Estuarine and Coastal Marine Science (x98o) Io, 3o5-3x6

Pollen Evidence for Historic Sedimentation

Rates in California Coastal Marshes

Peta J. Mudie
Department of Geology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

and Roger Byrne

Department of Geography, University of California, Berkeley,
California 9472o, U.S.A.
Received x3 2~arch x978 and in revlsed form 9 October z978

Keywords: pollen; sedimentological tracers; salt marshes; sediment

accretion; historical; holoeene; California coast

The pollen of alien weeds and ornamentals is used to determine sedimenta-

tion rates in four California coastal salt marshes. The results indicate that
during the present century sedimentation rates have been ca. 50 cm/ioo years
in southern California and xo cm/xoo years in central California. We
interpret this regional contrast to be primarily the result of differences in
land use history, although 'natural' environmental differences are apparently
also involved. Radiocarbon dates indicate that pre-European sedimentation
rates were ca. xo cm/ioo years in southern California and ca. 5 em/xoo years
in central California.

Introduction
Coastal salt marshes are weU known as fragile ecosystems inherently vulnerable to distur-
bance by man. In California, as in many other parts of the world, extensive areas of salt
marsh have been reclaimed for industrial or other purposes (Atwater & I~Iedel, x976 ).
Paradoxically, a significant proportion of the surviving salt marsh is of recent origin. For
example, during the period I85 o to x9x4 an estimated 0.8 X xo9 m 3 of sediment were deposited
in San Francisco Bay, most of which was the result of hydraulic mining in the Sierra Nevada.
This increased sediment influx caused shoaling in certain areas and allowed for expansion
of salt marsh. Similar changes have occurred in other areas along the California coast although
the details are less well understood.
In this paper we show how the pollen of alien plants can be used as chronological markers
and thereby provide an estimate of sedimentation rates during the period of European
settlement. We present pollen diagrams from four coastal marshes in central and southern
California: Bolinas Lagoon and Drakes Estero in Marin County, and Los Penasquitos Lagoon
and Mission Bay in San Diego County. Also included as a control for the coastal record is a
fifth diagram from a small fresh water pond at Lake Ranch io km northwest of Bolinas
(Figure x). In North America pollen markers have been used successfully to determine
historic sedimentation rates in freshwater lakes (Davis, x976), but as far as we know this is
the first application of this method in the estuarine environment. We also present radiocarbon
dates from six California salt marsh sites. These dates permit an approximate calculation of
305
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306 P. J. Mudie ~ R. Byr~te

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Figure x. Location of study sites and mean monthly rainfall-temperature graphs

for the San Diego and l~larin County areas.

Holocene sedimentation rates and thereby provide a comparison with historic rates as
determined by pollen analysis.

Description of study sites

The major features of the drainage basins for the study sites are summarized in Table I.
The southern drainage systems are cut through friable Pleistocene marine terrace material
and Tertiary conglomerates and sandstones (Hartline & Grant, 1954). The geological setting
of the ~'Iarin County sites is more complicated (Ritter, 1973). Bolinas Lagoon is located in
the San Andreas fault zone. East of the fault are rock types of the Franciscan formation
which are generally resistant to erosion; to the west of the fault are less resistant Tertiary
mudstones, sihstones, and shales.
Average rainfall and temperature regimes for representative stations in both ~'Iarin and
San Diego County are shown in Figure 1. Annual rainfall in both areas is very variable,
however, and maximum and minimum seasonal values for San Francisco are 123 cm and
i8 cm, for San Diego 59 cm and 8 cm. The upland vegetation in the vicinity of the San Diego
 Pollen evidence for sedimentation rates 307

TABLE z. Major features of drainage basins adjacent to the sites at which historical
sedimentation rates were studied
Lagoon Drainage basin Average stream Peak stream
area area gradient discharge
(kin') (k.m=) (m/zooo m) (m a a-I)

