DOCSLIB.ORG

(Zostera Marina) Bay-Wide Habitat Mapping Survey: Status and Distribution Between 2006 and 2008 and Oceanographic Conditions in Newport Bay Between 2008 and 2009

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

RESULTS OF THE SECOND NEWPORT BAY EELGRASS (ZOSTERA MARINA) BAY-WIDE HABITAT MAPPING SURVEY: STATUS AND DISTRIBUTION BETWEEN 2006 AND 2008 AND OCEANOGRAPHIC CONDITIONS IN NEWPORT BAY BETWEEN 2008 AND 2009 Prepared for: City of Newport Beach Harbor Resources Division PO Box 1768 Newport Beach, CA 92658-8915 Contact: Chris Miller, HRD Manager (949) 644-3041 Prepared by: Coastal Resources Management, Inc. PMB 327, 3334 East Coast Highway, Corona del Mar, CA 92625 Contact: Rick Ware, Senior Marine Biologist [email protected] (949) 412-9446 August 18th, 2010 TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page 1.0 INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Project Purpose ............................................................................................................................. 2 1.3 Project Setting............................................................................................................................... 3 1.4 Eelgrass Regulatory Setting ......................................................................................................... 5 1.5 Physical and Chemical Factors Affecting Eelgrass Abundance and Distribution..................... 6 1.6 Eelgrass Biology and Ecology ..................................................................................................... 11 2.0 SURVEY AND DATA ANALYSIS METHODS................................................................... 18 2.1 Project Staff................................................................................................................................... 18 2.2 Project Location............................................................................................................................ 18 2.3 Survey Dates ................................................................................................................................. 18 2.4 Survey Methods ............................................................................................................................ 22 2.5 Data Processing ............................................................................................................................ 30 3.0 OCEANOGRAPHIC SURVEY RESULTS ........................................................................... 33 3.1 Oceanographic Data ..................................................................................................................... 33 3.2 Sediment Grain Size..................................................................................................................... 51 3.3 Summary of Oceanographic and Grain Size Survey Results ..................................................... 54 4.0 EELGRASS HABITAT MAPPING SURVEY RESULTS.................................................. 59 4.1 Diver Survey Underwater Visibility Measurements During Eelgrass Surveys......................... 59 4.2 Eelgrass Distribution and Abundance ......................................................................................... 60 4.3 Eelgrass Distribution By Region ................................................................................................. 72 4.4 Eelgrass Habitat Analysis Based Upon Standard Shoreline Lengths ........................................ 85 4.5 Eelgrass Turion Density ............................................................................................................... 86 4.6 Eelgrass Blade Length and Width Analysis................................................................................ 90 4.7 Marine Organisms Observed During the Surveys ...................................................................... 92 4.8 Eelgrass Habitat Study Summary and Conclusions.................................................................... 97 5.0 LITERATURE CITED.............................................................................................................. 106 Newport Bay Eelgrass and Oceanographic Studies 2006-2009 i City of Newport Beach Harbor Resources Division Coastal Resources Management, Inc. LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1 Description of Water and Sediment Quality Sampling Stations Shoreline Lengths .............. 21 2 Mean Values for Oceanographic Parameters. July 2008-May 2009 ...................................... 34 3 Light Irradiance Ratios in Newport Bay Based On Photosynthetic Photon Flux (PPF) Values. July 2008-May 2009. All Stations and All Surveys Combined ............................... 43 4 Temperature Minima and Maxima. July 2008-May 2009 ......................................................... 46 5 Summary of HOBO Pendant Logger Light Intensity Data, July 2008-May 2009 ..................... 48 6 Results of 2006-2008 Eelgrass Habitat Mapping Surveys, Shallow and Deep Water Habitat ............................................................................................................................................ 61 7 Results of 2003-2004 Eelgrass Habitat Mapping Surveys, Shallow Water Habitat Only ......... 62 8 Summary of Distribution and Acreage in 2006-2008 and Comparison of Habitat Acreage to 2003-2004 ................................................................................................................... 72 9 Assessment of Change Based Upon Standard Shoreline Lengths From Most Abundant to Least Abundant Eelgrass Areas in 2006-2008 ......................................................................... 86 10 Eelgrass Blade Length and Width Data. August 2008 ............................................................... 91 11 Taxonomic Composition of Plants and Animals Observed During Eelgrass Habitat Mapping Surveys, 2003-2008 ....................................................................................................... 93 LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1 Regional Setting............................................................................................................................ 4 2 Tidal Flushing Rates in Newport Bay ......................................................................................... 8 3 Location and Boundaries of Eelgrass Habitat Surveys............................................................... 19 4 Water Quality and Sediment Sampling Locations .................................................................. .. 20 5 Eelgrass Survey Regions.............................................................................................................. 32 6a Rainfall and Air Temperature, 2003-2009 ................................................................................. 33 6b Sea Surface Temperatures and Salinity, 2003-2009................................................................... 33 7 Mean Water Temperatures in Newport Bay ............................................................................. .. 35 8 Dissolved Oxygen Concentrations in Newport Bay ................................................................... 37 9 Mean pH Concentrations in Newport Bay ................................................................................. 38 10 Mean Salinity in Newport Bay .................................................................................................... 39 11 Mean Water Transparency in Newport Bay.............................................................................. .. 40 12a Light Energy in Newport Bay Eelgrass Beds.............................................................................. 41 12b Light Energy in Unvegetated Areas of Newport Bay ................................................................ 41 12c Light Energy in Newport Bay, All Areas.................................................................................... 41 13 Mean Light Energy Values, Expressed as Photosynthetic Photon Flux (PPF) ....................... .. 43 14a Mean Bottom Water-to-In Air ”Reference: PPF (Light Irradiance) Ratios.............................. 44 14b Mean Bottom Water-to-Surface Water PPF (Light Irradiance) Ratios ..................................... 44 15 Mean Water Temperature (Surface and Bottom Water), HOBO Pendant Data Loggers......... 46 16 Surface and Bottom Water Temperature Differentials, HOBO Pendant Data Loggers.......... .. 47 17 Mean Light Intensity (Surface and Bottom Waters) HOBO Pendant Data Loggers ................ 49 18 Mean Light Intensity 1 ft Below the Surface, HOBO Pendant Data Loggers........................... 49 19 Mean Light Intensity 2 ft Above the Bottom, HOBO Pendant Data Loggers........................... 49 20a Ratio of Bottom-to-In Air “Reference” Values, HOBO Pendant Data Loggers ..................... 50 Newport Bay Eelgrass and Oceanographic Studies 2006-2009 ii City of Newport Beach Harbor Resources Division Coastal Resources Management, Inc. 20b Ratio of Bottom-to-Surface Water Light Intensity, HOBO Pendant Data Loggers ................ 50 21a Comparison of Newport Bay Sediment Characteristics. Percent Gravel, Sand, and Silt/Clay ....................................................................................................................................... 52 21b Median Sediment Particle Size in Newport Bay Sediments...................................................... 52 22 Two-Way Hierarchical Clustering of Sediment Types Based on Sediment Particle Size........ 53 23 Two-Way Hierarchical Clustering of Newport
Recommended publications
  • Global Seagrass Distribution and Diversity: a Bioregional Model ⁎ F

