Summary: Dynamic, urbanized mudflat produced by rapidly changing currents, salinity, and sediments. The resulting plant/ animal associations have limited strategies to survive this unstable, modified environment.

     Working hypothesis: turf like plants survive best. Genetically these interwoven carpets may be "one individual".
 Fauna restricted by scour (surface) or anaerobic conditions (burrowing)-- hypothesis: all the clams are Mya arenaria.

    Questions: what are the shore birds so interested in? Insects? Amphipods?-- this is a killdeer but more numerous smaller birds also common foraging on mudflat

   Click Here for higher resolution image from bridge (168K) -- useful for seasonal comparisons.

This is looking off Hays Cove Bridge towards the cannery, This estuary has been drastically modified by urban development. The cannery in the background is built over the original mudflat and now Hays Creek is constrained to go through a culvert (seen upper center). This may be controlling the sediment patterns on the mudflat.

Here is the view looking towards the bridge, showing the "Puccinellia" grasses and Sedge associations better. And here is 102K of same-- better resolution)

Either Use the Click Map above or go to the different associations form here--