Accelerating loss of seagrasses across the globe threatens coastal ecosystems

By Michelle Waycott, Carlos M. Duarte, Tim Carruthers, R. Orth, W. Dennison, S. Olyarnik, Ainsley Calladine, J. Fourqurean, K. Heck, A. Hughes and 4 more. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2009

3,833 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Subfields: Ecology, Oceanography

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/26273b2d5857d00273acf051a402cb1ff9fd0e2c

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Ecology

1. Aaron J. Wirsing
2. Edward B. Barbier
3. Lawrence M. Dill
4. Michael R. Heithaus
5. Bj Godley
6. J. Emmett Duffy
7. AC Broderick
8. G. Hays

In Oceanography

1. Edward B. Barbier
2. J. Emmett Duffy
3. H. Christie
4. Thorsten B. H. Reusch
5. Carlos M. Duarte
6. Aaron J. Wirsing
7. F. Moy
8. Gabriele Procaccini

Citations in the corpus

• The Tropical Seagrass Halophila stipulacea: Reviewing What We Know From Its Native and Invasive Habitats, Alongside Identifying Knowledge Gaps (2020, background): “Runoff of nutrients and sediments that reduce water quality and light penetration, increases in water temperatures, alongside longer, and more frequent heatwaves, have been identified as major threats to seagrass meadows (Waycott et al., 2009; Marbà and Duarte, 2010; Jordà et al., 2012; Oliver et al”
• Seasonal Patterns of Sporophyte Growth, Fertility, Fouling, and Mortality of Saccharina latissima in Skagerrak, Norway: Implications for Forest Recovery (2011, background): “Large-scale shift from perennial macrophytes to short lived ephemeral algae is a global problem [1–4].”
• The seascape nursery: a novel spatial approach to identify and manage nurseries for coastal marine fauna (2015, neutral): “1997), these ecosystems have suffered from rapid degradation (Waycott et al. 2009).”
• A review of seagrass economic valuations: Gaps and progress in valuation approaches (2016, background): “Chief among the potential impacts to the coastal ecosystem by burgeoning populations is the decrease in water quality due to runoff, dredging and other human activities (Waycott et al., 2009; Grech et al., 2012).”
• Diversity, distribution and conservation of Chinese seagrass species: Diversity, distribution and conservation of Chinese seagrass species (2014, neutral): “…约 有14%(10种)的海草种类正面临灭绝的风险(Short et al., 2011), 因此海草研究正成为海洋生态与保护 工作中关注的热点, 沿海各国纷纷进行海草分布监 测(Coles et al., 2009)、种类调查(Short et al, 2007)、 修复重建(Campbell & Paling, 2003; Park & Lee, 2007; Shafer & Bergstrom, 2010)等研究工作。 自Miki(1932)首次提及中国海草后的近半个世 纪之后, 中国学者才开始对中国海草进行零星报道 (杨宗岱, 1979, 1982; 杨宗岱和吴宝铃,…”
• Shift in seagrass food web structure over decades is linked to overfishing (2012, background): “Human activities have altered seagrass ecosystems, with the worldwide distribution of seagrasses decreasing by 29% over the last 140 yr, and 58% of the remaining documented seagrass meadows is in decline (Waycott et al. 2009).”
• Seagrass reproductive effort as an ecological indicator of disturbance (2012, background): “Anthropogenic disturbances are the main cause of seagrass decline worldwide (Waycott et al., 2009); interestingly, seagrass RE response was 3-fold higher under anthropogenic than natural disturbances.”
• Ghosts of the coast: global extinction risk and conservation of sawfishes (2016, background): “Globally, mangrove cover has been reduced by between 20 and 35% since 1980 and seagrass cover has been reduced by 29% since the late 1800s resulting in elevated extinction risk for these critical habitats (FAO, 2007; Waycott et al., 2009; Polidoro et al., 2010; Short et al., 2011).”
• Mutualistic interactions amplify saltmarsh restoration success (2018, background): “At present, anthropogenic forcing including climate change, eutrophication and overfishing have severely degraded 19%–85% of all coral and shellfish reefs, seagrass meadows, mangroves and saltmarshes, and these losses still continue (Beck et al., 2011; Gedan & Silliman, 2009; Millennium Ecosystem As”
• Biogeomorphology of the Mediterranean Posidonia oceanica seagrass meadows (2017, background): “However, the combined effects of both anthropogenic and natural disturbances is leading to a global decline of seagrass meadows, with rates of loss estimated at 2 to 5% per year (Waycott et al., 2009; Short et al., 2011).”
• Marine megaherbivore grazing may increase seagrass tolerance to high nutrient loads (2012, background): “…global seagrass decline is generally suggested to be the indirect result of increased nutrient loads, causing seagrasses to be overgrown by algae and epiphytes (Hauxwell, Cebrian & Valiela 2003; Orth et al. 2006; Burkholder, Tomasko & Touchette 2007; Waycott et al. 2009; van Katwijk et al. 2010).”
• Global conservation status and research needs for tarpons (Megalopidae), ladyfishes (Elopidae) and bonefishes (Albulidae) (2014, background): “Globally, there has been a 29% decline in seagrass coverage since original estimates in 1879, and seagrasses have continued to disappear at a rate of 110 km2 per year since 1980 (Waycott et al. 2009).”