Early growth interactions between a mangrove and an herbaceous salt marsh species are not affected by elevated CO2 or drought, Louisiana saltmarsh, 2015

In recent decades the encroachment of woody mangrove species into herbaceous marshes has been documented along the U.S. northern Gulf of Mexico coast. These species shifts have been attributed primarily to rising sea levels and warming winter temperatures, but the role of elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and water availability may become more prominent drivers of species interactions under future climate conditions. In this greenhouse study we examined the effects of CO2 concentration (ambient, elevated) and water regime (drought, saturated, flooded) on early growth of the mangrove species Avicennia germinans and Spartina alterniflora, a herbaceous grass.