    Global Seagrass Distribution and Diversity: a Bioregional Model ⁎ F

    Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 350 (2007) 3–20 www.elsevier.com/locate/jembe Global seagrass distribution and diversity: A bioregional model ⁎ F. Short a, , T. Carruthers b, W. Dennison b, M. Waycott c a Department of Natural Resources, University of New Hampshire, Jackson Estuarine Laboratory, Durham, NH 03824, USA b Integration and Application Network, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, Cambridge, MD 21613, USA c School of Marine and Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, 4811 Queensland, Australia Received 1 February 2007; received in revised form 31 May 2007; accepted 4 June 2007 Abstract Seagrasses, marine flowering plants, are widely distributed along temperate and tropical coastlines of the world. Seagrasses have key ecological roles in coastal ecosystems and can form extensive meadows supporting high biodiversity. The global species diversity of seagrasses is low (b60 species), but species can have ranges that extend for thousands of kilometers of coastline. Seagrass bioregions are defined here, based on species assemblages, species distributional ranges, and tropical and temperate influences. Six global bioregions are presented: four temperate and two tropical. The temperate bioregions include the Temperate North Atlantic, the Temperate North Pacific, the Mediterranean, and the Temperate Southern Oceans. The Temperate North Atlantic has low seagrass diversity, the major species being Zostera marina, typically occurring in estuaries and lagoons. The Temperate North Pacific has high seagrass diversity with Zostera spp. in estuaries and lagoons as well as Phyllospadix spp. in the surf zone. The Mediterranean region has clear water with vast meadows of moderate diversity of both temperate and tropical seagrasses, dominated by deep-growing Posidonia oceanica.
  • Distribution of Zostera Species in Japan. I Zostera Marina L. (Zosteraceae)

