Seagrass Ecology

Abstract

Seagrasses occur in coastal zones throughout the world, in the part of the marine habitat that is most heavily influenced by humans. Decisions about coastal management therefore often involve seagrasses, but despite a growing awareness of the importance of these plants, a full appreciation of their role in coastal ecosystems has yet to be reached. This book provides an entry point for those wishing to learn about their ecology, and gives a broad overview of the state of knowledge, including progress in research and research foci, complemented by extensive literature references to guide the reader to more detailed studies. It will be valuable to students of marine biology wishing to specialize in this area and also to established researchers wanting to enter the field. In addition, it will provide an excellent reference for those involved in the management and conservation of coastal areas that harbour seagrasses.

Combined nutrient and macroalgae loads lead to response in seagrass indicator properties

“…Seagrass meadows have been widely acknowledged as highly important coastal systems that support high biodiversity and productivity, and high trapping and storage of nutrients and carbon (Duarte et al, 2010;Hemminga and Duarte, 2000;Orth et al, 2006). Decline of seagrass meadows due to human activity has been reported in recent years throughout the world (Orth et al, 2006;Waycott et al, 2009).…”

A comparison of the impact of ‘seagrass-friendly’ boat mooring systems on Posidonia australis

“…Seagrass meadows make significant contributions to coastal productivity worldwide (Orth et al, 1984) and their primary production ranks amongst the highest recorded for marine ecosystems (Hillman et al, 1989). They also support dis-proportionately high levels of biodiversity (Hemminga and Duarte, 2000) providing habitat, food and shelter to a diverse array of organisms (Beck et al, 2001). Seagrasses are particularly important in sustaining commercial and recreational fisheries (Heck et al, 2003;Gillanders, 2006) and it is likely that damage to seagrass will diminish stocks of important commercial and recreational fish, molluscs and crustaceans (Bell and Pollard, 1989;Butler and Jernakoff, 1999;McArthur and Boland, 2006).…”

Recovery from the impact of light reduction on the seagrass Amphibolis griffithii, insights for dredging management

“…Seagrass meadows are a dominant component of most coastal ecosystems and provide important ecosystem services such as primary production, nutrient cycling, sediment stabilization, food and habitat for other organisms and trophic transfers to adjacent habitats (Hemminga and Duarte, 2000). Globally, these ecosystem services have been valued at approximated US$19 000 ha --1 yr --1 (Costanza et al, 1997).…”