Mission ]Bay 36"4 zzz7 before z935 3 674

560 after 1935 z27
Los Penasquitos 1"5 440 9 538-zooo
Bolinas Lagoon 4"4 ao 3oo 23
Drake's Estero 35"7 40 9o <io
Lake Ranch o'z z zSO < zo

core sites is predominantly s u m m e r deciduous coastal sage scrub, interspersed with chaparral.
I n M a r i n county, redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) are locally common in mesie habitats,
whereas on drier sites there is a complex mosaic of Douglas F i r (Pseudotsuga menziesii),
oak woodland, chaparral, and coastal grassland.
T h e size of the lagoons, as defined by the area below Extreme High Water (EHW), ranges
from about 3 6 km 2 (~'Iission Bay and Drake's Estero) to x.5 km2 for Los Penasquitos (Table I).
All are small marine embayments formed behind sandpits and sheltered from strong wave
action. T i d a l water exchange takes place through inlets about 3o--9 m wide and x.5-3.o m
deep at 1VIean L o w e r L o w W a t e r ~ I L L W ) . T h e average water depth of the lagoons is less

(a)
Elevotion {m)

CORE. ~//~,--]- EHW

Sportina
1
,,0 barren mudflu~~

,..
-C:
SQI/'corniQ
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(b)
Elevation (m)

2-0- ~ - - ~ . . . . . . MHHW

1.0-
I I I I MLLW
@ IO0 200 500 400 meters

Sportlt~o =========================================

Sa/Icorniu - - ~ = . ~~ i i l l l l l l l i i t.j ( l l i l l t ! l l i ~ l l l I11 f I

S u a e d o o F r a n k e n i a - - - - . . . .
ois,lchus .... "~ .......... _ - -q
Botts . . . . . . . . .

Sclrpu$

Figure 2. Schematic representation bf saltmarsh profiles and vegetation distribu-

tions at (a) Bolinas Lagoon and (b) Mission Bay. Bar width is approximately
proportional to percent ground cover, where maximum width=5o-75% and
-- -- =<~I0~o,
308 P. ft. Mudie ~ R. Byrne

than 3 m at M L L W and the mean tidal range near the inlets is 1.8-2.o m. The small fresh-
water lake at Lake Ranch has an area of o.2 km ~ and a maximum depth of 7 m. T h e lake is
encircled by low hills and wave action is limited.
Representative profiles of the salt marshes and their vegetation composition are shown
diagrammatically in Figure 2. Detailed descriptions for the individual marshes can be found
in the following citations: Mission Bay (MacDonald, 1967), Los Penasquitos ~ i u d i e et al.,
1974), Bolinas (Rowntree, 1973) and Drake's Estero (Ferris, 197o). All the marshes show a
typical zonal pattern of species distribution with a low marsh zone dominated by Spartina
foliosa, and a middle and lower high marsh dominated by Sallcornia virginlca and Distiehills
spicata. The low, middle and high marsh zones correspond to the areas below, at, and above
l~fean Higher High Water (MHHW) respectively.

Methods
Field sampling
The saltmarsh cores were all taken in the middle saltmarsh zone near M H H W and at least
i km inland from the tidal entrance. There were two basic reasons for this core site selection.
In California, burrowing organisms are rarely encountered here (MacDonald, I969), and
bioturbation is therefore likely to have been minimal. Also, the compactness of the sediment
at this elevation (about lO% water by weight) permitted carefully controlled sampling from
trenches dug to a depth of I m.
Horizontal layers of sediment I cm thick were removed from the vertical trench walls at
5-1o cm intervals, commencing 1 cm below the surface. Subsamples of sediment from each
xo-cm interval level were analysed for grain size, density and organic content. Sediment
texture at all sites was a rather homogeneous clayey silt containing lO-2O% organic material
(mostly Salicornia or Spartlna peat) dry weight. The dry density of all samples was in the
range of o.6-0. 7 g c m - L This uniformity makes it unlikely that significant differences in
sediment compaction would have occurred during the past 5o0 years.
The Lake Ranch core was taken in 7 m of water with a coring tube, 7.6 cm diameter,
containing a piston fixed at o. 5 m above the sediment/water interface to ensure complete re-
covery. The core was frozen prior to extraction to permit accurate sampling of the loosely
consolidated near-surface sediments. The frozen core was sectioned at 5 cm intervals and
subsamples of 2"6 cm a were taken for pollen analysis.

