Temperate Pacific Tidal Salt and Brackish Marsh
These are coastal salt marshes found in bays and along rivers or streams near the Pacific Ocean. Most are found in the larger estuaries formed at the mouth of large rivers, behind sand spits or other areas protected from waves. They often look quite uniform, but often comprise a diversity of subtle habitats, and are characterized by grasses, rushes, and wildflowers such as saltgrass, shoregrass, marsh-rosemary, pickleweed, seepweed, saltwort, and others. Marshes can have numerous small channels and streams throughout. These areas are quite diverse, with different plants found in places depending on the soils (sandy, silty or muddy), and on how much freshwater occurs in relation to the salty bay water. For more information, see NatureServe Explorer.
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