CHAPTER FOUR. THE MARSH IN THE COASTAL BASIN 79 



COUPLINGS AMONG ECOSYSTEMS 79 



Intra-Basin Couplings 79 



Extra-Basin Couplinqs 80 



Intercontinental Couplings 81 



TEMPORAL USE OF MARSHES 81 



CHAPTER FIVE. WETLAND VALUES, HUMAN IMPACTS, AND 



MANAGEMENT 84 



WETLAND VALUES 84 



Wetland Harvest 84 



Environmental Quality 85 



Esthetics 86 



Confl icting Values 86 



WETLAND EVALUATION 87 



WETLAND MANAGEMENT 89 



Marsh Loss and Salt Intrusion 89 



Habitat Qual ity 93 



Water Quality 96 



REFERENCES 100 



APPENDICES 116 



1. Plant species composition of salinity zones in 



the Louisiana coastal marshes 116 



2. Marsh plant decomposition rates, Mississippi River 

 delta marshes 118 



3. Fishes of the Mississippi River Deltaic Plain that 



are found in marshes and associated water bodies.. 120 



4. Representative vertebrate species of marsh habi- 

 tats in the Mississippi River Deltaic Plain ^28 



VI 