Pollen processing and couvthtg

Processing of all samples included the standard HCI-KOH-HF-Aeetolysis procedure
(Faegri & Iversen, 1976). However, the Lake Ranch sediments contained large concentrations
of sulfide particles and these were removed by digestion in cold 37% HNO~ for 4 rain prior
to acetolysis.
Absolute pollen Concentrations in the salt marsh samples were determined by the weighing
method (Jorgensen, 1967). An average of 500 grains was counted per level, the range being
2OO-lOOO. In the Lake Ranch analysis, Lycopodium spore tablets were used to estimate
'absolute' concentrations (Stockmarr, 1971); a minimum of 200 grains were counted for
each level with the average count being c. 25o.

Pollen m a r k e r s
The use of pollen as a means of dating Holocene sediments has recently been revived for the
 Pollen evidence for sedimentation rates 309

historical time period in which radiocarbon dates offer dubious accuracy--the past two or
three hundred years. In the Great Lakes area, the Ambrosia rise has been used to date the
commencement of widespread forest clearance and European agriculture (Davis, 1976;
McAndrews, 1972). In California, changes in the native pollens may eventually prove useful
as chronological markers but in this study we restrict ourselves to alien types: Rumex aeetosella
L. (sheep sorrel), Plantago laneeolata L. (ribwort, plantain), Eucalyptus spp., Acacia spp.
and Pinus thunbergi Pad. (Japanese dwarf black pine).
The diagnostic characteristics of these five pollen types are given below. Where grain
sizes are reported they are based on the average measurements of too grains.
12umex aeetosella (Plate IA). The pollen of this species can be distinguished by its small
(equatorial diameter =19. 5 pill), coarsely reticulate exine, and pore/furrow arrangement,
usually pericolporate with four furrows and pores. There are three native species of Rumex
in coastal Marin and San Diego counties; of these, only the pollen of R. salleifolius Veeinm.
can be confused with that of R. acetosella (the other two species have grain diameters of
25 l/m and distinctively thicker exines). Rumex salidfolius is similar in size to R. aeetosella
but in our reference material, R. salicifollus is always tricolporate. Unlike R. acetosella, the
native Rumex species do not produce abundant wind-dispersed pollen.
Plantago lanceolata L. (Plate IB). The pollen of this common European weed is clearly
distinguishable from that of native California species, and from other less-common alien
Plantago species, by a prominant annulus I l/m thick, a pore number of 8-14 and an absence
of spicules on the pore opercula (Bassett and Crompton, x968).
Eucalyptus (Plate IC). Pollen of this genus can easily be distinguished from that of native
pollen types by its subangular polar view, psilate intectate exine, strongly developed crass-
exinal bars, short colpi and slightly sunken pores.
Acacia (Plate ID). Pollen of the common introduced Australian Acacias, e.g. t/. latifolla
Willd., can be distinguished from that of the 2 native species by its significantly smaller
polyad size o f 4 o + 5 l/m. These small polyads readily separate into subquadrangular monads,
about xo l/m in diameter, with 3-6 small, irregular-shaped apertures. In contrast, native
Acacias in San Diego Co. have an average polyad diameter of 5o-t-5.5 l/m and they are rarely
seen in the monad form. The native species are absent or rare seaward of the Peninsular
Range.
Pinus thunbergi Parl. This species is one of the most commonly grown ornamentals in
urban areas of Southern California because of its compact growth characteristics. Its pollen
can be distinguished reliably from that of native and other introduced pines of this region by
its very small size: total length 47.o4-i.5 l/m, body length 33.xq-x.8 l/m body width,
29"24-I-2 Inn.

Dates of introduction
According to Frenkel (197o),'Rumex acetosella was first introduced into California during the
period of Mexican settlement (1825-1848). The basis for this conclusion is SVatson's report
on the Geological Survey of California plant collection, which indicated that by 1864 Rumex
acetosella was very widely spread in California (Watson, i88o).
In I~iarin County the species is now a common weed in pastures and along roadsides. We
have no direct evidence for the date of its arrival; however, widespread grassland disturbance
that would have encouraged its spread probably dat6s to the late i83o's when cattle ranches
were widely established. For the A{arin County cores we therefore assign a date of 182o to
the first appearance of Rumex aeetosella and I84o to be beginning of the Rumex rise.
 ....................... : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . T-I .... --

C
., . . . . . . . . . . .

