National Wetlands Inventory SEPTEMBER 1989 WETLANDS OF RHODE ISLAND u.s. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service WETLANDS OF RHODE ISLAND by Ralph W. Tiner U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Region 5 Fish and Wildlife Enhancement One Gateway Center Newton Corner, MA 02158 SEPTEMBER 1989 Published with support from the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency Region I, John F. Kennedy Federal Building, Boston,MA This report should be cited as follows: Tiner. R. W. 1989. Wetlands of Rhode Island. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. National Wetlands Inventory. Newwn Comer, MA. 71 pp. 4- Appendix. Credits: Credit is given 10 the following sources for pennission to copy some of the illustrations found in this book: A Field Guide to Coastal Wetland Plants of the Northeastern United Stales by Ralph W. Tiner, k, drawings by Abigail Rorer (Amherst: University of MassachusettS Press, 1987), copyright © 1987 by Ralph W. Tiner, Jr. Figures 10 and 17. Hydric Soils of New England by Ralph W. Tiner, Jr. and Peter L.M. Veneman, drawings by Elizabeth Scott (Amherst University of Massachusetts Cooperative Extension, 1989). Figure 14. Acknowledgements Ma.:oy individuals have contributed to the completion of the wetlands inventory in Rhode Island and to the prepa.ration of this report. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region I, Boston contributed funds for publishing this report. Matt Schweisberg served as project officer for this work and his patience is appreciated. In preparing the National Wetlands Inventory maps, wetland photo interpretation was done by John Organ, Frank Shun vvay, Judy Harding, and Janice Stone. Their work serves as the foundation for this report. John Organ also provided assistance in quality control of the interpreted photographs and in draft map review. The Service's National Wethl .. ods Inventory Group in S t. Petersburg, Florida provided technical support for producing the wetland maps. Nino Alessandroni and Rudolf Nyc were responsible for compiling wetland acreage summaries, while Joanne Gookin also assisterl. The following persons reviewed the draft manuscript and provided comments: Dr. Frank Golet (University of Rhode IslaIld), Bob Scheirer (FWS), Bill Zinni (FWS), Glenn Smith (FWS), Everett Stuart (SCS), Matt Schweisberg (EPA), Rick Enser (RID EM), Irene Kenenski (RICRMC), and Dean Albro (RID EM). I am particularly indebted to Dr. Golet who !'Spent considerable time reviewing the manuscript, and preparing comments based on his extensive knowledge of the state's wetlands; he also provided slides for use in this report. Others providing infonnation included: Porter Reed, Ralph Abele, Charles Allin, Lori Suprock, Michael Lapisky, Tim Lynch, Patricia Toomer, and Alan Steiner. Tile manuscript was typed by Joanne Gookin and Joan Gilbert. Some of the figures were prepared by Mary O'Connor. Rick Newton also provided technical support in preparing photographs for publication. Photo Credits PhD tographs used in this report were gratiously provided by several people who are listed below in alphabetical order a.long with the plate and figure numbers oftheirphotographs: M. Anderson (Figure 22b), Dr. Frank Golet (Plates 6,9. 1 1,12,13,14,15, and 16; Figures 8, 15a, 15b, 18, 19,20,21, 24, and 29), Fred Knapp (Figure 22d), Ralph Tiner (Plates 1,2,3,5,7,8, and 10; Figures 16 and 30), Dr. Peter Veneman (Plate 4), and Bill Zinni (Figure 22c). Cover photo credits: Golet (salt marsh, great egret, least bittern, and pickerelweed marsh) and Tiner (inland marsh and turk's-cap lily). Table of Contents Page Acknowledgements; Photo Credits ........................................................... iii Table of Contents ......................................................................... lV List of Figures ........................................................................... vi List of Tables ......................................................................... , .. vii List of Plates ..... , ...... , ........... , ............................. , ........ , .. ,., .. ,., .. vii Chapter- 1. Introduction ................. , ... , ........................................... 1 Rhode Island Wetlands Inventory ......... , .............................. , ... , ...... " ..... 2 Description of Study Area ............................... , ................................ 2 PurpDse and Organization of this Report ..................................................... 2 References .............................. , ............ , ................................ 2 Chapter 2. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Wetland Definition and Classification System ......... 4 Introduction ........................................................................... 4 Wetland Definition ...................................................................... 4 Wetland Classification .......................... , ........................................ 7 References ............................................................................ 12 Chapter 3. National Wetlands Inventory Techniques and Results .............................. 13 Introduction ............................................................... ............ 13 Wetlands Inventory Techniques ............................................................ 13 Mapping Photography ................................................................. 13 Photo Interpretation and Collateral Data ................................................... 13 Field Investigations ................................................................... 13 Draft Map Production ................................................................. 15 Draft Map Review .................................................................... 15 Final Map Production ................................................................. 15 Wetland Acreage Compilation . .. ................................................... 15 Wetlands Inventory Results ............................................................... 15 National Wetlands Inventory Maps ....................................................... 15 Wetland and Deepwater Habitat Acreage Summaries ......................................... 15 State Totals ........................................................................ 15 County Totals ...................................................................... 17 Summary ............................................................................. 18 References ............................................................................ 18 Chapter 4. Wetland Formation and Hydrology .............................................. 19 Introduction ........................................................................... 19 Wetland Formation ...................................................................... 19 Inland Wetland Formation .............................................................. 19 Coastal Wetland Formation ......................................................... .. 21 Wetland Hydrology ..................................................................... 23 Tidal Wetland Hydrology ............................................................... 23 Nontidal Wetland Hydrology ............................................................ 24 References ............................................................................ 27 Chapter 5. Hydric Soils of Rhode Island ................................................... 29 Introduction ........................................................................... 29 Definition of Hydric Soil ................................................................. 29 Major Categories of Hydric Soils .......................................................... 29 National List of Hydric Soils .............................................................. 32 Rhode Island's Hydric Soils ................................ ..................... 32 iv County Acreage of Hydric Soils .......................................................... 32 Hydric Soils Descriptions ............................................................... 32 References ............................................................................. 35 Chapter 6. Vegetation and Plant Communities of Rhode Island's Wetlands .... 36 Introduction ...... ..................................................................... 36 Hydrophyte Definition and Concept ......................................................... 36 Wetland Plant Communities. 37 Marine Wetlands ...................................................................... 38 Estuarine Wetlands . .. .......................................... 38 Riverine Wetlands ................................ ..,................................. 41 Palustrine Wetlands .............................................................. ,..... 41 Lacustine Wetlands .................................................................. ,. 49 References .....................,....................................................... 50 Chapter 7. Wetland Values . 52 Introduction ....... ,................ ................................. ................. 52 Fish and Wildlife Values ............................................ ,..... ............ ,. 52 Fish and Shellfish Habitat ., ....................................................... ,..... 52 Waterfowl and Other Bird Habitat . .. ........................................ 53 Mammal and Other Wildlife Habitat . , .................................. , ............ , . 54 Rare, Threatened, or Endangered Plants. .. ..................