title: Critical bifurcation of shallow microtidal landforms in tidal flats and salt marshes.
abstract: Shallow tidal basins are characterized by extensive tidal flats and salt marshes that lie within specific ranges of elevation, whereas intermediate elevations are less frequent in intertidal landscapes. Here we show that this bimodal distribution of elevations stems from the characteristics of wave-induced sediment resuspension and, in particular, from the reduction of maximum wave height caused by dissipative processes in shallow waters. The conceptual model presented herein is applied to the Venice Lagoon, Italy, and demonstrates that areas at intermediate elevations are inherently unstable and tend to become either tidal flats or salt marshes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Geological Sciences and School of Computational Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA. sergio@csit.fsu.edu
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fagherazzi
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Carniello
authors.forename: Luigi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: D'Alpaos
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Defina