Plate I. Light Photomicrographs of the alien pollen types. (A) Rumex acetosella;
(B) Plantago lanceolata; (C) Eucalyptus globuhts; (D) Acacia baileyana. ~Iagnifica-
t i o n ~ i o 0 o X.

[Facing p, 309
310 P.~. Mudle ~ R. Byrne

In San Diego County Rumex acetosella is common only in pastures at higher elevations in
the Coast Ranges. Its pollen was infrequently found in the saltmarsh samples and cannot be
used as a reliable time marker for the southern marshes.
There is no historical evidence for the presence of Plantago lanceolata in California during
the l~fexican Period and it is assumed to have been first introduced during the American
settlement of the I85O'S (Frenkel, 197o). The species was collected in the San Francisco area
in I86o, at which time it was reported to be not yet widely established (Brewer et al., 1876).
We therefore assign a date of i86o to the first appearance of this pollen type in 1V[arin County.
In San Diego County, Plantago lanceolata is less important than it is further north. It is
rare in the grassland or coastal scrub of the southern Coast Ranges and is usually found in
moist micro-habitats that arise after urban development, e.g. in drainage ditches and
irrigated lawns. We conclude therefore that the appearance of Plantago lanceolata pollen in
the San Diego cores marks the advent of suburban land development rather than early
European ranching. This date is set at 195o.
Several species of Eucalyptus were introduced into California in the early I850'S. Several
Eucalyptus trees in the vicinity of Bolinas lagoon were planted in the early i87o's (Bergquist
& Byrne, 1978) and we assign a date of 188o to the first appearance of Eucalyptus pollen in
the IVIarin County saltmarsh cores. In San Diego County, extensive plantings of Eucalyptus
date to the period i9oz-~9xo (Stanford, 197o). The first appearance of Eucalyptus in the
San Diego cores is therefore set at I9io.
It is important to note that Eucalyptus are primarily insect-pollinated and their pollen is
not widely dispersed. As a result, this pollen type can only be used as an accurate marker
for sites that are cIose( < x.o kin) to plantations of known age.
The comparative scarcity of Rumex acetosella and Plantago lanceoIata in San Diego County
is fortunately compensated for by extensive plantings of exotic Acacias and Pinus thunbergi.
Several species of Acacia were planted in the coastal area between x9Io and 1933. In the
absence of specific documentation for these plantings we assign a date of 1933 to the first
appearance of Acacia pollen. Japanese dwarf black pine (Pinus thunbergi) was first included
in cultivated plant manuals and horticultural catalogs between I945 and 195o, and we
therefore set a date of I95o for the first appearance of this pollen type.

Historic s e d i m e n t a t i o n rates
Marin County
The pollen diagrams for the three Marin County sites are shown in Figure 3. Reassuringly,
the freshwater lake and saltmarsh profiles show basically the same sequence of alien pollen
types. The Lake Ranch diagram will be discussed first since it provides a useful control for
the two saltmarsh sites.
Rumex acetosella first appears in the core at I2O cm (182o A.D.), rises abruptly above
9 cm (I84o A.D.) and then declines irregularly to the surface. Plantago lanceolata appears
at 65 em (186o A.D.), rises to a peak at 15 cm and then also declines. This recent decline
may reflect decreased ranching activity in the area during the past ten years. Unfortunately,
there are no Eucalyptus within the immediate vicinity of the lake so this pollen type can not
be used as a reliable marker. The low value recorded at 5 cm represents a single grain count.
The Lake Ranch pollen record indicates an average sedimentation rate of 80 cm]ioo years,
a surprisingly high value for a lake of this size.
The Bolinas core was taken in a small marsh that overlies a deltaic fan at the mouth of Pine
Creek, the largest stream entering the lagoon. Gravel and coarse sand were encountered at
 Pollen evidencefor sedimentation rates 3I x

LAKE R A N C H ~
:: ::o 0oo,
0 " 1975

~ 40-

.- ,000 g
c 80" E

120- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . -'Jl820

o ,~ o
Hundreds of Grains per crn 3

BOLINAS DRAKES ESTERO

/ :o:

~! ---
A-
0

-t1---.

