Environmental and human factors drive the subtropical marine forests of Gongolaria abies-marina to extinction
Large brown macroalgae are foundational threatened species in coastal ecosystems from the subtropical northeastern Atlantic, where they have exhibited a drastic decline in recent years. This study describes the potential habitat of Gongolaria abies-marina, its current distribution and conservation s...
Published in: | Marine Environmental Research |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
2022
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10508/16175 http://hdl.handle.net/10261/317779 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2022.105759 |
Summary: | Large brown macroalgae are foundational threatened species in coastal ecosystems from the subtropical northeastern Atlantic, where they have exhibited a drastic decline in recent years. This study describes the potential habitat of Gongolaria abies-marina, its current distribution and conservation status, and the major drivers of population decline. The results show a strong reduction of more than 97% of G. abies-marina populations in the last thirty years and highlight the effects of drivers vary in terms of spatial heterogeneity. A decrease in the frequency of high waves and high human footprint are the principal factors accounting for the long-term decline in G. abies-marina populations. UV radiation and sea surface temperature have an important correlation only in certain locations. Both the methodology and the large amount of data analyzed in this study provide a valuable tool for the conservation and restoration of threatened macroalgae. SI |
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