Halophila stipulacea is a small tropical seagrass species native to the Red Sea. Due to its invasive character, there is growing interest in understanding its ability to thrive in a broad range of ecological niches. We studied temporal (February 2014 and July 2014), depth (5, 9, 18 m) and spatial (NB and SB) related dynamics of H. stipulacea meadows in the northern Gulf of Aqaba. We evaluated changes in density, morphometry, biomass, and biochemical parameters alongside the reproductive effort. In both sites, maximal growth and vegetative performance occurred in the summer with a marked increase of 35% in shoot density and 18% in biomass; PAR reduction with season and depth induced a significant increase of 28% in leaf area. Sexual reproduction efforts were only observed in July, and the density of plants carrying male or female flowers decreased significantly with depth. The favorable growth responses of H. stipulacea plants observed in the N-enriched NB site suggests their capacity to acclimate to human-disturbed nearshore environments.
Beca-Carretero P., Rotini A., Mejia A., Migliore L., Vizzini S. and Winters G. (2020) Halophila stipulacea descriptors in the native area (Red Sea): A baseline for future comparisons with native and non-native populations. 153: 104828. 10.1016/j.marenvres.2019.104828
@article{Beca-Carretero2020,
Title = {Halophila stipulacea descriptors in the native area (Red Sea): A baseline for future comparisons with native and non-native populations},
Author = {Beca-Carretero, Pedro and Rotini, Alice and Mejia, Astrid and Migliore, Luciana and Vizzini, Salvatrice and Winters, Gidon},
Editor = {},
Year = {2020},
Pages = {104828},
Volume = {153},
Doi = {10.1016/j.marenvres.2019.104828},
Abstract = {Halophila stipulacea is a small tropical seagrass species native to the Red Sea. Due to its invasive character, there is growing interest in understanding its ability to thrive in a broad range of ecological niches. We studied temporal (February 2014 and July 2014), depth (5, 9, 18 m) and spatial (NB and SB) related dynamics of H. stipulacea meadows in the northern Gulf of Aqaba. We evaluated changes in density, morphometry, biomass, and biochemical parameters alongside the reproductive effort. In both sites, maximal growth and vegetative performance occurred in the summer with a marked increase of 35% in shoot density and 18% in biomass; PAR reduction with season and depth induced a significant increase of 28% in leaf area. Sexual reproduction efforts were only observed in July, and the density of plants carrying male or female flowers decreased significantly with depth. The favorable growth responses of H. stipulacea plants observed in the N-enriched NB site suggests their capacity to acclimate to human-disturbed nearshore environments.},
}
TY - JOUR
AU - Beca-Carretero, Pedro
AU - Rotini, Alice
AU - Mejia, Astrid
AU - Migliore, Luciana
AU - Vizzini, Salvatrice
AU - Winters, Gidon
TI - Halophila stipulacea descriptors in the native area (Red Sea): A baseline for future comparisons with native and non-native populations
PY - 2020
SP - 104828
VL - 153
DO - 10.1016/j.marenvres.2019.104828
AB - Halophila stipulacea is a small tropical seagrass species native to the Red Sea. Due to its invasive character, there is growing interest in understanding its ability to thrive in a broad range of ecological niches. We studied temporal (February 2014 and July 2014), depth (5, 9, 18 m) and spatial (NB and SB) related dynamics of H. stipulacea meadows in the northern Gulf of Aqaba. We evaluated changes in density, morphometry, biomass, and biochemical parameters alongside the reproductive effort. In both sites, maximal growth and vegetative performance occurred in the summer with a marked increase of 35% in shoot density and 18% in biomass; PAR reduction with season and depth induced a significant increase of 28% in leaf area. Sexual reproduction efforts were only observed in July, and the density of plants carrying male or female flowers decreased significantly with depth. The favorable growth responses of H. stipulacea plants observed in the N-enriched NB site suggests their capacity to acclimate to human-disturbed nearshore environments.
ER -
