Coastal forested wetlands support many endemic species, sequester substantial carbon stocks, and have been reduced in extent due to historic drainage and agricultural expansion. Many of these unique coastal ecosystems have been drained, while those that remain are now threatened by saltwater intrusion and sea level rise in hydrologically modified coastal landscapes. Several recent studies have documented rapid and accelerating losses of coastal forested wetlands in small areas of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America, but the full extent of loss across North America’s Coastal Plain (NACP) has not been quantified. We used classified satellite imagery to document a net loss of ~ 13,682 km² (8%) of forested coastal wetlands across the NACP between 1996 and 2016. Most forests transitioned to scrub-shrub (53%) and marsh habitats (24%). Even within protected areas, we measured substantial rates of wetland deforestation and significant fragmentation of forested wetland habitats. Variation in the rate of sea level rise, the number of tropical storm landings, and the average elevation of coastal watersheds explained about 78% of the variation in coastal wetland deforestation extent along the South Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. The rate of coastal forest loss within the NACP (684 km²/y) exceeds the recent estimate of global losses of coastal mangroves (210 km²/y). At the current rate of deforestation, in the absence of widespread protection or restoration efforts, coastal forested wetlands may not persist into the next century.

沿海森林湿地支持许多特有物种，固存大量碳储量，并且由于历史悠久的排水系统和农业扩张而减少。许多这些独特的沿海生态系统已经被排干，而那些仍然存在的生态系统现在受到海水入侵和水文改变的沿海景观中海平面上升的威胁。最近的几项研究记录了北美大西洋和墨西哥湾沿岸小地区沿海森林湿地的快速和加速损失，但尚未量化整个北美沿海平原 (NACP) 的全部损失程度。我们使用分类卫星图像记录了约 13,682 km ²的净损失1996 年至 2016 年期间整个 NACP 森林覆盖的沿海湿地 (8%)。大多数森林过渡到灌木丛 (53%) 和沼泽栖息地 (24%)。即使在保护区内，我们也测量了大量湿地森林砍伐和森林湿地栖息地严重破碎的情况。海平面上升速度、热带风暴登陆次数和沿海流域平均海拔的变化解释了南大西洋和墨西哥湾沿岸沿海湿地森林砍伐范围变化的 78%。NACP 内的沿海森林损失率 (684 km ² /y) 超过了最近估计的全球沿海红树林损失率 (210 km ²/y)。以目前的森林砍伐速度，如果没有广泛的保护或恢复工作，沿海森林湿地可能不会持续到下个世纪。