Estimating Effects of Sea Level Rise on Benthic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in a Large Meso-Tidal Coastal Lagoon
Estuaries are among the world’s most productive ecosystems, but due to their geographic location, they are at the forefront of anthropogenic pressures. Sea level rise (SLR) is one major consequence of climate change that poses a threat to estuaries with extensive intertidal habitats. The ecological...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Biology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/12/1/105 |
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| author | Olivia Dixon Johanna Gammal Dana Clark Joanne I. Ellis Conrad A. Pilditch |
| author_facet | Olivia Dixon Johanna Gammal Dana Clark Joanne I. Ellis Conrad A. Pilditch |
| author_sort | Olivia Dixon |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Estuaries are among the world’s most productive ecosystems, but due to their geographic location, they are at the forefront of anthropogenic pressures. Sea level rise (SLR) is one major consequence of climate change that poses a threat to estuaries with extensive intertidal habitats. The ecological implications of intertidal habitat loss have been largely overlooked despite their likely significance. We aimed to address this knowledge gap by investigating how benthic macroinvertebrate communities and their contributions to ecosystem function are likely to respond to SLR. Based on a spatially extensive dataset (119 sites) from a large coastal lagoon, depth, sediment chlorophyll concentrations, mud content, and average current speed were identified as the main drivers of community compositional turnover. Shifts in benthic community structure and associated functional implications were then evaluated using depth as a proxy for SLR. Three main macrofaunal groups representing intertidal, shallow subtidal, and deep subtidal habitats were identified. Functional trait analysis indicated low functional redundancy for a key intertidal suspension-feeding bivalve (<i>Austrovenus stutchburyi</i>) and the lack of a shallow subtidal functional replacement should intertidal habitats become inundated. These findings strongly suggest SLR and the associated environmental changes will alter estuarine macroinvertebrate communities, with implications for future ecosystem function and resilience. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:30:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-04bb8909b0ed44eaa8ea2966079bb507 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-7737 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:30:47Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-04bb8909b0ed44eaa8ea2966079bb5072023-11-30T21:17:27ZengMDPI AGBiology2079-77372023-01-0112110510.3390/biology12010105Estimating Effects of Sea Level Rise on Benthic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in a Large Meso-Tidal Coastal LagoonOlivia Dixon0Johanna Gammal1Dana Clark2Joanne I. Ellis3Conrad A. Pilditch4School of Science, The University of Waikato, Hamilton 3240, New ZealandSchool of Science, The University of Waikato, Hamilton 3240, New ZealandCawthron Institute, Nelson 7010, New ZealandSchool of Science, The University of Waikato, Tauranga 3110, New ZealandSchool of Science, The University of Waikato, Hamilton 3240, New ZealandEstuaries are among the world’s most productive ecosystems, but due to their geographic location, they are at the forefront of anthropogenic pressures. Sea level rise (SLR) is one major consequence of climate change that poses a threat to estuaries with extensive intertidal habitats. The ecological implications of intertidal habitat loss have been largely overlooked despite their likely significance. We aimed to address this knowledge gap by investigating how benthic macroinvertebrate communities and their contributions to ecosystem function are likely to respond to SLR. Based on a spatially extensive dataset (119 sites) from a large coastal lagoon, depth, sediment chlorophyll concentrations, mud content, and average current speed were identified as the main drivers of community compositional turnover. Shifts in benthic community structure and associated functional implications were then evaluated using depth as a proxy for SLR. Three main macrofaunal groups representing intertidal, shallow subtidal, and deep subtidal habitats were identified. Functional trait analysis indicated low functional redundancy for a key intertidal suspension-feeding bivalve (<i>Austrovenus stutchburyi</i>) and the lack of a shallow subtidal functional replacement should intertidal habitats become inundated. These findings strongly suggest SLR and the associated environmental changes will alter estuarine macroinvertebrate communities, with implications for future ecosystem function and resilience.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/12/1/105sea-level riseestuariesintertidal area lossbenthic macrofaunafunctional groupsAotearoa New Zealand |
| spellingShingle | Olivia Dixon Johanna Gammal Dana Clark Joanne I. Ellis Conrad A. Pilditch Estimating Effects of Sea Level Rise on Benthic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in a Large Meso-Tidal Coastal Lagoon Biology sea-level rise estuaries intertidal area loss benthic macrofauna functional groups Aotearoa New Zealand |
| title | Estimating Effects of Sea Level Rise on Benthic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in a Large Meso-Tidal Coastal Lagoon |
| title_full | Estimating Effects of Sea Level Rise on Benthic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in a Large Meso-Tidal Coastal Lagoon |
| title_fullStr | Estimating Effects of Sea Level Rise on Benthic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in a Large Meso-Tidal Coastal Lagoon |
| title_full_unstemmed | Estimating Effects of Sea Level Rise on Benthic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in a Large Meso-Tidal Coastal Lagoon |
| title_short | Estimating Effects of Sea Level Rise on Benthic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in a Large Meso-Tidal Coastal Lagoon |
| title_sort | estimating effects of sea level rise on benthic biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in a large meso tidal coastal lagoon |
| topic | sea-level rise estuaries intertidal area loss benthic macrofauna functional groups Aotearoa New Zealand |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/12/1/105 |
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