Life on a Louisiana island slowly disappearing into the sea

The US state of Louisiana is slowly disappearing into the Gulf of Mexico as its fragile wetlands are eroded by rising sea levels.

Approximately 75 square kilometres are lost each year and the US Geological Survey has warned that the entire habitat - which represents 40% of all wetlands in the US - could be destroyed within 200 years.

The loss is partly down to natural evolutionary processes, but experts say human behaviour - including dredging for canals and the draining of the wetlands for development and agriculture - has made the region more vulnerable to storm surges.

Some communities still live on the remote network of islands deep in the bayous in south Louisiana. But now their livelihoods, and their very way of life, are under threat from the water.

From BBC Magazine