title: Caribbean-wide, long-term study of seagrass beds reveals local variations, shifts in community structure and occasional collapse.
abstract: The CARICOMP monitoring network gathered standardized data from 52 seagrass sampling stations at 22 sites (mostly Thalassia testudinum-dominated beds in reef systems) across the Wider Caribbean twice a year over the period 1993 to 2007 (and in some cases up to 2012). Wide variations in community total biomass (285 to >2000 g dry m(-2)) and annual foliar productivity of the dominant seagrass T. testudinum (<200 and >2000 g dry m(-2)) were found among sites. Solar-cycle related intra-annual variations in T. testudinum leaf productivity were detected at latitudes > 16°N. Hurricanes had little to no long-term effects on these well-developed seagrass communities, except for 1 station, where the vegetation was lost by burial below ∼1 m sand. At two sites (5 stations), the seagrass beds collapsed due to excessive grazing by turtles or sea-urchins (the latter in combination with human impact and storms). The low-cost methods of this regional-scale monitoring program were sufficient to detect long-term shifts in the communities, and fifteen (43%) out of 35 long-term monitoring stations (at 17 sites) showed trends in seagrass communities consistent with expected changes under environmental deterioration.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Cancún, Mexico.
authors.forename: Brigitta I
authors.initials: BI
authors.lastname: van Tussenbroek
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigación en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología (CIMAR), Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro, Costa Rica.
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cortés
authors.affiliation: Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama, Republic of Panama.
authors.forename: Rachel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Collin
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigación en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología (CIMAR), Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro, Costa Rica.
authors.forename: Ana C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Fonseca
authors.affiliation: Discovery Bay Marine Laboratory, Discovery Bay, Jamaica.
authors.forename: Peter M H
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Gayle
authors.affiliation: Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama, Republic of Panama.
authors.forename: Hector M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Guzmán
authors.affiliation: Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama, Republic of Panama.
authors.forename: Gabriel E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Jácome
authors.affiliation: Institute of Marine Affairs, Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago.
authors.forename: Rahanna
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Juman
authors.affiliation: Office of Insular Affairs, Department of the Interior, Washington DC, United States of America.
authors.forename: Karen H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Koltes
authors.affiliation: CERMES, University of the West Indies, Barbados, West Indies.
authors.forename: Hazel A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Oxenford
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (INVEMAR), Santa Marta, Colombia.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Ramirez
authors.affiliation: Centro de Investigación en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología (CIMAR), Universidad de Costa Rica, San Pedro, Costa Rica.
authors.forename: Jimena
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Samper-Villarreal
authors.affiliation: Bermuda Biological Station for Research, St. George, Bermuda.
authors.forename: Struan R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Garrett Park, Maryland, United States of America.
authors.forename: John J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Tschirky
authors.affiliation: Department of Marine Sciences, University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, United States of America.
authors.forename: Ernesto
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Weil
mesh_terms: D018533:Biomass; D058448:Biota; D017691:Caribbean Region; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D031321:Hydrocharitaceae / Q000254:growth & development*; D011157:Population Dynamics