Overview of Mercury Marsh

Mercury marsh is the rarest of the Reed Tidal Marsh signatures in 2007 aerial imagery.  It is often at the edges of ditches and tidal creeks and has a liquid mercury appearance, hence the name.  The look of mercury giving the marsh its name could possibly come from the high amount of water present underneath the reed grass stems.  This marsh often occurs with other types of Reed Tidal Marsh.  Coastal areas of Delaware Bay host the few occurrences of this marsh, however, the Inland Bays can host it too.

                                          Marsh from Slaughter Creek watershed

                                             Marsh from Simons River watershed