Florida has lost more than 50 percent (9 million acres) of its natural wetlands in the past 200 years. Most of this loss may be attributed to wetland drainage and filling. The natural flow of water across a landscape of natural wetlands is critical to the quality of water finding its way into our rivers, bays, and oceans.
The natural systems that occur on Buffer Preserve lands form a complex mosaic of natural communities that are not managed independently of each other. Most natural communities that occur on the Buffer Preserve are fire dependent or fire-adapted. The preserve's fire dependent communities include sandhill, scrub, scrubby flatwoods, mesic flatwoods, wet flatwoods, and wet prairie. The frequent application of prescribed fire is the single most important and cost-effective management tool used to benefit listed species and promote biodiversity in those communities.
The lands and waters that make up the Buffer Preserve have a rich history of human occupation. To adequately assess and interpret the full range of cultural resources, the preserve facilitates and conducts research to serve as a foundation for developing a comprehensive cultural resources management plan starting with a detailed assessment of the location and description of these resources. As the Buffer Preserve's archaeological surveys and artifact collection inventory progresses, this information is incorporated into its education and outreach programs.
Water quality monitoring plays a major role in the understanding of natural and human impacts on coastal waters. Researchers use water quality data to document short- and long-term changes within the water column in an effort to quantify the spatial and temporal variability and trends. Accordingly, it is essential to develop a proficient water quality monitoring program to recognize and prevent potential negative impacts to the aquatic preserve.
Seagrass beds are one of the most productive habitats found in the world. The rich biodiversity that make up seagrass habitats plays a critical ecological and environmental role to Florida’s coastal communities. Seagrasses improve water clarity by stabilizing bottom sediments and absorbing nutrients from the water column. They reduce coastal erosion by helping to diffuse wave energy during storm events. Economically, seagrass beds are of critical importance to Florida’s commercial and recreational fisheries.
St. Martins Marsh Aquatic Preserve is an important part of the Springs Coast, which extends over a vast area of coastal resources and habitats. It is imperative that these areas be managed in the most effective, comprehensive manner. Having a baseline level of presence and distribution of habitats, composition and abundance of species that depend on those habitats (including salinity and temperature ranges), and updated maps to graphically represent these parameters and how they change over time are all essential tools needs to effectively manage the aquatic preserve.
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