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...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	PloS one Vol. 9; no. 3; p. e90600
Main Authors:	van Tussenbroek, Brigitta I, Cortés, Jorge, Collin, Rachel, Fonseca, Ana C, Gayle, Peter M H, Guzmán, Hector M, Jácome, Gabriel E, Juman, Rahanna, Koltes, Karen H, Oxenford, Hazel A, Rodríguez-Ramirez, Alberto, Samper-Villarreal, Jimena, Smith, Struan R, Tschirky, John J, Weil, Ernesto
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	United States Public Library of Science 03-03-2014 Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Subjects:	Algae Annual variations Biology Biomass Biota Caribbean Region Coasts Coral reefs Earth Sciences Environmental deterioration Environmental Monitoring - methods Environmental Monitoring - statistics & numerical data Fishes Grasses Hurricanes Hydrocharitaceae - growth & development Morphology Nutrients Population Dynamics Productivity Sea turtles Sediments Studies Thalassia testudinum Water quality Caribbean Region
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Summary:	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.
Bibliography:	Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. Current address: The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia Performed the experiments: BIT JC RC ACF PMHG HMG GEJ RJ KHK HAO ARR JSV SRS JJT EW. Analyzed the data: BIT. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: BIT JC RC ACF PMHG HMG GEJ RJ KHK HAO ARR JSV SRS JJT EW. Wrote the paper: BIT JC RC ACF PMHG HMG GEJ RJ KHK HAO ARR JSV SRS JJT EW. Current address: Bermuda Aquarium Museum and Zoo, Bermuda
ISSN:	1932-6203 1932-6203
DOI:	10.1371/journal.pone.0090600