Structural and functional composition of fish communities associated to Zostera noltii meadows as a response to natural habitat recovery

Castro, Nuno; Penedos, Cláudia; Félix, Pedro; Chainho, Paula; Pereira, Tadeu José; Costa, María José; Almeida, Armando J.; Adão, Helena; Costa, José Lino

doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2019.05.066

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…While the consequences of shifts in seagrass identity in the Chesapeake Bay to food webs are unknown, examples from other regions suggest that the long-term response of fisheries to shifting seagrasses is linked to habitat consistency; after large-scale Z. marina die-off in Portugal, temperature-tolerant dwarf eelgrass ( Z. noltii ) is now dominant but supports lower long-term fish diversity and abundance because of interannual cover fluctuations ( 62 ). In the Chesapeake Bay, widegongrass’ short leaf height and size require higher shoot densities to provide comparable canopy structure and prey refuge to eelgrass ( 30 , 31 ), but temporal differences in emergence time [i.e., early spring eelgrass emergence vs. summer widgeongrass emergence ( 37 )] could result in lack of habitat altogether for important transient or juvenile species like blue crabs ( Callinectes sapidus ), spot ( Leiostomus xanthurus ), mysids ( Neomysis spp.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rise ofRuppiain Chesapeake Bay: Climate change–driven turnover of foundation species creates new threats and management opportunities

Patrick

Orth

Wilcox

et al. 2023

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Global change has converted many structurally complex and ecologically and economically valuable coastlines to bare substrate. In the structural habitats that remain, climate-tolerant and opportunistic species are increasing in response to environmental extremes and variability. The shifting of dominant foundation species identity with climate change poses a unique conservation challenge because species vary in their responses to environmental stressors and to management. Here, we combine 35 y of watershed modeling and biogeochemical water quality data with species comprehensive aerial surveys to describe causes and consequences of turnover in seagrass foundation species across 26,000 ha of habitat in the Chesapeake Bay. Repeated marine heatwaves have caused 54% retraction of the formerly dominant eelgrass ( Zostera marina ) since 1991, allowing 171% expansion of the temperature-tolerant widgeongrass ( Ruppia maritima ) that has likewise benefited from large-scale nutrient reductions. However, this phase shift in dominant seagrass identity now presents two significant shifts for management: Widgeongrass meadows are not only responsible for rapid, extensive recoveries but also for the largest crashes over the last four decades; and, while adapted to high temperatures, are much more susceptible than eelgrass to nutrient pulses driven by springtime runoff. Thus, by selecting for rapid post-disturbance recolonization but low resistance to punctuated freshwater flow disturbance, climate change could threaten the Chesapeake Bay seagrass’ ability to provide consistent fishery habitat and sustain functioning over time. We demonstrate that understanding the dynamics of the next generation of foundation species is a critical management priority, because shifts from relatively stable habitat to high interannual variability can have far-reaching consequences across marine and terrestrial ecosystems.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rise ofRuppiain Chesapeake Bay: Climate change–driven turnover of foundation species creates new threats and management opportunities

Patrick

Orth

Wilcox

et al. 2023

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Among the habitats of the Atlantic coastal region adjacent to the Mondego River, seagrass and saltmarsh ecosystems are among the most important. Seagrasses and saltmarshes play a vital role in the accretion of fine sediment and filtration of nutrients (Lillebø et al, 1999;Sousa et al, 2008), as nurseries, and supporting commercially important fisheries (Castro et al, 2016(Castro et al, , 2019. With the ongoing climate change trend, the biomass of seagrass and saltmarsh species is expected to increase, fostered by high levels of CO 2 in the atmosphere (Short et al, 2016) and an increment in the temperature (Couto et al, 2014).…”

Section: The Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecosystem services as a resilience descriptor in habitat risk assessment using the InVEST model

Vera

Marques

Cunha

et al. 2020

Ecological Indicators

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“…Remote Sens. 2023, 15, 4086 2 of 14 including endangered or threatened species [10], their productivity (e.g., [1]), functional redundancy, and potential ecosystem resilience to other threats [11,12]. As a result, their importance is now recognized globally [3,13], and various initiatives have been developed to promote their conservation [7,14] and even active restoration as nature-based solutions to address a variety of environmental challenges, ranging from mitigating climate change and biodiversity loss to delivering other societal benefits [15,16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Ria de Aveiro, the extent of Z. noltei has also been increasing after a historical minimum extent in the 2000s [8], while a Zostera marina Linnaeus, 1753 population in Ria that had been nearly extinct since 2010 is now recovering (FITA, https://bio-eco.wixsite.com/fita, accessed on 1 May 2023). Finally, in the downstream Mira estuary, Z. noltei meadows completely collapsed from a stable population in 2008 [18] and recovered back to a healthy population by 2015 [11]. Reasons for their recovery include eutrophication amelioration [1], the implementation of environmental measures to avoid physical disturbance [1,8], increased awareness and social programs for their conservation (e.g., OceanAlive, www.ocean-alive.org, accessed on 15 May 2023), and active restoration initiatives [4,21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterisation and Dynamics of an Emerging Seagrass Meadow

Dolbeth,

Costa,

Meyer

et al. 2023

Remote Sensing

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Seagrasses are habitat-forming species that support biodiversity and a wide range of associated ecosystem services, from blue carbon capture to providing nursery areas for a variety of organisms. Their decline has been documented worldwide and is attributed to human impacts ranging from habitat loss and eutrophication to the effects of climate change. However, recent recovery trends have also been documented due to reductions in stressors, passive and active restoration, and even changes in environmental conditions owing to local management. In this study, we document for the first time the occurrence of Zostera noltei in the downstream area of the River Minho Estuary. This occurrence was unexpected given the hydrological conditions of the estuary, characterised by dredging and siltation. We reconstructed the occurrence and historical distribution of seagrass beds, and showed that they have existed in the region for more than a decade. The current distribution area was mapped using high-resolution multispectral remote sensing techniques, and in situ photoquadrats to complement the remote sensing information with an evaluation of the seagrass cover. A current seagrass area of 0.81 ha was found with an average cover of 70%. However, the Minho Estuary continues to be strongly affected by sediment deposition, which may affect the seagrass population in the long term. Continued surveys are recommended to confirm the long-term trend of colonisation of this important habitat, which ultimately provides so many benefits to coastal ecosystems and humankind.

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Structural and functional composition of fish communities associated to Zostera noltii meadows as a response to natural habitat recovery

Cited by 5 publications

References 48 publications

Rise ofRuppiain Chesapeake Bay: Climate change–driven turnover of foundation species creates new threats and management opportunities

Rise ofRuppiain Chesapeake Bay: Climate change–driven turnover of foundation species creates new threats and management opportunities

Ecosystem services as a resilience descriptor in habitat risk assessment using the InVEST model

Characterisation and Dynamics of an Emerging Seagrass Meadow

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