## 3 Materials and Methods
### Estuarine Mapping and Area Calculation
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{l l} \hline \hline
**Feature** & **Description, Eco-Geomorphological Role** \\ \hline _Dunes (1)_: Sandy accumulations generated by wind dynamics that develop behind beaches with enough \\ sediment availability [49] \\ \hline \multirow{4}{*}{Mobile dunes (2)} & Primary dunes without vegetation or with only a few species of dune-building \\  & plants [49]. They are colonized by pioneer vegetation typical of the first dune \\  & ridge (_Ammophila arenaria_, _Elymus farctus_, _Euphoria paralias_, _Pancratrium maritium_, _Calystegia soldanella_, _Polygonum maritium_, among others). \\ \multirow{2}{*}{Embreyo dunes (3)} & The most elemental and smaller dune formations [49]. \\  & Parabolic dunes (3) \\  & U-shaped dunes with convex noses trailed by elongated arms [49]. \\  & A crescent-shaped dune, downwind orientated [49]. \\  & Sand sheets (3) \\  & Areas of aeolian sand where dunes with slip faces are generally absent [50]. \\  & Aeolian deposits whose mobility is impeded by a consistent plant cover (shrub or tree nature). Typical species of this band of the dune system are \\  & Fixed dunes (2) \\  & _Crucinella maritima_, _Helicrysum stoechas_, _Sporobolus arenarius_ and _Armeria_ spp., \\  & Accumulations of sand, gravel, or shell on the back part of estuarine beaches in \\  & partially enclosed areas (estuaries, bays, lagoons and similar features) connected \\  & estuarine dunes (2) \\  & estuarine dunes (2) \\  & exceptionally, lalophytes typical of tidal environments (e.g., _Sarcocornia_ spp. and _Arthrocnenum_ spp.) \\  & Non-active dune ridges formed by aeolian processes, usually from \\  & fine-to-medium sand, by accretion of embryonic backshore/berm dunes behind \\  & the high tide zone [47]. The associated vegetation is typical of mature and \\  & established soils, i.e., tree and shrub vegetation. \\  & Damp or wet hollows left between dunes where the groundwater reaches or \\  & Wet dune slacks (2) \\  & approaches the surface of the sand [51]. Rushes and wet grasses are the main \\  & plant communities present in these features. \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} _Tidal flats1 (1)_: Sedimentary plains developed in areas affected by tides, with a predominance of fine sediment \\  & transported by water and stabilized by vegetation [52]. \\  & _Wetlands2 (1)_: Shallow aquatic environments, from brackish to hypersaline, isolated or partially connected to \\  & the sea in environments with low tidal ranges. \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\begin{tabular}{l l} \hline \hline
1 Coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open \\  & saltwater or brackish water, which are intermittently flooded by the tides and \\  & colonized by halophytes. \\
1 Saltmarashes/2 Vegetated \\ wetlands (2) & 2 Wetlands are ecosystems that depend on constant or recurrent shallow \\  & inundation or saturation at or near the surface of the substrate. Common \\  & diagnostic features of wetlands are hydric soils and hydrolytic vegetation [53]. \\  & 1 Muddy platforms common to the intertidal zone of most estuaries (zone below \\  & heap high-tide level). The vegetation of these features is poor, mainly seagrasses \\
1 Mudflats/2 Submerged \\  & and pioneer saltmarsh plants [54]. \\
2 Permanent shallow-flooded wetlands by seawater, colonized by salt-tolerant \\  & species [55]. \\  & Inland water body, usually oriented parallel to the coast, separated from the \\  & ocean by a barrier, connected to the ocean by one or more restricted inlets, and \\  & having depths which seldom exceed a couple of meters [56]. \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 1: Cont. Once every unit was defined, the changes in the occupied surface over the entire study period were calculated with respect to a reference surface. In addition, the evolution of each subsystem was quantified by setting the surface occupied on the first year as a reference (RS). In this way, all subsequent changes were related to the same area.