~ ....
1974

-1880

4~60
o ~:,8" :: :~::
;974

-1880

-1860
m
o3 , 8
................ 1840
6
................. 182C 1840 ~
0
1 8 2 0 IJ
i .... (3
40-

O I0 O
.1430

Hundred* of C.-,rain~ Per crn 3

Figure 3. Pollen diagrams from the R~arinCounty sites.

3 to 4 cm below ]VIHHW, as indicated in Figure 3, and the presence of Rumex acetosella

pollen at 3 cm (182o A.D.) indicates that the marsh was only recently established at the
time of European settlement. Sediment accumulation in the marsh appears to have been
rapid (38 cm/ioo years) during the period i82o-I 860, probably as a result of redwood logging
in the watershed. The appearance of Plantago lanceolata and Eucalyptus at 15 and 1o em
(I86o and 188o A.D., respectively) indicates an average sedimentation rate of c. Io cm/ioo
years for the period 186o-1975 A.D. This value may in part reflect subsidence due to tectonic
activity during the x9o6 Earthquake (Lawson, 19o8 ) although the core site is located in a
western lagoon area where no evidence of vertical displacement was reported.
In order to obtain an estimate of sedimentation.rates in a teetonically more stable area of
Marin County, a core was also taken in the Drake's Estero salt marsh (Figure 3). A radio-
carbon date from the base of the core (Table 2) indicates that the average sedimentation rate
3x2 P. ff. Mudle f.~ R. Byrne

T ~ u ~ 2. Radiocarbon dates and derived long-term sedimentation rates for

California coastal saltmarshes
Pre-alien
Average pollen
sedimenta- sedimen-
Sample tlon rate tation rate
Dated material depth below 573o Corrected (cm/too (cm/xoo
Sample location (Dating code no.) MHHXV (m) Age age year) year)

Los Penasquitos CeritMdea shell

(35*55'N, xx7xs"W) (LJ 2992) x'9o x98o+4o 9"4-9"5 8'2
Wiajuana Lagoon Sdrpus peat + 90
(32033'N,x x707'W) (LJ 3xo3) r-xo x23o4-5o IX3O 4o 9"o--xo'x
Mission Bay Ctdone shell
(3245'N,r x7t 5'W) (LJ 3350 ~'95 2370+60 xz-x-x2"8 IX'Z
Del Mar Lagoon Drift wood
(3257'N,x 17016%V) (LJ 3347) 0"48 x2oo4-6o 3"8-4"2
Elkhom Slough Sallcornia peat
(3648'N,x2x47'W) (LJ 3088) o'25 3004-40 4oo-1-9o 5"x-8"x
Drakes Estero Salicornia peat
(38x'3"N, I2253'W) (LJ 3o97) 0"50 470+5 5zo4- 5 8-8-xo.1 5"0
Drakes Estero Salicornla peat
(38I" 3"N, Izz54"~V) (LJ 3098) 0"50 4804-50 52o4-50
oO
8"8-xo-o 5"0

* Dating was carried out at the Mt. Soledad Radiocarbon Laboratory under the
direction of Dr. Hans Suess. Corrected ages are based on the Suess tree ring
calibration curve.

for the whole section has been c. Io'o cm]Ioo years. However, the appearance of Ruiner
acetosella at 35 cm (I82O A.D.) and Plantago lanceolata at 15 cm (i86o A.D.) indicates that
the average rate of accumulation during this time was 5 cm/xoo years. This interval of rapid
sedimentation coincides with the establishment of cattle ranches in the area and probably
reflects an initial period of accelerated erosion following overgrazing. During the period
since x86o A.D. the sedimentation rate has dropped to 15 cm/xoo years.

