Knowledge gaps in tropical Southeast Asian seagrass systems     

Jillian Lean Sim Ooi  Gary A. Kendrick  Kimberly P. Van Niel  Yang Amri Affendi 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2011

Seagrasses are habitats with significant ecological and economic functions but we have limited knowledge of seagrasses in Southeast Asia, the hypothesized centre-of-origin for tropical seagrasses. There have been only 62 ISI-cited publications on the seagrasses of Southeast Asia in the last three decades and most work has been in few sites such as Northwest Luzon in the Philippines and South Sulawesi in Indonesia. Our understanding of the processes driving spatial and temporal distributions of seagrass species here has focussed primarily on backreef and estuarine seagrass meadows, with little work on forereef systems. We used Pulau Tinggi, an island off the southeast coast of Peninsular Malaysia, as an example of a subtidal forereef system. It is characterized by a community of small and fast growing species such as Halophila ovalis (mean shoot density 1454.6 ± 145.1 m⁻²) and Halodule uninervis (mean shoot density 861.7 ± 372.0 m⁻²) growing in relatively low light conditions (mean PAR 162.1 ± 35.0 μmol m⁻² s⁻¹ at 10 m depth to 405.8 ± 99.0 μmol m⁻² s⁻¹ at 3 m water depth) on sediment with low carbonate (mean 9.24 ± 1.74 percentage dry weight), organic matter (mean 2.56 ± 0.35 percentage dry weight) and silt-clay content (mean 2.28 ± 2.43 percentage dry weight). The literature reveals that there is a range of drivers operating in Southeast Asian seagrass systems and we suggest that this is because there are various types of seagrass habitats in this region, i.e. backreef, forereef and estuary, each of which has site characteristics and ecological drivers unique to it. Based on our case study of Pulau Tinggi, we suggest that seagrasses in forereef systems are more widespread in Southeast Asia than is reflected in the literature and that they are likely to be driven by recurring disturbance events such as monsoons, sediment burial and herbivory.  相似文献   

Temporal and small‐scale spatial variations in abundance and biomass of seagrass‐dwelling sponges in a tropical estuarine system          下载免费PDF全文

Enrique Ávila  Ana K. Ávila‐García  José A. Cruz‐Barraza 《Marine Ecology》2015,36(3):623-636

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广东沿海新发现的海草床   总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2       下载免费PDF全文

黄小平  江志坚  张景平  施震  汪飞  叶丰  李磊 《热带海洋学报》2010,29(1):132-135

通过对广东沿海水域的现场调查, 新发现8个海草床, 主要分布在柘林湾、汕尾白沙湖、惠东考洲洋、大亚湾、珠海唐家湾、上川岛、下川岛和雷州企水湾。海草种类主要包括喜盐草(Halophila ovalis)、贝克喜盐草(Halophila beccarii)和矮大叶藻(Zostera japonica)等3种。海草覆盖率为6.67%—53.33%, 茎枝密度为3 428.57— 10 542.00shoots.m-2, 生物量为12.86—118.24g.m-2。海草床底上生物密度为16.67—734.67ind.m-2, 生物量为15.39—426.88g.m-2, 多样性指数为0.46—1.98, 均匀度指数为0.28—0.89。海草床生境受到的严重威胁主要来自围海养殖(养蚝、养螺)、污水排放、渔民作业方式(电鱼、电虾、扒螺、挖贝类)、自然灾害(台风和洪水)等。  相似文献   

光学浅水海草高光谱识别   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1       下载免费PDF全文

杨超宇  杨顶田  赵俊 《热带海洋学报》2010,29(2):74-79

以三亚湾泰莱藻为例, 对海草光谱特征进行分析。结果表明, 450—780nm是海草光谱主要敏感波段, 其波段内的导数光谱是海草叶面积大小序列辨别的有效依据。一阶导数获得的红边与叶片叶绿素a浓度密切相关。   海草在625nm、675nm 两处出现明显的导数特征峰, 两峰峰值相差较大; 其优势特征峰分布在550nm、700nm、750—780nm。实际应用中, 此特征可作为海草底质分类的识别条件, 与海草覆盖率和光谱特征的关系相结合, 可对大量的遥感数据进行识别, 从而达到大尺度遥感监测海草分布和动态变化的目的。  相似文献   

Inorganic nitrogen uptake and related enzymatic activity in the seagrass Zostera noltii     

