Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
Whether restoration promotes methylation, and exactly how it affects
the species that live in the baylands, is an open question. Studies so far
suggest that seasonal wetting and drying cycles in bay margins and flood-
plains, rather than tidal marsh processes, may trigger spikes in methyla-
tion. Areas with larger plankton blooms may pump more mercury into the
local food web. New studies suggest, however, that birds and fish frequent-
ing restoration sites will have levels of mercury similar to, not higher than,
those from other areas around the bay.
Mercury, sediments, politics, and design are all factors that will influ-
ence future restoration projects around the bay. In the following sections,
some of the on-the-ground, nitty-gritty challenges of restoration are ex-
plored in more detail.
Head up Highway 101 from the Golden Gate Bridge, and the marvels of
the bayshore are quick to materialize. At low tide, the mudflats of Richard-
son Bay sparkle with dappled light. Along the verge, egrets stalk in the
soggy spots. Here and there between Marin's condo complexes and malls,
flashes of green marsh, blue water, and rough ground catch the eye.
What may not be so apparent is the fact that Marin also sports the bay's
rockiest shores. Three peninsulas jut out into the bay between the Golden
Gate and San Rafael, restricting wetlands to a few coves and the inlets of
Gallinas, Corte Madera, and Coyote creeks. North of the rocky hills and
cliffs of San Pedro Point, near the town of Terra Linda, Marin's shores
open and soften. Marshes here once filled the landscape between the bay-
shore and Highway 101, and they once fanned out all along the lower
reaches of the Petaluma River.
Over the years, many restoration projects on this shore were champi-
oned by the Marin Audubon Society, which owns 509 acres of baylands
and has restored and enhanced 53 acres. In Southern Marin, at the state's
Corte Madera Ecological Reserve, Audubon used fees from water-quality
violators to restore a one-acre field to tidal marsh and create an island for
Clapper and Black Rails. Sewage spill funds helped Audubon and state
agencies restore tides to the slough at the mouth of San Clemente Creek.
And at nearby 31-acre Triangle Marsh, they reconnected ancient wetlands
with new ones, and planted gum plant, creeping wild rye, coyote brush,
and coast live oaks.
Audubon's hardest-won projects lie along the Petaluma River in North-
ern Marin. Fighting off golf courses, plans for more lagoon-style homes
