Editing Grand Isle, Louisiana (section)

===Chenier habitat===

Chenier habitats are not limited to Grand Isle, but were historically found in [[wetlands]] throughout the southeastern coasts of Louisiana called the Chenier Plain.<ref name="Neyland" /> Today, the Chenier Plain consists of uplands, wetlands, and open water that extends from [[Vermilion Bay (Louisiana)|Vermilion Bay, Louisiana]] to [[East Bay (Texas)|East Bay, Texas]].  Of the original {{convert|500,000|acre}} that had existed, an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 square acres{{Clarify|date=January 2012}} remain.<ref name="WildlifeDept">{{cite journal|last=Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries|title=Conservation Habitats and Species Assessments|journal=LACWCS|year=2005|url=http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/document/32867-coastal-live-oak-hackberry-forest/coastal_live_oak-hackberry_forest.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110924191945/http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/document/32867-coastal-live-oak-hackberry-forest/coastal_live_oak-hackberry_forest.pdf|archive-date=September 24, 2011}}</ref> Chenier forests consist of hardwood trees, primarily oaks and hackberries, as well as a variety of other vegetation such as mulberry, honeylocust, water oak, green ash, and American elm, all which grow along slightly elevated ridges.  These ridges are the result of the build-up of sediment from periodic shifts of the Mississippi River's delta and can range in size from {{Convert|1-3|m|feet}} high and between {{Convert|30-450|m}} wide.<ref name="Neyland" /> Because of the slightly higher elevation, chenier forests not only allow for the growth of hardwood trees that support the variety of migratory birds that pass through Grand Isle, but also act as a barrier for salt water intrusion into a marsh during storm surges.<ref name="Cheniers">{{cite journal|last=Russell|first=RJ|author2=HV Howe|title=Cheniers of Southwestern Louisiana|journal=Geographical Review|year=1935|volume=25|issue=3|pages=449–461|jstor=209313|doi=10.2307/209313}}</ref> Typically, marshes that are north of a chenier are less saline than marshes that are closer to the gulf.

The cover of a chenier forest provides for migratory birds a place to rest before or after making the flight across the Gulf of Mexico and in some species of birds, the habitat is essential for breeding.<ref name="BreedingSeason">{{cite journal|last=Wilson|first=Scott|author2=Shannon LaDeau |author3=Anders Tottrup |author4=Peter Marra |title=Range-wide effects of breeding- and nonbreeding-season climate on the abundance of a Neotropical migrant songbird|journal=Ecology|year=2011|volume=92|issue=9|pages=1789–1798|url=http://ejournals.ebsco.com.libezp.lib.lsu.edu/Direct.asp?AccessToken=7TLDTTTB3OIFX0IONXNL0MVIIXLFB3L9N9&Show=Object&ErrorURL=http%3A%2F%2Flinksource.ebsco.com%2Ferror.aspx|doi=10.1890/10-1757.1|pmid=21939075}}</ref> However, some studies suggest that it is not just the cover that habitats like chenier forests provide that attract migratory birds, but it is the food availability that is the principal factor in migratory bird stopover. Stopover is a term used for when flocks of migratory birds pause in a certain area to rest and/or feed.<ref name="Stopover">{{cite journal|last=Buler|first=Jeffrey|author2=Frank R. Moore |author3=Stefan Woltmann |title=A Multi-Scale Examination of Stopover Habitat Use By Birds|journal=Ecology|year=2007|volume=88|issue=7|pages=1789–1802|jstor=27651296|doi=10.1890/06-1871.1|pmid=17645025|url=https://aquila.usm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=9674&context=fac_pubs}}</ref>  Studies have shown that significant stopover occurs more frequently as flocks of migratory birds near the coast.<ref name="VegStructutre">{{cite journal|last=Deppe|first=Jill L.|author2=John T. Rotenberry|title=Scale-Dependent Habitat Use by Fall Migratory Birds: Vegetation Structure, Floristics, and Geography|journal=Ecological Monographs|year=2008|volume=78|issue=3|pages=461–487|jstor=27646145|doi=10.1890/07-0163.1|doi-access=free}}</ref> There is a correlation between large densities of birds occurring in continuous hardwood forests, such as old-growth cheniers.  Studies done on forest cover indicate that as the amount of cover increased, arthropod abundance and the presence of fleshy, fruit bearing vegetation increased as well, and that migratory birds use forest cover as an indicator of greater habitat quality, thus a better food source per impending journey across the Gulf of Mexico.<ref name="BreedingSeason" />