Analysis of the trophic role of Mediterranean seagrasses in marine coastal ecosystems: a review
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Salvatrice Vizzini
Abstract
Seagrasses form high-productivity coastal ecosystems, providing habitats for many organisms, including species of commercial value. They play a significant role as a direct food source for herbivores and also enter detrital food webs. In this review, the trophic ecology of Mediterranean seagrass ecosystems is revised, with major emphasis on Posidonia oceanica, the most extensively studied seagrass. The major topics are the role of herbivory and detritus, the contribution to littoral fish production, exportation to other ecosystems and the seagrass role as a vector of anthropogenic nutrients into food webs. Topics are discussed by analysing both conventional knowledge and new insights derived from the application of carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis. In conclusion, perspectives for future research are highlighted, with particular emphasis on areas demanding further study and on the effects of seagrass decline on trophic organisation in coastal environments.
©2009 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin New York
Articles in the same Issue
- Guest introduction
- Mediterranean seagrasses
- Reviews
- Analysis of the trophic role of Mediterranean seagrasses in marine coastal ecosystems: a review
- Regression of Mediterranean seagrasses caused by natural processes and anthropogenic disturbances and stress: a critical review
- Research articles
- Wave energy and the upper depth limit distribution of Posidonia oceanica
- Spatial variability in ecological attributes of the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa
- Mesograzers in Posidonia oceanica meadows: an update of data on gastropod-epiphyte-seagrass interactions
- The importance of herbivory in the decline of a seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) meadow near a fish farm: an experimental approach
- Responses of the Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica to in situ simulated salinity increase
- Evaluation of the viability of Posidonia oceanica transplants associated with a marina expansion
- Meetings
- Meetings
Articles in the same Issue
- Guest introduction
- Mediterranean seagrasses
- Reviews
- Analysis of the trophic role of Mediterranean seagrasses in marine coastal ecosystems: a review
- Regression of Mediterranean seagrasses caused by natural processes and anthropogenic disturbances and stress: a critical review
- Research articles
- Wave energy and the upper depth limit distribution of Posidonia oceanica
- Spatial variability in ecological attributes of the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa
- Mesograzers in Posidonia oceanica meadows: an update of data on gastropod-epiphyte-seagrass interactions
- The importance of herbivory in the decline of a seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) meadow near a fish farm: an experimental approach
- Responses of the Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica to in situ simulated salinity increase
- Evaluation of the viability of Posidonia oceanica transplants associated with a marina expansion
- Meetings
- Meetings
