Dauphin Island - Research Paper Example

DAUPHIN ISLAND INTRODUCTION Dauphin Island refers to a barrier island which is situated three miles in the southern part of the Mobile bay within Mexican Gulf. This area is accessed by crossing a 3 mile long bridge called high rise that was opened in July, 1982. Additionally, an automobile ferry is provided to move people in from the entry point located on the east of the island. The island is about 14 miles in length and one and three quarters wide when considering its widest point. The six miles found on the east is inhabited while the other 8 miles on the west remain undeveloped and are under private ownership (Young, 34). Dauphin is said to be a permanent home of about 1300 residents with great numbers of visitors flooding in during special holidays and other vocations. This island is generally designated as a bird sanctuary, a factor that attracts thousands of visitors who come to experience the yearly migrations. Dauphin Island is popular for its many attractions which are located on the east end that include the dauphin island sea lab, fort Gaines, Audubon Bird sanctuary, dauphin island campground and various boat launch spots. Additional attractions found on the island west end include the beautiful beaches with sugar white sand parks and the public golf course. Exceptional condominiums, hotels, motels, and private homes provide good lodging areas for both winter and summer visitors. Delicious restaurants mark the commercial and tourist regions and avail both fresh sea food from gulf waters and traditional menu items (Young, 125). Anglers mix with sun worshipers and sport fisherman at the shores and in waters bordering the island. Fishing pier serve as a means of transport to Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico sound for people who love fishing on shallow waters, while charter boats serve in deep water fishing expeditions. Surfers and swimmers will find the gulf waves enjoyable not to mention the cooling effect of the breeze from the sea. Beach combers also find something of interest as they can walk along the shoreline searching for shells and other sea treasures and view ghost crabs and sea birds frolic the on land and sea. Dauphin Island History Only 27 years following Columbus introduction of present day America to the western world, a Spanish explorer named Admiral Alvarez de Pineda sailed into the Mobile bay waters becoming the first European to make such a voyage. This was in 1519, and it took another 20years for another European to visit this region. The period marking 1540 and 1541 saw a well known marauder and explorer De soto came close to the Mobile River, but it is still unclear as to whether he actually went as far as Tombigbee and Alabama Rivers, the source of Mobile River. In 1559, the first white settlers (white colonists) arrived on the shores of Mobile bay in Alabama being led by Tistan de Luna. Together with 1000 settlers he arrived with, Tistan travelled to Pensacola and later turned back to Alabama to capture the Indian town named Nanipacna. Late 1600 the French government made plans to make a permanent settlement in this area and claim the source of Mississippi River. Upon learning this plan, the Spanish speedily moved in and occupied Pensacola bay in 1698, a factor that denied the French the most needed port facility. In 1699, Iberville (a French) made his first reconnaissance of Mississippi settlement and returned to the Gulf in 1702 to establish port facilities and warehouses on the Mobile Bays Dauphin Island (Young, 55). This was of great significance as the island had a deep water harbor, and was also strategically placed to help slow down the English and Spanish march as they cross the eastern frontier towards Mississippi river. During his arrival in Dauphin Island Iberville discovered sixty human skeleton, a factor that caused him to call the island Massacre Island. In 1701, exactly Two years after Iberville arrival, Dauphin Island was made the first capital of the expanding French colony in Louisiana.Pierre LeMoyne, Sieur dIberville became the first among the DeMoyne brothers to remarkably Alabama history. Such is the case that in 1702 he developed the first Mobile settlement in a region upstream from the Mobile Bay. This was at 27-mile Bluff along the Tensaw River. Mobile became the name of this settlement and the fort found at the centre was named Fort Louis (named after their Grand Monarch and employer, King Louis the XIV). The first settlement was located 26 miles upriver, partly because, it served as an encouragement of settlement along the river. Topography was the other consideration as the river mouth lacked enough bluffs. La Mobile was made the centre of the French strategies in the region within the first two years, 1704 to be precise (Young, 63). Later in 1711, the town was relocated to the Mobile River Mouth following the many problems realized on the area of defense and also the frequent flooding. Another fort, called Tombecbe was located amongst the tribe of Choctaw in what is presently Sumter County. All these enterprises proved futile. The French claimed possession of the Mobile until 1763 when the Treaty of Paris was signed and resulted to it ceding the Louisiana region to England. Esturian Habitat Mississippi and Mobile bay sound estuaries offer the vital estuarine nursery habitat that support the lives of about 98% of commercially and recreationally important species found in the Mexican gulf. Here, the dauphin island surf area beaches serves as feeding habitat for piping plover (Charandrius melodus) a species termed endangered by the government. The dune and beach areas offer