WP3a Interactions (NIOZ) We will develop spatial models to study how habitat-modifying coastal organisms affect sediment distribution at large-spatial scales in the Wadden Sea when faced with rising sea-levels and human interventions. We will model ‘bio-geomorphic interactions’ in seagrass beds, salt marshes, mussel beds and coastal dunes, where foundation species are known to alter sediment dynamics and hydrodynamics to support their own growth and the resilience of the ecosystem at large. By analysing these spatial models, we aim to understand how coastal biota may affect large-scale morphological changes in the Wadden Sea through the repetitive process of sediment capture and re-distribution.

WP3b Impact (Senckenberg) Changes in sediment composition will alter communities and the services they provide to the ecosystem. We will combine metabarcoding and morphological approaches to describe and model the composition of meiofauna and benthic copepod communities from the Wadden Sea intertidal zone. To this end, we will investigate different sediment types on tidal flats and along nourished beaches in collaboration with WP2 “The Physical System”. The aim is to predict biodiversity changes and recovery after shifts in sediment composition and impacts such as sand nourishments (case study).