San Diego County

Using the first appearance of Eucalyptus pollen (i9xo A.D.) at 35 cm in Mission Bay and at
3 cm in Los Penasquitos (Figure 4) average historical sedimentation rates of about 53 and
46 cm/xoo years are derived for the southern salt marshes. In bIission Bay, the presence of
Acacia pollen at 3 cm and Pinus thunbergi at 25 cm indicate that prior to x95o, the sedimen-
tation rate averaged 5"9 cm per decade followed by a rise to to cm per decade for the past
25 years.
The record for Los Penasquitos Lagoon is less clear because Acacia and Pinus both first
appear at the same level, 25 cm. This may indicate that from 191o to 195o sedimentation
was slow in this salt marsh, I-2 cm per decade, in which case sampling intervals of less than
5 cm would be necessary to define the individual marker boundaries. As at ~,iission Bay,
however, these pollen markers indicate that the rate of sediment deposition in Los Penasqui-
tos has risen to an average of I o c m per decade since x95o. This interpretation is further
supported by the decline in total absolute pollen concentration (APC in Figure 4) that is
recorded in Los Penasquitos after x95o. In both Mission Bay and Los Penasquitos, this
post-x95o rise in sedimentation rate is consistent with the local history of large-scale urban
development that commences between x956 and x965 on the sandstone bluffs bordering the
lagoons.
 Pollen evidence for sedlmentation rates 3z 3

MISSION" BAY LOS PEN'ASQUITOS

0
o

6- ~ b o ~o 25o
Hundreds o f Grains p e r c m 3

Figure 4. Pollen diagrams from the San Diego County sites.

Holocene sedimentation rates

Although several studies have been made of Holocene sedimentation rates in Atlantic coast
saltmarshes (Chapman, z938; Bloom, z964; Siccama & Porter, I972; Armentano & Woodwell,
z975) , very little is known about the longer term history of Pacific coast salt marshes, and
without this perspective it is difficult to evaluate the significance of changes in sedimentation
rates during the period of European settlement.
Table 2 lists the radiocarbon dates obtained during the present study. The stratigraphies
of the cores from which these samples were taken have been described by SEott, Mudie &
Bradshaw (I976), Scott (x976), and l~'Iudie (i974). Sallcornia and Sclrpus peat samples were
underlain by compact inorganic sediments probably representing the former land surface.
The shell dates were based on intact specimens of Cerithidea california and Chione undatella
which have natural vertical ranges of about i and 2 m respectively in California coastal
lagoons. The driftwood, which was found in association with brackish water foraminifera,
probably dates a former position of Extreme High Water.
These radiocarbon dates indicate that for the six salt marshes sampled the average sedimen-
tation rate during the past.zSOO years has been between 8 and zo cm/ioo years. However,
this average includes the period of European settlement and therefore may. overestimate the
'natural' or pre-European sedimentation rate. The estimates of pre-European sedimentation
rates in Table 2 were obtained by combining the radiocarbon and alien pollen chronologies.

Error sources

The overall consistency in the succession of alien pollen types at the five sites is strong
evidence that the sediments have not been significantly affected by compaction, deformation
314 P.oT. Mudie ~ R. Byrne

or bioturbation. Before discussing the implications of our results, however, we shall consider
other major possible sources of error in our estimated sedimentation rates. With regard to the
reliability of the first appearance of a pollen type as a marker of the initial arrival time of its
alien plant source, two errors may be involved: within-sample variance arising during pollen
preparation and between-sample variance at one sediment level. The within-sample coeffi-
cient of variation (CV) expected for both the absolute pollen preparation methods is about
lO-2O% (Peck, 1974). The between-sample CV for sets of 7-1o surface sediment samples
from the saltmarshes was found to be about 2O~/o for Eucalyptus, Acacia and Plantago
lanceolata in Mission Bay and lO--2o% for Rumex acetosella and Plantago lanceolata in
Marin County.
While these variances may obscure the true depth of a first pollen marker occurrence, the
continued absence of a marker for 5-1o sample levels below its first recorded appearance is
unlikely to be due to processing or sampling errors. It is possible, however, that some of
the true marker boundaries may be located 10-2o cm below those found in our studies. The
effect of a downward shift in the boundaries would be to increase the estimated sedimentation
rates by about 25-4o % for the saltmarsh sites and lO-2o% for the lake site.
Another potential error in the estimates of historical sedimentation rates would arise from
assigning an erroneous date to the first arrival of an alien species. We estimate that the
maximum error for the assigned datcs is 4-20 years for most of the markers and 4-xo years
for Pinus thunbergi. A later arrival date for a marker would increase the estimated sedimenta-
tion rate by about 20% ; conversely, an earlier date would decrease the rate by a like amount.
Increases or decreases in historical sedimentation rates of these magnitudes at any one
sample site would not substantially alter the regional differences in sedimentation rates that
are discussed below.

