Glossary

Beaches and dunes are the transitional sandy or cobble shoreline area between the land and the Sound. These dynamic systems are in a constant state of erosion and deposition due to tidal action, currents, and wind. Dunes can protect adjacent to low-lying properties from flooding. Many rare plants and animals, such as prickly-pear cactus, golden-aster, beach heather, piping plover, and horned lark occur in this habitat complex.

Cliffs and bluffs are steep coastal slopes of glacial sands and till that are created through long-term wave erosion and sea-level rise. Rare plant communities, such as New York’s dwarf beech forest, may be found here.

Coastal and island forests may be dominated by species such as maple, oak, cedar, pine, and beech. No virgin tracts of old growth forest remain around the Sound.

Animals that may use this habitat include owls, bald eagles, and osprey. Forest stands on islands are of particular importance to nesting colonial water birds, such as egrets and herons, because they are relatively free of predators.

Forests provide shade and oxygen and they influence the local climate.

Coastal grasslands are open glacial outwash plains dominated by tall grasses, such as little bluestem and switchgrass. They often have diverse wildflower communities as well.

These areas are critical habitat for many rare and endangered species, such as the grasshopper sparrow and regal fritillary butterfly. Grasslands are also important to birds of prey like the short-eared owl.

Estuarine embayments are confined areas of the Sound that have narrow inlets and significant freshwater inflow. They are generally shallower than the open Sound, and the restricted flow causes greater sedimentation.

There areas are important nurseries for finfish and are concentration sites for wildlife. The best bay scallop production occurs in estuarine embayments.

An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea.

Eutrophic ("rich food") conditions created by the overabundance of nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic matter, cause hypoxia.

Freshwater wetlands are the transitional zone between the land and fresh water. There are areas where the water table is at or near the surface of the soil and there is no tidal influence. They are very diverse and may be dominated by trees, such as red maple, shrubs, such as swamp azalea, or herbs, such as cattail. These wetlands aid in groundwater recharge and store flood water. They are also critical habitat to many rare plant and animal species.

Hypoxia means low oxygen and is primarily a problem for estuaries and coastal waters.

Hypoxic waters have dissolved oxygen concentrations of less than 2-3 ppm.

Hypoxia can be caused by a variety of factors, including excess nutrients, primarily nitrogen and phosphorus, and waterbody stratification due to saline or temperature gradients.

These excess nutrients, eutrophication, promote algal growth.

As dead algae decompose, oxygen is consumed in the process, resulting in low levels of oxygen in the water.

- Mississippi River Basin Watershed Nutrient Task Force, 2010

Intertidal flats are shallow areas of bays and harbors that lay between the spring high- and low-tide marks.

These flats contain no rooted vegetation. The sediments may be muddy to sandy and support important species, such as juvenile flounder, clams, and crabs.

A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris (soil and rock) which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum.

Riverine migratory corridors are river systems that drain to the Sound. They are often bordered by flood plain trees and wetlands. Migratory species, such as Atlantic salmon, shad, and herring, use these rivers to travel to fresh waters miles away from Long Island Sound to spawn. Dams, culverts and other obstructions can block passage for fish to travel from the brackish waters of Long Island Sound to freshwater rivers to spawn. Removing these obstructions is preferable but not always practical. Recreational and commercial fisheries benefit when river corridors remain healthy and passable to migratory fish.

Rocky intertidal zones are areas of exposed bedrock characterized by attached species such as barnacles, algae, and mussels. These zones fall between extreme high- and low-tides, which results in frequent exposure of the resident plants and animals to the air.

The species that attach themselves to this habitat help filter nutrients from the water and are a food source for other marine organisms

Shellfish reefs are formed by clusters of oysters and blue mussels. The reef structure sites on top of soft sediments and provides habitat and shelter for a variety of other finfish and invertebrate species. The shellfish are able to filter algae and particulate matter in the water column thereby improving water quality.

In geography, a sound is a long, relatively wide body of water, larger than a strait or channel, forming an inlet or connecting two larger bodies of water, such as two seas, or a sea and a lake.

Submerged aquatic vegetation beds are comprised of rooted plants, such as eelgrass and widgeon grass, which grow on shallow bay bottoms below the spring low-tide mark. These grassy beds provide vital refuge for juvenile fish and lobsters. The plants also trap sediments and use nitrogen from the water column, thereby improving water quality.

Tidal wetlands are the transitional zone between the land and submerged systems. There areas are dominated by rooted plants that are flooded by the tide. Healthy wetlands help trap sediments, store flood water, and reduce wave energy during storms. Two-thirds of all marine species depend on tidal wetlands for a portion of their life cycle.