Wetland Classification and Mapping of the Kenai Lowland, Alaska
Map Unit Descriptions
Ecosystem: Tidal
Map Unit: T98
Extent: 2 wetland polygons; 41.5 ha; 0.03% of wetland area; 0.01% of wetland polygons.
 The T98 wetland at the head of Kachemak Bay (polygon 33591).
The T98 wetland along the Kenai River (polygon 8528) |
Wetland Indicators Type: Tidal Average depth to water table: T9: n/a T8: 55.5; n=2 Organic layer thickness: T9: n/a T8: 13.0; n=2 Average depth to redoximorphic features: T9: n/a T8: 13.0; n=2 Common Soils: CLUNIE Common Plant communities: T9 Component: Sphagnum moss – Manyflower sedge Bog blueberry – Manyflower sedge – Dwarf birch
T8 Component: |
T98 wetlands are a complex of manyflower sedge (T9) and a diverse herbaceous plant community (T8) at the highest reaches of the tidally influenced zone. Only two T98 wetlands have been mapped, one at the head of Kachemak Bay, about 3.5 miles northeast of Kachemak Selo, and another along the Kenai River in front of the viewing platform along Bridge Access Road.
The Kenai River T98 wetland is a dense overstory of manyflower sedge with a diverse herb understory and snag remnants of a former black spruce woodland. The Kachemak Bay T98 wetland is a little more segregated, with patches of diverse herbs grading into manyflower sedge stands above a well-defined Lyngbye's sedge (Carex Lyngbyei) zone (T6). Both areas subsided following the 1964 earthquake, and these plant communities may still be in transition.
T9 corresponds to Vince and Snow's (1984) 'Inner Sedge Marsh zone 8'. Vince and Snow estimate that this zone is inundated an average of once per summer (range 0-2 times), by only the highest spring tides, but water is retained for more than 5 days.
T8 corresponds to Vince and Snow's (1984) 'Riverbank Levees zone 6'. Vince and Snow estimate that Riverbank Levees are inundated an average of once per summer (range 0-2 times), by the highest spring tides, but water is retained for only 2-3 hours.