Ana Alexandre  João Silva  Rui Santos 《Marine Ecology》2010,31(4):539-545

The preferential inorganic nitrogen source for the seagrass Zostera noltii was investigated in plants from Ria Formosa, South Portugal. Rates of ammonium and nitrate uptake were determined at different concentrations of these nutrients (5, 25 and 50 μm ), supplied simultaneously (NH₄NO₃) or separately (KNO₃ and NH₄Cl). The activity of the enzymes nitrate reductase (NR) and glutamine synthetase (GS) was also assessed. The results showed that ammonium is the preferential inorganic nitrogen source for Z. noltii, but, in the absence of ammonium, the species also has a high nitrate uptake capacity. The simultaneous availability of both inorganic nitrogen forms enhanced the uptake rate of ammonium and decreased the uptake rate of nitrate compared to when only one of the nitrogen forms was supplied. The activity of both enzymes was much higher in the leaves than in the roots, highlighting the importance of the leaves as primary reducing sites in the nitrogen assimilation process.  相似文献   

Contribution of different functional groups to the diet of major predatory fishes at a seagrass meadow in northeastern Japan     

Katsumasa Yamada  Masakazu Hori  Yoshiyuki Tanaka  Natsuki Hasegawa  Masahiro Nakaoka 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2010

We examined the variation in habitat use and diet of three dominant fish species (Myoxocephalus brandti, Pholidapus dybowskii, and Pholis crassispina) in a seagrass meadow in the Akkeshi-ko estuary in northeastern Japan, where broad and dense Zostera marina beds exist, using a semi-quantitative census of the fishes and analyses of their stomach contents. Differences among the three fish species in the temporal variation in abundance of each age class (mainly 1- and 2-year age classes) indicated that the temporal pattern of utilization of the seagrass meadow were different among them. In the semi-quantitative dietary analysis, two prey categories, i.e., taxonomic group (order and suborder) and functional group, were used to explain the variation in prey composition with size-dependent changes. The six prey functional groups were classified based on the ecological traits of the prey, i.e., trophic level, size, and life type (habitat and behavior). Ontogenetic shifts in prey of the three fish species could be fully explained by a combination of the two prey categories, and not by the use of only one category (taxonomic or functional group). The pattern of ontogenetic shifts in prey differed among the fish species and size (age) classes. These results indicate that segregation of habitat (seagrass meadow) and prey group (taxonomic and functional group) is performed among the three species, which may contribute to their coexistence in this estuary.  相似文献   

Composition of epiphytic leaf community of Posidonia oceanica as a tool for environmental biomonitoring     

Begoña Martínez-Crego  Patricia Prado  Teresa Alcoverro  Javier Romero 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2010

The demand for sensitive biological tools to assess the environmental quality of coastal waters at broad spatial scales is increasing. Many of the tools used are based on the taxonomic composition of biotic assemblages. They usually require a valuable taxonomic expertise while are unique reflecting the overall ecosystem integrity. Here, we evaluate the potential indicator value of several features of the epiphytic community (overall assemblage composition, species richness, and proportion of the main taxonomic groups) growing on the seagrass Posidonia oceanica leaves. We do so by empirically examining their changes along a disturbance gradient where multiple human activities have interactive and cumulative impacts, sampling at different spatial scales and at two different depths (5 and 15 m). Our results show that the specific composition of the epiphytic assemblages (i.e. species composition) closely reflects, in the deep meadows, the combined effects of different anthropogenic stressors along the gradient, showing an integrative and non-specific response. Similarly, an increase in the proportion of hydrozoans, and a decrease in the proportion of rhodophytes and chlorophytes are observed in deep meadows along the gradient. In shallow meadows, grazing and biotic features of the seagrass seem the main forcing factors determining species composition, and therefore masking the response of epiphytes to the deterioration gradient. After address the effect of natural sources of variability (water depth, within- and between-meadow heterogeneity), changes in epiphyte assemblages and in the proportion of hydrozoans, rhodophytes and chlorophytes in relatively deep meadows seem promising monitoring tools for detecting coastal environmental deterioration.  相似文献   

Factors influencing landscape pattern of the seagrass Halophila decipiens in an oceanic setting     

Mark S. Fonseca  W. Judson Kenworthy  Emily Griffith  Margaret O. Hall  Mark Finkbeiner  Susan S. Bell 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2008

