San Francisco Bay due to movements along the San Andrea Fault

9. Salt Marshes General Information The Specifics
Intermittently submerged by ocean water
Support a variety of grasses
Serve as nurseries for commercially important fish
Stopover point for many species of waterfowl and migratory birds
Flounder and bluefish use marshes for feeding and protection in winter
Oysters, scallops, clams, eels and smelt are located in marshes
Efficient at cleansing polluted water from agricultural runoff and toxins

10. Salt Marsh
at Fort Fisher State Recreation Area

11. Mud Flats
Generally found next to salt marshes and sheltered areas like bays, bayous, lagoons
Form when mud is deposited by tides and rivers
Most sediment within a mudflat is within the intertidal zone, thus submerged/exposed twice daily due to tidal flow
Organisms found in mud flats include eelgrass, turtle grass, crabs, mud snails and filter feeders due to presence of plankton.
Below the surface one can find burrowing animals such as clams, worms and crustaceans
Mudflats are under threat from predicted sea level rises, land claims for development and chemical pollution

12. Teshekpuk Lake
On the Arctic Coast of Alaska