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Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on Ocean Ecosystem Services, Science

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Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on Ocean Ecosystem Services, Science AR-024 species provide critical services to society (6), the role of biodiversity per se remains untested at the ecosystem level (1 4). We analyzed the Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on effects of changes in marine biodiversity on fundamental ecosystem services by combining available data from sources ranging from small­ Ocean Ecosystem Services scale experiments to global fisheries. 1 2 3 4 Experiments. We first used meta-analysis Boris Worm, * Edward B. Barbier, Nicola Beaumont, ). Emmett Duffy, 5 6 8 9 of published data to examine the effects of Carl Folke, • Benjamin S. Halpern/ jeremy B. C. ]ackson, • Heike K. Lotze/ Fiorenza Micheli/0 Stephen R. Palumbi/0 Enric Sala,8 Kimberley A. Selkoe/ variation in marine diversity (genetic or species John). Stachowicz,11 Reg Watson12 richness) on primary and secondary produc­ tivity, resource use, nutrient cycling, and eco­ system stability in 32 controlled experiments. Human-dominated marine ecosystems are experiencing accelerating loss of populations and species, with largely unknown consequences. We analyzed local experiments, long-term regional Such effects have been contentiously debated, time series, and global fisheries data to test how biodiversity loss affects marine ecosystem services particularly in the marine realm, where high across temporal and spatial scales. Overall, rates of resource collapse increased and recovery diversity and connectivity may blur any deter­ potential, stability, and water quality decreased exponentially with declining diversity. Restoration ministic effect of local biodiversity on eco­ of biodiversity, in contrast, increased productivity fourfold and decreased variability by 21%, on system functioning (1). Yet when the available average. We conclude that marine biodiversity loss is increasingly impairing the ocean's capacity to experimental data are combined (I 5), they reveal a strikingly general picture (Fig. I). In­ provide food, maintain water quality; and recover from perturbations. Yet available data suggest creased diversity of both primary producers that at this point, these trends are still reversible. (Fig. IA) and consumers (Fig. 1B) enhanced all examined ecosystem processes. Observed hat is the role ofbiodiversity in main­ directly caused by exploitation, pollution, and effect sizes corresponded to a 78 to 80% taining the ecosystem services on habitat destruction, or indirectly through cli­ enhancement of primary and secondary pro­ .W which a growing human population mate change and related perturbations of ocean duction in diverse mixtures relative to mono­ depends? Recent surveys of the terrestrial biogeochemistry (9- 13). Although marine cultures and a 20 to 36% enhancement of literature suggest that local species richness extinctions are only slowly uncovered at the resource use efficiency (Fig. I, A and B). may enhance ecosystem productivity and sta­ global scale (9), regional ecosystems such as Experiments that manipulated species di­ bility (1-3). However, the importance of bio­ estuaries (J 0), coral reefs ( 11), and coastal ( 12) versity (Fig. 1B) or genetic diversity (Fig. 1C) diversity changes at the landscape level is less and oceanic fish communities (1 3) are rapidly both found that diversity enhanced ecosystem clear, and the lessons from local experiments losing populations, species, or entire functional stability, here defined as the ability to withstand and theory do not seem to easily extend to long­ groups. Although it is clear that particular recurrent perturbations. This effect was linked term, large-scale management decisions (3). These issues are particularly enigmatic for the Fig. 1. Marine bio- 0.8 - world's oceans, which are geographically large diversity and ecosystem 0.7 A B and taxonomically complex, making the scal­ functioning in controlled ing up from local to global scales potentially experiments. Shown are 0.6 ! more difficult (4). Marine ecosystems provide a response ratios [tn(high/ ~ Q) 0.5 wide variety of goods and services, including low diversity} ±95% con- U) c 0.4 . vital food resources for millions ofpeople (5, 6). fidence interval (CI}] of I ! 8. U) A large and increasing proportion of our pop­ ecosystem processes to 0.3 ulation lives close to the coast; thus the loss of experimental manipula- ~ r:: 0.2 services such as flood control and waste de­ tions of species diversity _j 1 toxification can have disastrous consequences of (A) primary producers 0.1 I ! (7, 8). Changes in marine biodiversity are (plants and algae}, and 0.0 .................................................................. ................................ (B) consumers (herbivores (5) (3) (14) (5) (6) (9) (8) c: 2-C and predators}. Incr eased G> 2-C: G> 1 0 {g.g _g.g 0epartment of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, !:! 