Atrotorquata lineata as a proxy for Juncus roemerianus, Part II: Tracking changes in positions of Juncus roemerianus marshes through time by use of the fungal proxy Atrotorquata lineata

Abstract

Juncus roemerianus is a species that occurs at the upper reaches of salt water influence in marshes from Delaware to Texas. As such, J. roemerianus is a good marker for sea level, defined for this study as mean highest high water; thus, being able to track its positions over time should enable one to track past changes in relative sea level. In 2006, a palynomorphic fingerprint to identify surface sediment from J. roemerianus marshes was discovered in a South Carolina study (Marsh 2006, Marsh & Cohen 2008). Further study (Marsh & Cohen 2016) showed that one component of this fingerprint, the spore of the fungus Atrotorquata lineata, was so omnipresent in surface sediment from J. roemerianus marshes that the fungus, by itself, can be considered a proxy for J. roemerianus marshes.

Keywords

• Atrotorquata lineata
• Juncus roemerianus
• sea level
• Southeastern United States
• fungal proxy