The global distribution and trajectory of tidal flats

Nicholas J. Murray (), Stuart R. Phinn, Michael DeWitt, Renata Ferrari, Renee Johnston, Mitchell B. Lyons, Nicholas Clinton, David Thau and Richard A. Fuller
Additional contact information
Nicholas J. Murray: The University of Queensland
Stuart R. Phinn: The University of Queensland
Michael DeWitt: Google
Renata Ferrari: Australian Institute of Marine Science
Renee Johnston: Google
Mitchell B. Lyons: University of New South Wales
Nicholas Clinton: Google
David Thau: Google
Richard A. Fuller: The University of Queensland

Nature, 2019, vol. 565, issue 7738, 222-225

Abstract: Abstract Increasing human populations around the global coastline have caused extensive loss, degradation and fragmentation of coastal ecosystems, threatening the delivery of important ecosystem services1. As a result, alarming losses of mangrove, coral reef, seagrass, kelp forest and coastal marsh ecosystems have occurred1–6. However, owing to the difficulty of mapping intertidal areas globally, the distribution and status of tidal flats—one of the most extensive coastal ecosystems—remain unknown7. Here we present an analysis of over 700,000 satellite images that maps the global extent of and change in tidal flats over the course of 33 years (1984–2016). We find that tidal flats, defined as sand, rock or mud flats that undergo regular tidal inundation7, occupy at least 127,921 km2 (124,286–131,821 km2, 95% confidence interval). About 70% of the global extent of tidal flats is found in three continents (Asia (44% of total), North America (15.5% of total) and South America (11% of total)), with 49.2% being concentrated in just eight countries (Indonesia, China, Australia, the United States, Canada, India, Brazil and Myanmar). For regions with sufficient data to develop a consistent multi-decadal time series—which included East Asia, the Middle East and North America—we estimate that 16.02% (15.62–16.47%, 95% confidence interval) of tidal flats were lost between 1984 and 2016. Extensive degradation from coastal development1, reduced sediment delivery from major rivers8,9, sinking of riverine deltas8,10, increased coastal erosion and sea-level rise11 signal a continuing negative trajectory for tidal flat ecosystems around the world. Our high-spatial-resolution dataset delivers global maps of tidal flats, which substantially advances our understanding of the distribution, trajectory and status of these poorly known coastal ecosystems.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0805-8

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