The seagrass Halophila stipulacea is native to the Red Sea. It invaded the Mediterranean over the past century and most of the Caribbean over the last two decades. Understanding the main drivers behind the successful invasiveness of H. stipulacea has become crucial. We performed a comprehensive study including field measurements, a mesocosm experiment, and a literature review to identify ‘superior growth traits’ that can potentially explain the success story of H. stipulacea. We assessed meadow characteristics and plant traits of three invasive H. stipulacea populations growing off the Island of Sint Eustatius (eastern Caribbean). We compared similar parameters between native (Eilat, northern Red Sea) and invasive (Caribbean) H. stipulacea plants in a common-garden mesocosm. Lastly, we compared our field measurements with published data. The newly arrived H. stipulacea plants from St. Eustatius were characterized by higher percent cover, higher below- and above-ground biomasses, more apical shoots, and faster leaf turnover rates than those measured in both native and older invaded habitats. These results were further confirmed by the mesocosm experiment where the invasive H. stipulacea plants grew faster and developed more apical shoots than the native plants. Results suggest that increased growth vigour is one of the main invasive traits that characterize successful invasive H. stipulacea populations in the Caribbean and potentially in other invaded areas. We encourage long-term monitoring of H. stipulacea in both native and invaded habitats to better understand the future spread of this species and its impacts on communities and their ecosystem functions and services.
Winters G., Conte C., Beca-Carretero P., Nguyen H.M., Migliore L., Mulas M., Rilov G., Guy-Haim T., González M.J., Medina I., Golomb D., Baharier N., Kaminer M. and Kitson-Walters K. (2023) Superior growth traits of invaded (Caribbean) versus native (Red sea) populations of the seagrass Halophila stipulacea. Biological Invasions 25(7): 2325-2342. 10.1007/s10530-023-03045-z
@article{Winters2023,
Title = {Superior growth traits of invaded (Caribbean) versus native (Red sea) populations of the seagrass Halophila stipulacea},
Author = {Winters, Gidon and Conte, Chiara and Beca-Carretero, Pedro and Nguyen, Hung Manh and Migliore, Luciana and Mulas, Martina and Rilov, Gil and Guy-Haim, Tamar and González, María J. and Medina, Isabel and Golomb, Dar and Baharier, Neta and Kaminer, Moran and Kitson-Walters, Kimani},
Editor = {},
Journal = {Biological Invasions},
Year = {2023},
Pages = {2325-2342},
Volume = {25},
Doi = {10.1007/s10530-023-03045-z},
Abstract = {The seagrass Halophila stipulacea is native to the Red Sea. It invaded the Mediterranean over the past century and most of the Caribbean over the last two decades. Understanding the main drivers behind the successful invasiveness of H. stipulacea has become crucial. We performed a comprehensive study including field measurements, a mesocosm experiment, and a literature review to identify ‘superior growth traits’ that can potentially explain the success story of H. stipulacea. We assessed meadow characteristics and plant traits of three invasive H. stipulacea populations growing off the Island of Sint Eustatius (eastern Caribbean). We compared similar parameters between native (Eilat, northern Red Sea) and invasive (Caribbean) H. stipulacea plants in a common-garden mesocosm. Lastly, we compared our field measurements with published data. The newly arrived H. stipulacea plants from St. Eustatius were characterized by higher percent cover, higher below- and above-ground biomasses, more apical shoots, and faster leaf turnover rates than those measured in both native and older invaded habitats. These results were further confirmed by the mesocosm experiment where the invasive H. stipulacea plants grew faster and developed more apical shoots than the native plants. Results suggest that increased growth vigour is one of the main invasive traits that characterize successful invasive H. stipulacea populations in the Caribbean and potentially in other invaded areas. We encourage long-term monitoring of H. stipulacea in both native and invaded habitats to better understand the future spread of this species and its impacts on communities and their ecosystem functions and services.},
}
TY - JOUR
AU - Winters, Gidon
AU - Conte, Chiara
AU - Beca-Carretero, Pedro
AU - Nguyen, Hung Manh
AU - Migliore, Luciana
AU - Mulas, Martina
AU - Rilov, Gil
AU - Guy-Haim, Tamar
AU - González, María J.
AU - Medina, Isabel
AU - Golomb, Dar
AU - Baharier, Neta
AU - Kaminer, Moran
AU - Kitson-Walters, Kimani
TI - Superior growth traits of invaded (Caribbean) versus native (Red sea) populations of the seagrass Halophila stipulacea
T2 - Biological Invasions
PY - 2023
SP - 2325-2342
VL - 25
DO - 10.1007/s10530-023-03045-z
AB - The seagrass Halophila stipulacea is native to the Red Sea. It invaded the Mediterranean over the past century and most of the Caribbean over the last two decades. Understanding the main drivers behind the successful invasiveness of H. stipulacea has become crucial. We performed a comprehensive study including field measurements, a mesocosm experiment, and a literature review to identify ‘superior growth traits’ that can potentially explain the success story of H. stipulacea. We assessed meadow characteristics and plant traits of three invasive H. stipulacea populations growing off the Island of Sint Eustatius (eastern Caribbean). We compared similar parameters between native (Eilat, northern Red Sea) and invasive (Caribbean) H. stipulacea plants in a common-garden mesocosm. Lastly, we compared our field measurements with published data. The newly arrived H. stipulacea plants from St. Eustatius were characterized by higher percent cover, higher below- and above-ground biomasses, more apical shoots, and faster leaf turnover rates than those measured in both native and older invaded habitats. These results were further confirmed by the mesocosm experiment where the invasive H. stipulacea plants grew faster and developed more apical shoots than the native plants. Results suggest that increased growth vigour is one of the main invasive traits that characterize successful invasive H. stipulacea populations in the Caribbean and potentially in other invaded areas. We encourage long-term monitoring of H. stipulacea in both native and invaded habitats to better understand the future spread of this species and its impacts on communities and their ecosystem functions and services.
ER -
