Chapter 4 Habitats
Table 4.3.7-1 Climate change compared to other threats to freshwater tidal wetlands. Threat Rank Order Comments rise, drought, increased storm activity, and saltwater intrusion are threats to freshwater tidal wetlands.
2 Common Reed, Chinese Tallow Tree, Alligator Weed, and Nutria are primary concerns. The disruptions created by shifting communities and catastrophic events may increase the spread of Common Reed. Giant Salvinia could become a problem. Early control of species that have proven more invasive farther south will be less costly and less ecologically disruptive than allowing populations to become large.
Invasive Species
Erosion control measures may help protect these communities, but measures that alter the shoreline, whether sea walls, “soft” structures, or planting off-site species, are potentially destructive to these communities. Shoreline armoring and hardening to protect infrastructure will prevent ecosystems such as tidal marshes from migrating inland ( DeWan et al. 2010 ).
Shoreline Hardening
2
3 Logging is a threat to some tidal cypress-gum swamps, while others are in protected status or are too wet for logging equipment. Drying may create opportunities for logging these wet areas. 3 Many herbaceous plants of tidal freshwater marshes appear to need fire to maintain their populations. Lack of fire allows unnatural vegetation succession, especially invasion by woody species, in some freshwater marshes. 4 Alteration of flood regimes in rivers may affect these systems. Some areas are freshwater largely, or at least partly, because of the dilution of sea water by river input. Increased water withdrawal or interbasin transfer may increase this problem in the future. The effects are local, affecting primarily the mouth of the altered rivers, but could be important cumulatively. Existing drainage ditches and canals bringing saltwater into wetlands is a serious threat. Tide gates or blocking ditches are needed. 5 As development continues inland, water demands in the Piedmont will affect freshwater flows from the major rivers that feed this system through water removals.
Logging/ Exploitation
Fire
Flooding Regime Alteration
Freshwater Withdrawal
4.3.7.5 Impacts to Wildlife Appendix 3 provides a list of SGCN and other priority species for which there are knowledge gaps and management concerns. Table 3-17 in Appendix 3 provides a list of the SGCN that depend on or are associated with this habitat type.
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2025 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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