nesting habitat for the endangered least tern (Sterna antillarum). Other important species is the three listed sea turtles: threatened green (Chelonia mydas), threatened loggerhead (Caretta caretta), and endangered Kemp’s ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) also utilizes the waters surrounding the island and occasionally nests on the island’s beaches(Duchene, 130). The Salt Marsh Habitat Mobile mainland coast supports the most extensive and contiguous salt marsh habitat within the Alabama state. This habitat stretches all the way from the cedar point to the Alabama Mississippi line. Dauphin Island has in the past played an important role in the existence of this habitat as it acts as a shield against powerful waves characterizing the Gulf of Mexico known to pose great challenge to the habitat existence. In the recent time things have changed as the Katrina cut and the ongoing islands west end deterioration increasingly expose this valuable marsh habitat and the associated wildlife to powerful waves and consequential shoreline erosion (Froede, 7). Absence of protection following the weakening and erosion of Dauphin Island is clearly evident on the salt marshes bordering the mainland coast. A diminished barrier island is feared to potentially expose the marshes to powerful wave activities that would result to erosion of the shore line. An extensive loss in the acreage supporting salt marshes would result to a substantial decline in the productivity of the Mobile bay and Mississippi sound. The marshes under discussion form a vital part in the nursery ground. Here, they function as food web base upon which all other estuarine species found within the Mexican gulf depend. The costal marshes will likely get destroyed gradually over time and affect the fishery resources. For a long time now, erosion on the mainland marshes north of Dauphin Island has been continuing. The Alabama state land division has stepped up investigations to curb the loss of this significant habitat. As the way things are as at now, we should expect further weakening of the Dauphin Island, a factor that will accelerate erosion rate (Duchene, 42s). Among the well known species of the salt marsh habitat are: blue crab, gulf killifish, grass shrimp, white mullet, brown shrimp, darter goby, sailfin molly, diamond killifish, longnose killifish, salt marsh topminnow, stone crab, lyre goby, spot croaker, mottled mojarra, spotted goby, gray snapper, lane snapper, white shrimp, spiny cheek sleeper, mosquito fish, crevalle jack, spotted sea trout, inshore lizardfish, silver perch, black cheek tonguefish, striped mullet, red drum, flathead mullet, stardrum, isopod, pink shrimp, sheeps head minnow, pinfish, rainwater killifish, Atlantic croaker, southern flounder, bayou topminnow, smooth.  Hurricanes Over the centuries, Dauphin Island has suffered the negative effects of countless hurricanes. The most recent storms include: the 1979 Hurricane Frederic that occurred in September 12, destroying the bridge to the mainland that had been opened back in 1955. Considered the sixth tropical cyclone, third Hurricane and the second major storm of the 1979 Atlantic Hurricane season, Fredrick became the costliest hurricane experienced in the U.S throughout that period. The estimated Damages vary from $6–9 billion (or about 2008 USD), with variations due to lack of hard data on uninsured damage as well as insufficient reporting of private insurance claims. This was followed by Hurricane Elena in 1985, said to have brought wind gusts of over 130 mph (210 km/h) to the island. Apart from causing much destruction, the aftermath of the hurricane Elena realized nine people died: two in Texas due to drowning in rip currents, three in Florida, two in Louisiana, one in Arkansas, and one in a maritime accident in the Mexican Gulf (Duchene, 125). The Damages were totaled to about $1.3 billion, not to mention that the resultant power outages affected 550,000 people. In 1997, Hurricane Danny resulted to an extensive flooding on the eastern side of the island. Danny is famous for its intense rainfall, the resulting tornadoes, and the destruction it caused on its path, ensuing to a total of nine fatalities and an estimated $100 million (1997 USD, $147 million 2014 USD) damages. The hurricane dropped a notable amount of rainfall never realized in Alabama; at least 36.71 inches (932 mm) dropped on Dauphin Island. Following this storm there was much Flooding, power outages, and erosion in many regions of the Gulf Coast, forcing rescues to be executed via flooded roadways. The following year realized the effects of Hurricane Georges which like others experienced before caused many damages. Upon making landfall, hurricane Georges caused a strong storm surge climaxing at 11.9 feet (3.6 m) in Fort Morgan, accompanied with 25 foot (7.6 m) waves on top.  While gradually moving through the state, it caused torrential rainfall, reaching a peak of 29.66 inches (75 cm) in Bay Minette. The Outer squalls produced tornadoes in the southeast states southern region, even though it only resulted to small damages. Along the shores, heavy rainfall accompanied by strong waves realized extensive property damages. In the Gulf Shores, for instance, 16 apartment buildings, 251 houses, and 70 businesses suffered significant damage. The barrier island also had its share of the damages. Here, the hurricane damaged 50 houses leaving completely 40 uninhabitable. Going further inland, the high winds brought down power trees and power lines, leaving 177,000 people in darkness after the storm. Consequent measures to help the victims realized only 17 shelters that housed a total of 4,977 people. Minimal harm was experienced on buildings. In general, the damages realized in Alabama totaled to about $125 million (1998 USD, $164 million 2009 USD). There was only one death case reported following this storm. After this there was a little rest before another powerful and more damaging storm (Hurricane Ivan) hit the island in 2004.  