    Distribution of Zostera Species in Japan. I Zostera Marina L. (Zosteraceae)

    Bull. Natl. Mus. Nat. Sci., Ser. B, 35(1), pp. 23–40, March 22, 2009 Distribution of Zostera species in Japan. I Zostera marina L. (Zosteraceae) Norio Tanaka1,*, Satoshi Aida2, Shoichi Akaike3, Hiroshi Aramaki4, Takashi Chiyokubo5, Seinen Chow6, Akihiko Fujii7, Munehiro Fujiwara8, Hitoshi Ikeuchi9, Mitsuhiro Ishii10, Ryoko Ishikawa11, Hiroshi Ito12, Takahiro Kudo13, Daisuke Muraoka14, Tatsuaki Nagahama15, Tomohide Nambu16, Hiroyuki Okumura17, Akio Oshino18, Miho Saigusa19, Yasuko Shimizu20, Tsuyoshi Suwa21, Kengo Suzuki22, Kazuya Takeda23, Norio Tanada24, Tsuyoshi Tanimoto25, Fujinori Tsuda26, Seiji Urabe27, Kousuke Yatsuya28, Goro Yoshida29, Takashi Yoshimatsu30, Satoshi Yoshimitsu31, Keizo Yoshimura32, Kenji Morita33 and Kenji Saitoh34 1 Department of Botany, National Museum of Nature and Science, Amakubo 4–1–1, Tsukuba, 305–0005 Japan 2 Hiroshima Prefectural Technology Research Institute, Fisheries & Ocean Technology Center, Hatami 6–21–1, Ondo-cho, Kure, 737–1207 Japan 3 Hokkaido Hakodate Experiment Station, Yunokawa 1–2–66, Hakodate, 042–0932 Japan 4 Saga Prefectural Government, Jonai 1–1–59, Saga, 840–8570 Japan 5 Fukushima Prefectural Fisheries Experimental Station, Matsushita Shimokajiro 13–2, Onahama, Iwaki, 970–0316 Japan 6 National Research Institute of Fisheries Science, Coastal Fisheries and Aquaculture Division, Fisheries Research Agency, Nagai 6–31–1, Yokosuka, 238–0316 Japan 7 Nagasaki Prefectural Institute of Fisheries, Taira, Nagasaki, 851–2213 Japan 8 Kagawa Prefectural Fisheries Experimental Station, Farming and Cultivation
  • The Global Distribution and Status of Seagrass Ecosystems

    The Global Distribution and Status of Seagrass Ecosystems

    The global distribution and status of seagrass ecosystems ^^ ^^^H Discussion paper prepared for tlie UNEP-WCWIC Global Seagrass Workshop St Pete's Beach, Florida, 9 November, 2001 Prepared by: Mark D. Spalding, Michelle L. Taylor, Sergio Martins, Edmund P. Green, and Mary Edwards WA.. WORLD CONSERVATION MONITORING CENTRE Digitized by tine Internet Archive in 2010 witii funding from UNEP-WCIVIC, Cambridge Iittp://www.archive.org/details/globaldistributi01spal The global distribution and status of seagrass ecosystems Discussion paper prepared for tlie UNEP-WCIVIC Global Seagrass Workshop St Pete's Beach, Florida, 9 November, 2001 Prepared by: Mark D. Spalding, Michelle L. Taylor, Sergio Martins, Edmund P. Green, and Mary Edwards With assistance from: Mark Taylor and Corinna Ravilious Table of Contents Introduction to the workshop 2 The global distribution and status of seagrass ecosystems 3 Introduction 3 Definitions 3 The diversity of seagrasses 3 Species distribution 4 Associated Species 6 Productivity and biomass 7 The distribution and area of seagrass habitat 8 The value of seagrasses 13 Threats to seagrasses 13 Management Interventions 14 Bibliography; 16 29 Annex 1 : Seagrass Species Lists by Country Annex 2 - Species distribution maps 34 Annex 3 - Seagrass distribution maps 68 74 Annex 4 -Full list of MPAs by country ; /4^ ] UNEP WCMC Introduction to the workshop The Global Seagrass Workshop of 9 November 2001 has been set up with the expressed aim to develop a global synthesis on the distribution and status of seagrasses world-wide. Approximately 20 seagrass experts from 14 counu-ies, representing all of the major seagrass regions of the world have been invited to share their knowledge and expertise.
  • 1 Phylogenetic Regionalization of Marine Plants Reveals Close Evolutionary Affinities Among Disjunct Temperate Assemblages Barna

