Wave-protected versus unprotected transplantings on a Texas bay shoreline.

Without wave protection, establishment of transplants below the normal high-tide line on a sloped shoreline of East Bay in the Galveston Bay complex of Texas proved unsuccessful. With wave protection, smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora Loisel.) was successfully established below the normal high-tide mark. After removal of the wave protection device, the shore remained stabilized after initial erosion. Growth of individual species of transplants correlates with elevation. Gulf cordgrass (Spartina spartinae), marshbay cordgrass (Spartina patens), and saltgrass (Distichlis spicata) survived better than smooth cordgrass at higher elevations. At the highest elevations, survival was limited, regardless of species.