The scale of landscape pattern formation of an ecological community may provide clues as to the processes influencing its spatial and temporal dynamics. We conducted an examination of the spatial organization of an annual seagrass (Halophila decipiens) in an open ocean setting at two spatial scales and growing seasons to identify the relative influence of external (hurricanes) versus internal (clonal growth) factors. Visual surveys of seagrass cover were conducted over 2 years within three replicate 1 km² study areas each separated by ∼25 km in an inshore–offshore transect along the southwest coast of Florida at depths between ∼10 and 30 m. A towed video sled allowed observations of seagrass cover of 1 m² areas approximately every 6 m over thousands of meters of evenly spaced transects within the study areas (coarse scale). The towed video revealed that 17.5% of the seafloor was disturbed irrespective of location or sample time. Randomly selected 10 × 10 m quadrats within the larger, 1 km² study areas were completely surveyed for seagrass cover by divers at 0.625 m² resolution (fine scale). The coarse-scale observations were tested using both conventional geostatistics and an application of a time-series technique (Runs test) for scale of seagrass cover contiguity. Fine-scale observations were examined using conventional geostatistics and a least squares approach (cumulative logistic).  相似文献   

Current status and ecological roles of Zostera marina after recovery from large-scale reclamation in the Nakdong River estuary,Korea     

Sang Rul Park  Jong-Hyeob Kim  Chang-Keun Kang  Soonmo An  Ik Kyo Chung  Jeong Ha Kim  Kun-Seop Lee 《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2009

Large Zostera marina meadows (covering 13.6 km²) existed in the Nakdong River estuary on the south coast of Korea until the mid-1980s, but these Z. marina beds nearly disappeared due to reclamation of adjacent mud flats for the construction of a port and industrial complex during the late 1980s. Partial recovery of Z. marina meadows occurred recently, and Z. marina coverage of about 0.3 km² was observed in this estuary. In this study, shoot morphology, density, biomass, productivity, and tissue nutrient content were measured to evaluate the current status of the Z. marina meadows by comparing these data to those for persistent seagrass meadows in similar geographical areas. Additionally, we examined the ecological roles of Z. marina in this estuary after recovery from the large-scale disturbance. Shoot density (151 shoots m⁻²) and total biomass (141 g DW m⁻²) in the estuary were similar to those reported from other Z. marina meadows in Korea. Annual leaf production (1726 g DW m⁻² y⁻¹) was higher than generally observed for Z. marina in other geographical areas. These results imply that the existing Z. marina meadows in this estuary have adjusted to local environmental conditions that changed after large-scale reclamation. Estimated annual whole plant carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) incorporations based on shoot production and tissue C and N content were 810.0 g C m⁻² y⁻¹ and 59.7 g N m⁻² y⁻¹, respectively. These values were equivalent to 2.4 × 10⁵ kg C y⁻¹ and 1.8 × 10⁴ kg N y⁻¹ for all Z. marina beds in the Nakdong River estuary. This high C and N incorporation into Z. marina tissues suggests that existing Z. marina meadows play important roles in C and N cycles in this estuary. Although the currently existing Z. marina beds in this estuary are persisting and play an important ecological role, anthropogenic factors that cause seagrass declines still affect the estuary. Thus, effective management and monitoring of Z. marina beds and environmental factors are critical to protecting and conserving this invaluable component of the Nakdong River estuary.  相似文献   

Relative abundance of snapper (Chrysophrys auratus) across habitats within an estuarine system     

DM Parsons  D Buckthought  C Middleton  G MacKay 《新西兰海洋与淡水研究杂志》2016,50(3):358-370

Many fish species rely on estuarine nursery habitats as they transition to adult life stages. Quantifying nursery value, however, requires identification of the life stages (often small and short-lived) that utilise nursery habitats, and survey methods that provide comparable estimates across habitats. We focused our surveys on post-settlement snapper (Chrysophrys auratus) using video camera deployments across habitats within a northeastern New Zealand harbour. Post-settlement snapper abundance was higher among structured habitat types relative to bare sediments, with the type of structured habitat not influential. The exception appeared to be for reef habitat (although sampling was limited). Reef sites were structurally complex, but largely inhabited by older life stages (snapper and other fish species). Overall, nursery value for snapper appears to be connected to structure, rather than structure type. This result emphasises the importance of a broadened scope to coastal fishery management, one that incorporates not just fish extraction, but also habitat maintenance or restoration.  相似文献