| Abstract from DBPedia | Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal flat ecosystems are as extensive globally as mangroves, covering at least 127,921 km2 (49,391 sq mi) of the Earth's surface. They are found in sheltered areas such as bays, bayous, lagoons, and estuaries; they are also seen in freshwater lakes and salty lakes (or inland seas) alike, wherein many rivers and creeks end. Mudflats may be viewed geologically as exposed layers of bay mud, resulting from deposition of estuarine silts, clays and aquatic animal detritus. Most of the sediment within a mudflat is within the intertidal zone, and thus the flat is submerged and exposed approximately twice daily. A recent global remote sensing analysis estimated that approximately 50% of the global extent of tidal flats occurs within eight countries (Indonesia, China, Australia, United States, Canada, India, Brazil, and Myanmar) and that 44% of the world's tidal flats occur within Asia (56,051 km2 or 21,641 sq mi). A 2022 analysis of tidal wetland losses and gains estimates that global tidal flats experienced losses of 7,000 km2 (2,700 sq mi) between 1999 and 2019, which were largely offset by global gains of 6,700 km2 (2,600 sq mi) over the same time period. In the past tidal flats were considered unhealthy, economically unimportant areas and were often dredged and developed into agricultural land. On the Baltic Sea coast of Germany in places, mudflats are exposed not by tidal action, but by wind-action driving water away from the shallows into the sea. This kind of wind-affected mudflat is called Windwatt in German.干潟（ひがた、英: mudflat）とは、海岸部に発達する砂や泥により形成された低湿地が、ある程度以上の面積で維持されている、朔望平均満潮面と朔望平均干潮面との潮間帯。潮汐による海水面の上下変動があるので、時間によって陸地と海面下になることを繰り返す地形である。砂浜と比べ、波浪の影響が少なく、勾配が緩やかで、土砂粒径が小さく、生物相が多様な平坦地形である。 環境省の定義は「干出幅100m以上、干出面積が1ha 以上、移動しやすい基底（砂，礫，砂泥，泥）」を満たしたものを干潟と呼んでいる。 (Source: http://dbpedia.org/resource/Mudflat) |