2-'l3 !:! 'Co 2 diversity significantly en- c:g 8g -~ Canada B3H 4)1. Department of Economics and Finance, 0 0-o 0 ·~ :§ :.5 "' E "C "'0"' - u Univef5ity of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071, USA. 3Plymouth hanced aU examined eco- "' ., ·"'"'c:: e ~ ~ g~ a:., ::J"' ll.C. C/)Q. a:., ::l"' C/)Q. ~~ U5"' Marine Laboratory, Plymouth PL13DH, UK. "virginia lnstiMe system functions (0.05 > . of Marine Sdences, Gloucester Point, VA 23062-1346, USA P > 0.0001}. The number Producer diversity Consumer diversity 50epartment of Systems Ecology, Stockholm Univer5ity, of studies is given in 6 Stockholm, SE·106 91 Sweden. Beijer International Institute (0 §1400 parentheses. Genetic ?:- 70 of Ecological Economics, Royal Swedish Academy of Sdences, ·u; 1200 . D 7 diversity increased the 'g SE-104 OS, Stockholm, Sweden. National Center for r:: 65 recovery of seagrass eco- Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, Santa Barbara, CA ~ 60 ~ 1000 8 systems after overgrazing c. 93101. USA. Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conserva· 8 55 0>800 tion, Scrip,ps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla. CA 92093- (solid drctes) and ctimatic .J::. 9 en 50 0202, USA Smithsonian Tropical Research lnstiMe, Box extremes (open drdes). :g ~600 1 45 'C 2072, Balboa, Republic of Panama. ~opkins Marine Station, 8_400 1 (D) Diet diversity en- !!! Stanford University, Padfic Grove, CA 93950, USA. 'section Cl 40 hanced reproductive ca- ~ 200 of Evolution and Ecology, Univer5ity of California, Davis, CA "'Q) 35 0 95616, USA. ll Fisheries Centre, Univer5ity of British pacity in zooplankton (/) (..) 0 Columbia. Vancouver, BC. Canada V6T 1Z4. <JVer both the average- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Average Best Mixed diet •ro whom correspondence should be addressed. E·mail: and best-performing Number of genotypes Monocultures 4 species [email protected] monocultures. www.sciencemag.org SCIENCE VOL 314 3 NOVEMBER 2006 787 :;XT"'IIOEO PDf rl'tMAT ~ l N30 r>y Travel GrantsAvailable Neurosc•t nee 2014 Ar'lfllleollttOI"' De t(11tllt kllf'y' 31"' A::>olv 1\Jt.~w !'-..!?....-=: www r.,r.hyst c-na. ta l~ Impacts of Biodiversity Loss on Ocean Ecosystem Services Boris Worm et a/. Science 314, 787 (2006); DOl: 10.1126/science.1132294 This copy is foryourpersonal, non-commercial use only. If you wish to distribute this article to others, you can order high-quality copies for your colleagues, clients, or customers by clicking here. Permission to republish or repurpose articles or portions of articles can be obtained by following the guidelines here. The following resources related to this article are available online at www.sciencemag.org (this information is current as ofJune 9, 2014 ): Updated information and services, including high-resolution figures, can be found in the online version of this article at: http://www.sciencemag.org/contenU314/5800/787.full .html Supporting Online Material can be found at: http://www.sciencemag.org/contenUsuppl/2006/1 0/31/314.5800.787. DC1.html A list of selected additional articles on the Science Web sites related to this article can be found at: http://www.sciencemag.org/contenU314/5800/787. full.html#related This article cites 23 articles, 13 ofwhich can be accessed free: http://www.sciencemag.org/contenU314/5800/787.full.html#ref-1 ist-1 This article has been cited by 362 article(s) on the lSI Web of Science This article has been cited by 100 articles hosted by HighWire Press; see: http://www.sciencemag.org/contenU314/5800/787. full.html#related-urls This article appears in the following subject co llections: Ecology . http://www.sciencemag .or g/cgi/collection/ecology Science (print ISSN 0036-8075; online ISSN 1095-9203) is published weekly, except the last week in December, by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1200 New York Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20005. Copyright 2006 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science; all rights reserved . The title Science is a registered trademark ofAAAS. RESEARCH ARTICLE to either increased resistance to disturbance (/6) or ships are difficult to infer, these data suggest that the outer margins of the major current systems enhanced recovery aftetward (/7). A number of substantial loss ofbiodiversity (Fig. 2, A and C) (21). They are characterized by distinct bathym­ experiments on diet mixing further demonstrated is closely associated with regional loss of etry, hydrography, productivity, and food webs. the importance of diverse food sources for ecosystem services (Fig. 2D) and increasing risks Collectively, these areas produced 83% ofglobal sccondaty production and the channeling of that for coastal inhabitants (Fig. 2E). Experimentally fisheries yields over the past 50 years. Fish di­ energy to higher levels in the food web (Fig. !D). derived predictions that more species-rich
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