This cyclone is considered the ninth among similar storm, the sixth when considering past hurricanes and the fourth major hurricane in the active hurricane period (Young, 69). During this period, about one-fourth of the Island flooded with the waters going two-feet high. The most known Hurricane is the August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina that caused havoc in parts of the island. Following this storm many homes located on the west end were destroyed, and more significantly was the formation of Katrina Cut, a channel separating the western part. Even as this happened, majority of the areas in the East and Central end experienced slight flooding resulting from the storm surge (Froede, 12). Contrary to the typical storm surge impacts experienced on a mainland shoreline and affected water channels, on an island water surge goes around and over the dry land without casing water mounding as it is always in the case with mainland. The road leading to the island realized minimal damages than expected. Most damages experienced in the East End beach, particularly with front homes was restricted to stairs, decks and storage structures. Barrier Islands Barrier islands are composed of Petit Bois Island, Horn Island, Ship Island and Cat Island, all of them located in Mississippi. Dauphin Island contributes significantly to the existence of these islands when serving as a pathway for the movement of westward sand. Presently, individual barrier islands are characterized by a decreasing higher elevation cores and dunes, a factor that points to the existence of sand supply in the past. The sad part is the absence of surplus sand; a condition that results to erosion of the island. The rates at which the islands have been experiencing loss of land in the past 150years are significantly greater compared to previous thousand years. This is clear indication of the land loss acceleration experienced in the recent years, thanks to inequality between updrift erosion and downdrift deposition. This can be put simply as a condition where “more sand is being eroded updrift than is being deposited downdrift ” Island narrowing is the other mechanism affecting the loss rates experienced in the barrier islands. In this case, the diminished condition of the narrow areas of the island makes them vulnerable to breaching and overwash during storms and thus the loss of sand. The barrier islands are unoccupied, owned by the national government and incorporated in the Gulf Islands national seashore. The U.S national park service (NPS) is the body charged with management of these islands. The barrier islands of Mississippi were significantly destroyed in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. Consequently, the federal government made a recommendation in the Mississippi Coastal Improvements Program (MsCIP) to have them restored. This was meant to be completed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 2009. Historical maps have clearly shown that petit Bois Island, one of the Mississippi barrier island, was in fact a consequent of a major hurricane that happened in the 1900 destroying the connection between the two islands (Duchene, 117). In fact it is suggested that if mapping of the pre-European history taken from the past 7000 to 10000years were to be provided, the geologic linkage between Dauphin Island and the four barrier islands would clearly come out. The position of all these islands and the intervening passes has continually migrated westwards with new islands coming up periodically, thanks to the effects of disastrous hurricanes and the erosion of other islands. The undeniable truth is dauphin’s island contribution of its sand to the Mississippi Island through the processes of littoral drift. The movement of sand from Dauphin Island to the barrier Islands has been critical in the past and will always be crucial in shaping their geomorphologic health and physical configuration of the downdrift. Proof of the far-reaching impact caused on the downdrift Mississippi barrier island on account of the coastal erosion in the Dauphin Island is clearly laid out in the MsCIP report. This report recommended that 4,000,000 cubic yard of sand be placed on the eastern end of Petit Bois Island, an area that is less than 5 miles west of Dauphin Island. The need to place sand on the east end of Petit Bois Island is a result of the sand shortage that is not being transported from the ever-shrinking Dauphin Island westwards(Duchene, 100). The U.s federal government has shown a great commitment with regard to restoring Mississippi barrier and even made a congressional move in 2009 that appropriated $489 million to place sand in the littoral region. This served as a part of the extensive move to nourish the island. Works Cited Duchene, Lisa. "Habitat in harms way: marshes, methane and hypoxia are chief worries in the Gulf.(Going Green)." SeaFood Business 1 Aug. 2010: 2. Print. Froede, Carl R.. "Constructed Sand Dunes on the Developed Barrier-Spit Portion of Dauphin Island, Alabama (U.S.A)." Journal of Coastal Research 264 (2010): 699-703. Print. Young, Frances . "Island History, Dauphin Island Foundation, Dauphin Island, Alabama." Island History, Dauphin Island Foundation, Dauphin Island, Alabama. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. . Read More