Regional differences in sedimentation rates

The evidence presented indicates that in the period prior to European settlement sedimenta-
tion rates in southern California coastal marshes were roughly twice as high as rates in central
California marshes. The evidenee also indicates that during the present eentury sedimenta-
tion rates have been 2- 5 times greater in southern California than in central California.
The difference in pre-European rates is probably attributable to regiofial differences in
climate and watershed characteristics; the drainage basin areas and peak stream discharge
rates of the southern lagoons being an order of magnitude larger than those of the central
California sites. Aeeording to Langbein and Schumm (1958), the sediment yield from undis-
turbed watersheds in southern California would be 2- 3 times higher than from analogous
watersheds in central California.
Although the pre-European differences in central and southern California sedimentation
rates were natural in origin, the differences in historic sedimentation rates appear to be
primarily the result of differences in land use history.
The San Diego area was settled by Spanish missionaries in I769 and for over a century
cattle ranching was the most important form of land use. Unfortunately, our pollen records
provide no clear indication as to the effects of the Mission settlement on sedimentation rates
although (if a tentative date of 182o A.D. is assigned to the appearance of Rumex) the Mission
Bay core suggests a rate of c. 22 cm]xoo years before 19IO A.D. During the present century
large areas of coastal San Diego County have been transformed from a rural to an urbanized
landscape, and it seems reasonable to conclude that the high sedimentation rates in the
Los Penasquitos Lagoon and ~(Iission Bay are largely a result of this transformation. The
 Pollen evidence for sedimentation rates 3x5

post-war period x955-I97o, in particular, was one of extensive urban development on the
hillsides bordering the lagoons.
In contrast the watersheds adjacent to the study sites in Matin County have not yet been
significantly affected by urbanization. There are rural areas in which the major land use
during the present century has been dairy farming. This type of land use does not appear
to have greatly accelerated the salt marsh sedimentation rates. In contrast, extensive logging
operations carried out during the mid-nineteenth century in Matin County (Rowntree, x973),
together with the initial development of cattle ranches, appear to be responsible for the high
sedimentation rates between I8zo and x88o.

Summary and conclusions

In central and southern California the pollen of alien weeds and ornamentals provides a
useful means of determining sedimentation rates during the period of European settlement.
The pollen evidence indicates that in central California (Bolinas Lagoon and Drake's Estero)
salt marsh accretion rates were highest in the told-nineteenth century (5o em]Ioo years) and
have declined during the present century (e. Io cm]Ioo years). In southern CaLifornia (Los
Penasquitos and ~[ission Bay) salt marsh accretion rates could not be determined reliably
for the nineteenth century but rates of xoo cm/ioo years are indicated for the post-I95o
period.
We interpret these regional differences to be primarily a reflection of differences in land
use history. T h e watersheds adjacent to the central California study sites were extensively
logged in the mld-nlneteenth century but have not been drastically disturbed by rural land
use during the present century. In contrast, large areas of the southern California watersheds
have been converted to urban land use during the period since 195o. It should also be empha-
sized, however, that pre-European sedimentation rates were also higher in southern California
than in central California. Radiocarbon dates indicate pre-European rates of ca. xo cm/ioo
years for Mission Bay and Los Penasquitos, and 5 cm]ioo years for Drake's Estero. This
difference is most likely attributable to regional differences in climate and watershed charac-
teristics.

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