    1 Phylogenetic Regionalization of Marine Plants Reveals Close Evolutionary Affinities Among Disjunct Temperate Assemblages Barna

    Phylogenetic regionalization of marine plants reveals close evolutionary affinities among disjunct temperate assemblages Barnabas H. Darua,b,*, Ben G. Holtc, Jean-Philippe Lessardd,e, Kowiyou Yessoufouf and T. Jonathan Daviesg,h aDepartment of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology and Harvard University Herbaria, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA bDepartment of Plant Science, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Hatfield 0028, Pretoria, South Africa cDepartment of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot SL5 7PY, United Kingdom dQuebec Centre for Biodiversity Science, Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 0G4, Canada eDepartment of Biology, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, H4B 1R6, Canada; fDepartment of Environmental Sciences, University of South Africa, Florida campus, Florida 1710, South Africa gDepartment of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 0G4, Canada hAfrican Centre for DNA Barcoding, University of Johannesburg, PO Box 524, Auckland Park, Johannesburg 2006, South Africa *Corresponding author Email: [email protected] (B.H. Daru) Running head: Phylogenetic regionalization of seagrasses 1 Abstract While our knowledge of species distributions and diversity in the terrestrial biosphere has increased sharply over the last decades, we lack equivalent knowledge of the marine world. Here, we use the phylogenetic tree of seagrasses along with their global distributions and a metric of phylogenetic beta diversity to generate a phylogenetically-based delimitation of marine phytoregions (phyloregions). We then evaluate their evolutionary affinities and explore environmental correlates of phylogenetic turnover between them. We identified 11 phyloregions based on the clustering of phylogenetic beta diversity values. Most phyloregions can be classified as either temperate or tropical, and even geographically disjunct temperate regions can harbor closely related species assemblages.
  • Results of the Fifth Eelgrass (Zostera Marina) Mapping Survey: Status and Distribution in Newport Bay, Newport Beach, California 2016 Survey

    Results of the Fifth Eelgrass (Zostera Marina) Mapping Survey: Status and Distribution in Newport Bay, Newport Beach, California 2016 Survey

    RESULTS OF THE FIFTH EELGRASS (ZOSTERA MARINA) MAPPING SURVEY: STATUS AND DISTRIBUTION IN NEWPORT BAY, NEWPORT BEACH, CALIFORNIA 2016 SURVEY Prepared for: City of Newport Beach Public Works, Harbor Resources Division 100 Civic Center Drive, Newport Beach, California 92660 Contact: Chris Miller, Harbor Resources Manager [email protected] (949) 644-3043 Prepared by: Coastal Resources Management, Inc. 144 N. Loreta Walk, Long Beach, CA 90803 Contact: Rick Ware, Senior Marine Biologist [email protected] (949) 412-9446 June 15th, 2017 Revised July 10th, 2017 TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page 1.0 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Project Purpose ........................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Background ................................................................................................................................. 1 1.3 Project Setting ............................................................................................................................. 2 1.4 Summary of Eelgrass Biology and Its Importance ................................................................... 4 1.5 Eelgrass Regulatory Setting ....................................................................................................... 6 2.0 METHODS AND MATERIALS .............................................................................................
  • Thesis Sci 2020 Lawrence Cloverley Mercia.Pdf

