Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse.
The CARICOMP monitoring network gathered standardized data from 52 seagrass sampling stations at 22 sites (mostly Thalassia testudinum-dominated beds in reef systems) across the Wider Caribbean twice a year over the period 1993 to 2007 (and in some cases up to 2012). Wide variations in community tot...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2014-01-01
|
| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0090600&type=printable |
| _version_ | 1826799100458172416 |
|---|---|
| author | Brigitta I van Tussenbroek Jorge Cortés Rachel Collin Ana C Fonseca Peter M H Gayle Hector M Guzmán Gabriel E Jácome Rahanna Juman Karen H Koltes Hazel A Oxenford Alberto Rodríguez-Ramirez Jimena Samper-Villarreal Struan R Smith John J Tschirky Ernesto Weil |
| author_facet | Brigitta I van Tussenbroek Jorge Cortés Rachel Collin Ana C Fonseca Peter M H Gayle Hector M Guzmán Gabriel E Jácome Rahanna Juman Karen H Koltes Hazel A Oxenford Alberto Rodríguez-Ramirez Jimena Samper-Villarreal Struan R Smith John J Tschirky Ernesto Weil |
| author_sort | Brigitta I van Tussenbroek |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The CARICOMP monitoring network gathered standardized data from 52 seagrass sampling stations at 22 sites (mostly Thalassia testudinum-dominated beds in reef systems) across the Wider Caribbean twice a year over the period 1993 to 2007 (and in some cases up to 2012). Wide variations in community total biomass (285 to >2000 g dry m(-2)) and annual foliar productivity of the dominant seagrass T. testudinum (<200 and >2000 g dry m(-2)) were found among sites. Solar-cycle related intra-annual variations in T. testudinum leaf productivity were detected at latitudes > 16°N. Hurricanes had little to no long-term effects on these well-developed seagrass communities, except for 1 station, where the vegetation was lost by burial below ∼1 m sand. At two sites (5 stations), the seagrass beds collapsed due to excessive grazing by turtles or sea-urchins (the latter in combination with human impact and storms). The low-cost methods of this regional-scale monitoring program were sufficient to detect long-term shifts in the communities, and fifteen (43%) out of 35 long-term monitoring stations (at 17 sites) showed trends in seagrass communities consistent with expected changes under environmental deterioration. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T08:45:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-acf9a43d937a450ebd0796bb4e371349 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-03-17T00:29:43Z |
| publishDate | 2014-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-acf9a43d937a450ebd0796bb4e3713492025-02-21T05:36:40ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032014-01-0193e9060010.1371/journal.pone.0090600Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse.Brigitta I van TussenbroekJorge CortésRachel CollinAna C FonsecaPeter M H GayleHector M GuzmánGabriel E JácomeRahanna JumanKaren H KoltesHazel A OxenfordAlberto Rodríguez-RamirezJimena Samper-VillarrealStruan R SmithJohn J TschirkyErnesto WeilThe CARICOMP monitoring network gathered standardized data from 52 seagrass sampling stations at 22 sites (mostly Thalassia testudinum-dominated beds in reef systems) across the Wider Caribbean twice a year over the period 1993 to 2007 (and in some cases up to 2012). Wide variations in community total biomass (285 to >2000 g dry m(-2)) and annual foliar productivity of the dominant seagrass T. testudinum (<200 and >2000 g dry m(-2)) were found among sites. Solar-cycle related intra-annual variations in T. testudinum leaf productivity were detected at latitudes > 16°N. Hurricanes had little to no long-term effects on these well-developed seagrass communities, except for 1 station, where the vegetation was lost by burial below ∼1 m sand. At two sites (5 stations), the seagrass beds collapsed due to excessive grazing by turtles or sea-urchins (the latter in combination with human impact and storms). The low-cost methods of this regional-scale monitoring program were sufficient to detect long-term shifts in the communities, and fifteen (43%) out of 35 long-term monitoring stations (at 17 sites) showed trends in seagrass communities consistent with expected changes under environmental deterioration.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0090600&type=printable |
| spellingShingle | Brigitta I van Tussenbroek Jorge Cortés Rachel Collin Ana C Fonseca Peter M H Gayle Hector M Guzmán Gabriel E Jácome Rahanna Juman Karen H Koltes Hazel A Oxenford Alberto Rodríguez-Ramirez Jimena Samper-Villarreal Struan R Smith John J Tschirky Ernesto Weil Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse. PLoS ONE |
| title | Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse. |
| title_full | Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse. |
| title_fullStr | Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse. |
| title_short | Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse. |
| title_sort | caribbean wide long term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations shifts in community structure and occasional collapse |
| url | https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0090600&type=printable |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT brigittaivantussenbroek caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT jorgecortes caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT rachelcollin caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT anacfonseca caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT petermhgayle caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT hectormguzman caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT gabrielejacome caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT rahannajuman caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT karenhkoltes caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT hazelaoxenford caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT albertorodriguezramirez caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT jimenasampervillarreal caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT struanrsmith caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT johnjtschirky caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse AT ernestoweil caribbeanwidelongtermstudyofseagrassbedsrevealslocalvariationsshiftsincommunitystructureandoccasionalcollapse |