Development of a Multimetric Index for Integrated Assessment of Salt Marsh Ecosystem Condition

Data Release for journal publication describing development of a multimetric index for assessing salt marsh condition in northeastern National Parks. This is the first application of an empirical, metric-selection algorithm to metrics from multiple trophic groups (vegetation and nekton). While MMIs derived from nekton or vegetation metrics alone were strongly correlated with human disturbance (r-values from -0.80 to -0.93), an MMI derived from both vegetation and nekton metrics yielded an exceptionally strong correlation with disturbance (r = -0.96). The metric-assembly algorithm yielded parsimonious MMIs that exhibit the greatest possible correlations with disturbance in a way that is objective, efficient, and reproducible.