This is a sample of the information contained in the Estuarine Ecology Appendix of the Estuary-Net Project. Marshes are dominated by important grasses that provide food and shelter to marine organisms that are permanent and transient residents of the estuary.
Marshes usually have different bands of vegetation creating high and low zones within the marsh.
Despite its varied and lush vegetation, the marsh is home to relatively few terrestrial animals. Deer, migratory birds, grasshoppers and other animals consume marsh grasses. Small animals, such as shrews and mice, provide prey for larger mammals and birds of prey that also live in or around the marsh. Rather, most of the plants die and are deposited on the ground to become peat. Some pieces of the plants are then washed into the water to become detritus, decaying particles coated with bacteria, which serve as a nutrient base for the estuarine food web.