Autumn Colours on the Saltmarsh (2)

Plants under threat: layers of autumn colours on the  saltmarsh, including annual sea-blite, Suaeda maritima, Sea Purslane, Halimione portulacoides, and seedheads of sea-lavender, Limonium vulgare.

The saltmarsh can flood completely on particularly high spring tides, and recede to mud-flats and marshland at low tide. The plants here are resilient to temporary flooding but it is a fragile habitat containing rare and endangered species. With the effects of climate change, rising tides and more extreme storms make it likely, perhaps inevitable, that some or all of the saltmarsh will be destroyed, and along with it the birds, invertebrates, and plant life which rely on it for shelter and sustenance.

This series is an attempt to inspire the love and awe the fragile ecosystem of the saltmarsh deserves, and to encourage action to prevent its unnecessary destruction.