title: Carbon budgets of multispecies seagrass beds at Dongsha Island in the South China Sea.
abstract: Biomass, production, consumption, and detrital export and decomposition of four dominant seagrass species were determined in tropical multispecies beds as a means of constructing carbon budgets. These processes varied among seagrass species. The living biomass held a high carbon stock. The leaf production of multispecies beds was also higher than that of monospecific beds. However, the sediment organic carbon stock was much lower than the global median stock, which was likely due to decomposition of most of the detritus and export to nearshore waters. Reliable measurements of decomposition and export are particularly needed to estimate the organic carbon storage rate.
authors: Department of Life Sciences and Research Center for Global Change Biology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan.
authors: Yen-Hsun
authors: YH
authors: Huang
authors: Department of Life Sciences and Research Center for Global Change Biology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan.
authors: Chen-Lu
authors: CL
authors: Lee
authors: Department of Life Sciences and Research Center for Global Change Biology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan.
authors: Chia-Yun
authors: CY
authors: Chung
authors: Department of Life Sciences and Research Center for Global Change Biology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan.
authors: Shu-Chuan
authors: SC
authors: Hsiao
authors: Department of Life Sciences and Research Center for Global Change Biology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan; Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan. Electronic address: hjlin@dragon.nchu.edu.tw.
authors: Hsing-Juh
authors: HJ
authors: Lin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018533:Biomass; D002244:Carbon / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D002681:China; D017753:Ecosystem; D005399:Fishes; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry; D060434:Herbivory; D007448:Invertebrates; D062312:Islands; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D035962:Zosteraceae / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D002244:Carbon
keywords: Biomass; Carbon sink; Decomposition; Export; Herbivory; Production; Tropical