Browsing by Author "Marbà, Nuria"
Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- Recent trend reversal for declining European seagrass meadowsPublication . de los Santos, Carmen B.; Krause-Jensen, Dorte; Alcoverro, Teresa; Marbà, Nuria; Duarte, Carlos M.; Van Katwijk, Marieke; Pérez, Marta; Romero, Javier; Sánchez Lizaso, José Luis; Roca, Guillem; Jankowska, Emilia; Perez-Llorens, Jose Lucas; Fournier, Jérôme; Montefalcone, Monica; Pergent, Gérard; Ruiz, Juan M.; Cabaço, Susana; Cook, Kevan; Wilkes, Robert J.; Moy, Frithjof E.; Trayter, Gregori Muñoz-Ramos; Arañó, Xavier Seglar; Jong, Dick J. de; Fernández-Torquemada, Yolanda; Auby, Isabelle; Vergara, Juan J.; Santos, RuiSeagrass meadows, key ecosystems supporting fisheries, carbon sequestration and coastal protection, are globally threatened. In Europe, loss and recovery of seagrasses are reported, but the changes in extent and density at the continental scale remain unclear. Here we collate assessments of changes from 1869 to 2016 and show that 1/3 of European seagrass area was lost due to disease, deteriorated water quality, and coastal development, with losses peaking in the 1970s and 1980s. Since then, loss rates slowed down for most of the species and fast-growing species recovered in some locations, making the net rate of change in seagrass area experience a reversal in the 2000s, while density metrics improved or remained stable in most sites. Our results demonstrate that decline is not the generalised state among seagrasses nowadays in Europe, in contrast with global assessments, and that deceleration and reversal of declining trends is possible, expectingly bringing back the services they provide.
- A trait-based framework for seagrass ecology: trends and prospectsPublication . Moreira-Saporiti, Agustín; Teichberg, Mirta; Garnier, Eric; Cornelissen, J. Hans C.; Alcoverro, Teresa; Björk, Mats; Boström, Christoffer; Dattolo, Emanuela; Eklöf, Johan S.; Hasler-Sheetal, Harald; Marbà, Nuria; Marín-Guirao, Lázaro; Meysick, Lukas; Olivé, Irene; Reusch, Thorsten B. H.; Ruocco, Miriam; Silva, João; Sousa, Ana I.; Procaccini, Gabriele; Santos, RuiIn the last three decades, quantitative approaches that rely on organism traits instead of taxonomy have advanced different fields of ecological research through establishing the mechanistic links between environmental drivers, functional traits, and ecosystem functions. A research subfield where trait-based approaches have been frequently used but poorly synthesized is the ecology of seagrasses; marine angiosperms that colonized the ocean 100M YA and today make up productive yet threatened coastal ecosystems globally. Here, we compiled a comprehensive trait-based response-effect framework (TBF) which builds on previous concepts and ideas, including the use of traits for the study of community assembly processes, from dispersal and response to abiotic and biotic factors, to ecosystem function and service provision. We then apply this framework to the global seagrass literature, using a systematic review to identify the strengths, gaps, and opportunities of the field. Seagrass trait research has mostly focused on the effect of environmental drivers on traits, i.e., "environmental filtering" (72%), whereas links between traits and functions are less common (26.9%). Despite the richness of trait-based data available, concepts related to TBFs are rare in the seagrass literature (15% of studies), including the relative importance of neutral and niche assembly processes, or the influence of trait dominance or complementarity in ecosystem function provision. These knowledge gaps indicate ample potential for further research, highlighting the need to understand the links between the unique traits of seagrasses and the ecosystem services they provide.