    Thesis Sci 2020 Lawrence Cloverley Mercia.Pdf

    Ecology and Ecophysiology of Zostera capensis: Responses and Acclimation to Temperature Cloverley Mercia Lawrence Thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Biological Sciences Faculty of Science University of Cape Town 2019 University of Cape Town Supervisors Dr Deena Pillay, Professor Astrid Jarre, Emer. Professor John Bolton The copyright of this thesis vests in the author. No quotation from it or information derived from it is to be published without full acknowledgement of the source. The thesis is to be used for private study or non- commercial research purposes only. Published by the University of Cape Town (UCT) in terms of the non-exclusive license granted to UCT by the author. University of Cape Town This thesis is dedicated to my parents. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Declaration I, hereby declare that all the work presented in this thesis is my original work in both concept and execution (except where otherwise indicated), and that this thesis has not been submitted in whole or in part for another degree in this or any other university. Cloverley Mercia Lawrence Table of Contents Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………………….iii Summary.…………………………………………………………………………………………….…v Chapter One General overview and background ……………… ……... ………………………………. .. 1 1.1. Seagrass Ecosystems…………………………………………………………… …… …... 3 1.1.1. Glo bal importance and distribution of seagrasses…………………… ……... 3 1.1.2. Biodiversity in seagrass ecosystems ……………………………… ….… ….…. 6 1.2. Threats to seagrasses………………………………………………………… ….. .…. …. 8 1.2.1. The influenc e of temperature on seagrasses……………………… ……….. .. 9 1.2.2. Epiphytes and fou ling in seagrass ecosystems……………………… …….. .. 12 1.3. Respo nses of seagrasses to threats………………………………………… ….. ….. …. 12 1.3.1. Acclimations in seagrasses…… .. ………………………………… …… ….. …… 12 1.3.2.
  • Morphology and Genetic Studies of Cymodocea Seagrass Genus in Tunisian Coasts Ramzi Bchir, Aslam Sami Djellouli, Nadia Zitouna, D

    Morphology and Genetic Studies of Cymodocea Seagrass Genus in Tunisian Coasts Ramzi Bchir, Aslam Sami Djellouli, Nadia Zitouna, D

    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Archive Ouverte en Sciences de l'Information et de la Communication Morphology and Genetic Studies of Cymodocea Seagrass Genus in Tunisian Coasts Ramzi Bchir, Aslam Sami Djellouli, Nadia Zitouna, D. Aurelle, Gerard Pergent, Christine Pergent-Martini, Habib Langar To cite this version: Ramzi Bchir, Aslam Sami Djellouli, Nadia Zitouna, D. Aurelle, Gerard Pergent, et al.. Morphology and Genetic Studies of Cymodocea Seagrass Genus in Tunisian Coasts. Phyton, International Journal of Experimental Botany, Tech Science Press, 2019, 88 (2), pp.171-184. 10.32604/phyton.2019.05261. hal-02164658 HAL Id: hal-02164658 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02164658 Submitted on 25 Jun 2019 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Morphology and Genetic Studies of Cymodocea Seagrass Genus in Tunisian Coasts Ramzi BCHIR1,2,a, Aslam Sami DJELLOULI1,b, Nadia ZITOUNA3, Didier AURELLE4, Gerard PERGENT2,d, Christine PERGENT-MARTINI2,e and Habib LANGAR1,C 1 UR17ES10 « Physiology of regulatory systems and adaptations». Sciences Faculty of Tunisia, University El Manar, Tunis, Tunisia. a E-mail :[email protected] ; b E-mail :[email protected] ;c E-mail :[email protected] 2 EqEL, FRES 3041 – UMR CNRS SPE 6134, University of Corsica, BP 52, 20250 Corte, France.
  • Further Evidence for Seed Size Variation in the Genus Zostera: Exploratory Studies with Z

    Further Evidence for Seed Size Variation in the Genus Zostera: Exploratory Studies with Z

