Global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model
Seagrasses, marine flowering plants, are widely distributed along temperate and tropical coastlines of the world. Seagrasses have key ecological roles in coastal ecosystems and can form extensive meadows supporting high biodiversity. The global species diversity of seagrasses is low (< 60 species...
Published in: | Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology |
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Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/2440/74422 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2007.06.012 |
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ftunivadelaidedl:oai:digital.library.adelaide.edu.au:2440/74422 2023-05-15T17:31:37+02:00 Global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model Short, F. Carruthers, T. Dennison, W. Waycott, M. 2007 http://hdl.handle.net/2440/74422 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2007.06.012 en eng Company of Biologists Ltd The Journal of Experimental Biology, 2007; 350(1-2):3-20 0022-0949 1879-1697 http://hdl.handle.net/2440/74422 doi:10.1016/j.jembe.2007.06.012 Waycott, M. [0000-0002-0822-0564] Copyright © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Bioregional models Diversity Global distribution Seagrass Species Temperate Tropical Journal article 2007 ftunivadelaidedl https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2007.06.012 2023-02-05T19:35:25Z Seagrasses, marine flowering plants, are widely distributed along temperate and tropical coastlines of the world. Seagrasses have key ecological roles in coastal ecosystems and can form extensive meadows supporting high biodiversity. The global species diversity of seagrasses is low (< 60 species), but species can have ranges that extend for thousands of kilometers of coastline. Seagrass bioregions are defined here, based on species assemblages, species distributional ranges, and tropical and temperate influences. Six global bioregions are presented: four temperate and two tropical. The temperate bioregions include the Temperate North Atlantic, the Temperate North Pacific, the Mediterranean, and the Temperate Southern Oceans. The Temperate North Atlantic has low seagrass diversity, the major species being Zostera marina, typically occurring in estuaries and lagoons. The Temperate North Pacific has high seagrass diversity with Zostera spp. in estuaries and lagoons as well as Phyllospadix spp. in the surf zone. The Mediterranean region has clear water with vast meadows of moderate diversity of both temperate and tropical seagrasses, dominated by deep-growing Posidonia oceanica. The Temperate Southern Oceans bioregion includes the temperate southern coastlines of Australia, Africa and South America. Extensive meadows of low-to-high diversity temperate seagrasses are found in this bioregion, dominated by various species of Posidonia and Zostera. The tropical bioregions are the Tropical Atlantic and the Tropical Indo-Pacific, both supporting mega-herbivore grazers, including sea turtles and sirenia. The Tropical Atlantic bioregion has clear water with a high diversity of seagrasses on reefs and shallow banks, dominated by Thalassia testudinum. The vast Tropical Indo-Pacific has the highest seagrass diversity in the world, with as many as 14 species growing together on reef flats although seagrasses also occur in very deep waters. The global distribution of seagrass genera is remarkably consistent north and south ... Article in Journal/Newspaper North Atlantic The University of Adelaide: Digital Library Pacific Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 350 1-2 3 20 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
The University of Adelaide: Digital Library |
op_collection_id |
ftunivadelaidedl |
language |
English |
topic |
Bioregional models Diversity Global distribution Seagrass Species Temperate Tropical |
spellingShingle |
Bioregional models Diversity Global distribution Seagrass Species Temperate Tropical Short, F. Carruthers, T. Dennison, W. Waycott, M. Global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model |
topic_facet |
Bioregional models Diversity Global distribution Seagrass Species Temperate Tropical |
description |
Seagrasses, marine flowering plants, are widely distributed along temperate and tropical coastlines of the world. Seagrasses have key ecological roles in coastal ecosystems and can form extensive meadows supporting high biodiversity. The global species diversity of seagrasses is low (< 60 species), but species can have ranges that extend for thousands of kilometers of coastline. Seagrass bioregions are defined here, based on species assemblages, species distributional ranges, and tropical and temperate influences. Six global bioregions are presented: four temperate and two tropical. The temperate bioregions include the Temperate North Atlantic, the Temperate North Pacific, the Mediterranean, and the Temperate Southern Oceans. The Temperate North Atlantic has low seagrass diversity, the major species being Zostera marina, typically occurring in estuaries and lagoons. The Temperate North Pacific has high seagrass diversity with Zostera spp. in estuaries and lagoons as well as Phyllospadix spp. in the surf zone. The Mediterranean region has clear water with vast meadows of moderate diversity of both temperate and tropical seagrasses, dominated by deep-growing Posidonia oceanica. The Temperate Southern Oceans bioregion includes the temperate southern coastlines of Australia, Africa and South America. Extensive meadows of low-to-high diversity temperate seagrasses are found in this bioregion, dominated by various species of Posidonia and Zostera. The tropical bioregions are the Tropical Atlantic and the Tropical Indo-Pacific, both supporting mega-herbivore grazers, including sea turtles and sirenia. The Tropical Atlantic bioregion has clear water with a high diversity of seagrasses on reefs and shallow banks, dominated by Thalassia testudinum. The vast Tropical Indo-Pacific has the highest seagrass diversity in the world, with as many as 14 species growing together on reef flats although seagrasses also occur in very deep waters. The global distribution of seagrass genera is remarkably consistent north and south ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Short, F. Carruthers, T. Dennison, W. Waycott, M. |
author_facet |
Short, F. Carruthers, T. Dennison, W. Waycott, M. |
author_sort |
Short, F. |
title |
Global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model |
title_short |
Global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model |
title_full |
Global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model |
title_fullStr |
Global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model |
title_full_unstemmed |
Global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model |
title_sort |
global seagrass distribution and diversity: a bioregional model |
publisher |
Company of Biologists Ltd |
publishDate |
2007 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/2440/74422 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2007.06.012 |
geographic |
Pacific |
geographic_facet |
Pacific |
genre |
North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic |
op_relation |
The Journal of Experimental Biology, 2007; 350(1-2):3-20 0022-0949 1879-1697 http://hdl.handle.net/2440/74422 doi:10.1016/j.jembe.2007.06.012 Waycott, M. [0000-0002-0822-0564] |
op_rights |
Copyright © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jembe.2007.06.012 |
container_title |
Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology |
container_volume |
350 |
container_issue |
1-2 |
container_start_page |
3 |
op_container_end_page |
20 |
_version_ |
1766129284010737664 |