Process–Based Identification of Key Tidal Creeks Influenced by Reclamation Activities

Abstract

Reclamation activities constitute a major factor threatening tidal creeks, which play an important role in the health of the ecosystem of deltas. Research on the influence of reclamation activities on the connectivity of tidal creeks is often based on changes in their morphology and ignores the process that shapes this morphology. Instead, the authors of this study focus on the influence of reclamation activities on hydrological connectivity inside the tidal creek from a process-based perspective. Changes in the hydrological distances that reflect the relative movement of sites in each tidal creek are identified and related to the resistance surface (a spatial layer that assigns values to features of the landscape, indicating the degree to which these features impede or promote movement) of the reclamation activities. We also objectively quantify the influence of different reclamation activities on the connectivity of the tidal creek. We used the proposed method to identify changes in key tidal creeks in the Yellow River Delta under the influence of reclamation activities. The results revealed the potential influence of reclamation activities (before changes appeared in the morphology of the tidal creek) from 1990 to 1995. The use of resistance surfaces thus provides a comprehensive understanding of the interactions between reclamation activities and the connectivity of tidal creeks.