    Aliso: A Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany Volume 22 | Issue 1 Article 20 2006 Further Evidence for Seed Size Variation in the Genus Zostera: Exploratory Studies with Z. japonica and Z. asiatica Sandy Wyllie-Echeverria University of Washington Victoria R. Wyllie-Echeverria University of Washington Algernon C. Churchill Adelphi University Paul A. Cox National Tropical Botanical Garden Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarship.claremont.edu/aliso Part of the Botany Commons Recommended Citation Wyllie-Echeverria, Sandy; Wyllie-Echeverria, Victoria R.; Churchill, Algernon C.; and Cox, Paul A. (2006) "Further Evidence for Seed Size Variation in the Genus Zostera: Exploratory Studies with Z. japonica and Z. asiatica," Aliso: A Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Botany: Vol. 22: Iss. 1, Article 20. Available at: http://scholarship.claremont.edu/aliso/vol22/iss1/20 Aliso 22, pp. 243-247 © 2006, Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden FURTHER EVIDENCE FOR SEED SIZE VARIATION IN THE GENUS ZOSTERA: EXPLORATORY STUDIES WITH Z. JAPONICA AND Z. ASIATICA 1 5 2 3 SANDY WYLLIE-ECHEVERRIA, • VICTORIA R. WYLLIE-ECHEVERRIA, ALGERNON C. CHURCHILL, 4 AND PAUL A. Cox ·6 1University of Washington Botanic Gardens, College of Forest Resources, University of Washington, Box 354I 15, Seattle, Washington 98195-4115, USA; 2Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington, Friday Harbor, Washington 98250, USA; 3Department of Biology, Adelphi University, Garden City, New York I1530, USA; 4Institute for Ethnomedicine, National Tropical Botanical Garden, Mainland Office, 1717 North 1450 East, Provo, Utah 84604, USA 5 Corresponding author ( zmseed@ u. washington. edu) ABSTRACT Recent studies found seed size variation within the seagrass Zostera marina, one of nine species in the genus Zostera.
  • Seasonal Dynamics of Zostera Caulescens: Relative Importance Of

    Seasonal Dynamics of Zostera Caulescens: Relative Importance Of

    Aquatic Botany 77 (2003) 277–293 Seasonal dynamics of Zostera caulescens: relative importance of flowering shoots to net production Masahiro Nakaoka a,d,∗, Naoko Kouchi b,d, Keiko Aioi c,d a Graduate School of Science and Technology, Chiba University, Inage, Chiba 263-8522, Japan b Akkeshi Marine Biological Station, Hokkaido University, Akkeshi, Hokkaido 088-1113, Japan c Aoyama Gakuin Women’s Junior College, Shibuya 4-4-25, Shibuya, Tokyo 150-8366, Japan d Ocean Research Institute, University of Tokyo, Nakano, Tokyo 164-8639, Japan Received 14 May 2001; received in revised form 12 August 2003; accepted 12 August 2003 Abstract Zostera caulescens occurs only in limited localities around Japan and Korea, and is listed as a threatened plant species in Japan. We present the first quantitative data on seasonal dynamics of Z. caulescens based on a 13-month field study of a subtidal seagrass bed (4–6 m deep) in Funakoshi Bay, northeastern Japan. We investigated the relative importance of flowering shoots on total net produc- tion: these flowering shoots form a canopy structure several meters above the sea bottom. Flowering shoots were observed throughout the year but showed large seasonal variation in density, with a max- imum in spring to summer (>30 shoots m−2) and a minimum in winter (3 shoots m−2). The density of vegetative shoots fluctuated between 120 and 238 shoots m−2, but did not show a significant seasonal variation. Age distribution of both flowering and vegetative shoots showed marked seasonal varia- tion, with the peak in recruitment observed during winter to early spring.
  • Review Article Highlights in Seagrasses' Phylogeny, Physiology

