title: The tropicalization of temperate marine ecosystems: climate-mediated changes in herbivory and community phase shifts.
abstract: Climate-driven changes in biotic interactions can profoundly alter ecological communities, particularly when they impact foundation species. In marine systems, changes in herbivory and the consequent loss of dominant habitat forming species can result in dramatic community phase shifts, such as from coral to macroalgal dominance when tropical fish herbivory decreases, and from algal forests to 'barrens' when temperate urchin grazing increases. Here, we propose a novel phase-shift away from macroalgal dominance caused by tropical herbivores extending their range into temperate regions. We argue that this phase shift is facilitated by poleward-flowing boundary currents that are creating ocean warming hotspots around the globe, enabling the range expansion of tropical species and increasing their grazing rates in temperate areas. Overgrazing of temperate macroalgae by tropical herbivorous fishes has already occurred in Japan and the Mediterranean. Emerging evidence suggests similar phenomena are occurring in other temperate regions, with increasing occurrence of tropical fishes on temperate reefs.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia a.verges@unsw.edu.au.
authors.forename: Adriana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vergés
authors.affiliation: Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Technical University, Singapore 637551, Republic of Singapore.
authors.forename: Peter D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Steinberg
authors.affiliation: School of Biology and Aquatic Chemical Ecology Center, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA.
authors.forename: Mark E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Hay
authors.affiliation: Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia.
authors.forename: Alistair G B
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Poore
authors.affiliation: Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia.
authors.forename: Alexandra H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.affiliation: Centre d'Estudis Avançats de Blanes-CSIC, Blanes, Girona 17300, Spain.
authors.forename: Enric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ballesteros
authors.affiliation: Dauphin Island Sea Laboratory and University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL 36688-0002, USA.
authors.forename: Kenneth L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Heck
authors.affiliation: Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia School of the Environment, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, New South Wales 2007, Australia.
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Booth
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary Industries, NSW Fisheries, PO Box 4321, Coffs Harbour, New South Wales 2450, Australia.
authors.forename: Melinda A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Coleman
authors.affiliation: Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia School of the Environment, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, New South Wales 2007, Australia.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Feary
authors.affiliation: Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia.
authors.forename: Will
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Figueira
authors.affiliation: UWA Oceans Institute and School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia.
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Langlois
authors.affiliation: Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia.
authors.forename: Ezequiel M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Marzinelli
authors.affiliation: Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales 2109, Australia.
authors.forename: Toni
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mizerek
authors.affiliation: Marine Spatial Ecology Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Peter J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Mumby
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Kuroshio Science, Kochi University, Kochi 783-8502, Japan.
authors.forename: Yohei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.affiliation: School of Mathematics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia.
authors.forename: Moninya
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roughan
authors.affiliation: Climate Change Research Centre and ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia.
authors.forename: Erik
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: van Sebille
authors.affiliation: Climate Change Research Centre and ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia.
authors.forename: Alex Sen
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.affiliation: UWA Oceans Institute and School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, Citadel Hill, Plymouth PL1 2PB, UK.
authors.forename: Dan A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Smale
authors.affiliation: Instituto Mediterráneo de Estudios Avanzados (CSIC-UIB), Esporles, Illes Balears 07190, Spain Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331-3803, USA.
authors.forename: Fiona
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tomas
authors.affiliation: UWA Oceans Institute and School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wernberg
authors.affiliation: UWA Oceans Institute and School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife, Kensington, Western Australia 6151, Australia.
authors.forename: Shaun K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Wilson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D059001:Aquatic Organisms; D044822:Biodiversity; D057231:Climate Change; D017753:Ecosystem; D005399:Fishes; D060434:Herbivory; D008954:Models, Biological; D012624:Seaweed
keywords: climate change; ecosystem impacts; functional diversity; macroalgae; range shift; western boundary currents