What are the differences between tidal marsh and managed ponds and what are the wildlife benefits for each in the South San Francisco Bay?
A. Tidal Marshes are vegetated wetlands that regularly receive some tidal action. High quality tidal marshes contain intricate networks of channels through which the tides move in and out of the marsh complex. Tidal marshes in the San Francisco Bay provide critical habitat for an array of species, including young salmon and steelhead trout, shorebirds and waterfowl that forage in the salt pannes, harbor seals who “haul out” on the marshes to breed and raise their young, and endangered birds and mammals like the endangered California clapper rail and salt marsh harvest mouse who live only in tidal marshes in the Bay. Managed ponds are shallow open water habitat with no tidal flow or managed tidal flow. These wetlands contain water all or part of the year, have various salinities, and provide feeding and roosting (resting) areas for waterfowl, shorebirds, and other waterbirds. The specific types of birds feeding in a pond depend on the specific conditions in the pond. For example, shoreb
