Marsh to Upland: Vegetation Monitoring in Coastal Virginia, 2018-2022

This dataset includes data from vegetation plots along a marsh to upland gradient in three salt-marshes along the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Coastal wetlands serve as vital habitats and provide various ecosystems services. These ecosystems are experiencing novel abiotic conditions driven by anthropogenic change, including changes in salinity and moisture due to sea level rise. A key component of wetland ecosystems are their vegetation communities, which often show a transition from non-woody marsh plants like grasses and sedges to woody shrubs and larger trees in the upland reaches of the wetland. This dataset was collected from three coastal wetlands: Boxtree Preserve (Boxtree), Cushmans Landing (Cushmans), and Mockhorn Wildlife Management Area GATR Tract (GATR). Measurements of emergent vegetation percent cover and tree and shrub characteristics are taken annually at maximum biomass for the plant community, which occurs in August in this system (Moore 2013). At each site sampling occurs along four transects which run through the low marsh, high marsh, transitional area, lowest elevation upland forest, and slightly higher elevation upland forest. Each transect is segmented into five zones based on these plant communities, which roughly correspond to elevation bins of 1m. Each zone contains one sampling location.