    Review Article Highlights in Seagrasses' Phylogeny, Physiology

    International Scholarly Research Network ISRN Botany Volume 2012, Article ID 103892, 15 pages doi:10.5402/2012/103892 Review Article Highlights in Seagrasses’ Phylogeny, Physiology, and Metabolism: What Makes Them Special? Jutta Papenbrock Institute of Botany, Leibniz University Hannover, Herrenhauser¨ Straße 2, 30419 Hannover, Germany Correspondence should be addressed to Jutta Papenbrock, [email protected] Received 1 October 2012; Accepted 20 November 2012 Academic Editors: M. Kwaaitaal and I. Zarra Copyright © 2012 Jutta Papenbrock. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The marine seagrasses form an ecological and therefore paraphyletic group of marine hydrophilus angiosperms which evolved three to four times from land plants towards an aquatic and marine existence. Their taxonomy is not yet solved on the species level and below due to their reduced morphology. So far also molecular data did not completely solve the phylogenetic relationships. Thus, this group challenges a new definition for what a species is. Also their physiology is not well understood due to difficult experimental in situ and in vitro conditions. There remain several open questions concerning how seagrasses adapted secondarily to the marine environment. Here probably exciting adaptation solutions will be detected. Physiological adaptations seem to be more important than morphological ones. Seagrasses contain several compounds in their secondary metabolism in which they differ from terrestrial plants and also not known from other taxonomic groups. Some of these compounds might be of interest for commercial purposes.
  • The Seagrass Holobiont and Its Microbiome

    The Seagrass Holobiont and Its Microbiome

    microorganisms Review The Seagrass Holobiont and Its Microbiome Kelly Ugarelli, Seemanti Chakrabarti, Peeter Laas and Ulrich Stingl * Ft. Lauderdale Research and Education Center, Department of Microbiology and Cell Science, UF/IFAS, University of Florida, Davie, FL 33314, USA; kugarelli@ufl.edu (K.U.); seemanti@ufl.edu (S.C.); peeter.laas@ufl.edu (P.L.) * Correspondence: ustingl@ufl.edu; Tel: +1-954-577-6326 Received: 2 November 2017; Accepted: 5 December 2017; Published: 15 December 2017 Abstract: Seagrass meadows are ecologically and economically important components of many coastal areas worldwide. Ecosystem services provided by seagrasses include reducing the number of microbial pathogens in the water, providing food, shelter and nurseries for many species, and decreasing the impact of waves on the shorelines. A global assessment reported that 29% of the known areal extent of seagrasses has disappeared since seagrass areas were initially recorded in 1879. Several factors such as direct and indirect human activity contribute to the demise of seagrasses. One of the main reasons for seagrass die-offs all over the world is increased sulfide concentrations in the sediment that result from the activity of sulfate-reducing prokaryotes, which perform the last step of the anaerobic food chain in marine sediments and reduce sulfate to H2S. Recent seagrass die-offs, e.g., in the Florida and Biscayne Bays, were caused by an increase in pore-water sulfide concentrations in the sediment, which were the combined result of unfavorable environmental conditions and the activities of various groups of heterotrophic bacteria in the sulfate-rich water-column and sediment that are stimulated through increased nutrient concentrations.
  • Highlights in Seagrasses' Phylogeny, Physiology, and Metabolism: What

    Highlights in Seagrasses' Phylogeny, Physiology, and Metabolism: What

    International Scholarly Research Network ISRN Botany Volume 2012, Article ID 103892, 15 pages doi:10.5402/2012/103892 Review Article Highlights in Seagrasses’ Phylogeny, Physiology, and Metabolism: What Makes Them Special? Jutta Papenbrock Institute of Botany, Leibniz University Hannover, Herrenhauser¨ Straße 2, 30419 Hannover, Germany Correspondence should be addressed to Jutta Papenbrock, [email protected] Received 1 October 2012; Accepted 20 November 2012 Academic Editors: M. Kwaaitaal and I. Zarra Copyright © 2012 Jutta Papenbrock. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The marine seagrasses form an ecological and therefore paraphyletic group of marine hydrophilus angiosperms which evolved three to four times from land plants towards an aquatic and marine existence. Their taxonomy is not yet solved on the species level and below due to their reduced morphology. So far also molecular data did not completely solve the phylogenetic relationships. Thus, this group challenges a new definition for what a species is. Also their physiology is not well understood due to difficult experimental in situ and in vitro conditions. There remain several open questions concerning how seagrasses adapted secondarily to the marine environment. Here probably exciting adaptation solutions will be detected. Physiological adaptations seem to be more important than morphological ones. Seagrasses contain several compounds in their secondary metabolism in which they differ from terrestrial plants and also not known from other taxonomic groups. Some of these compounds might be of interest for commercial purposes.