Ecological Connectivity Among Tropical Coastal Ecosystems

613 Pages·2009·6.65 MB·English

by  Ivan Nagelkerken (auth.)

Ecological Connectivity among Tropical
Coastal Ecosystems
Ivan Nagelkerken
Editor
Ecological Connectivity
among Tropical Coastal
Ecosystems
123
Editor
IvanNagelkerken
RadboudUniversityNijmegen
FacultyofScience
DepartmentofAnimalEcology
andEcophysiology
P.O.Box9010
6500GLNijmegen
theNetherlands
[email protected]
ISBN978-90-481-2405-3 e-ISBN978-90-481-2406-0
DOI10.1007/978-90-481-2406-0
SpringerDordrechtHeidelbergLondonNewYork
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2009926883
(cid:2)c SpringerScience+BusinessMediaB.V.2009
Nopartofthisworkmaybereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmittedinanyformorby
anymeans,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,microfilming,recordingorotherwise,withoutwritten
permissionfromthePublisher,withtheexceptionofanymaterialsuppliedspecificallyforthepurpose
ofbeingenteredandexecutedonacomputersystem,forexclusiveusebythepurchaserofthework.
Coverphoto:CoastlineofBawiIsland(Zanzibar,Tanzania)withexposedreefatlowtide.Photoby
MartijnDorenbosch
Printedonacid-freepaper
SpringerispartofSpringerScience+BusinessMedia(www.springer.com)
Foreword
The scale of effects of human activities on our ecosystem services in the past half
centuryhasincreasedtothelevelwherewearenowcompelledtoconsiderinterac-
tionsamongcomplexsystemsforresponsiblemanagementofourresources.Human
activitieshavebeencausingglobaleffectsonclimate,theabundance anddistribu-
tionofnutrients,andthesealevelandchemistryoftheoceans.Therehavebeena
numberofbooksinthepasthalfcenturyontheecologyandmanagementofcoral
reefs, of mangroves, and of seagrass meadows as separate systems. This book on
‘Ecological connectivity among tropical coastal ecosystems’ is timely because it
is focused on providing understanding of the higher level of interactions between
these systems. Ivan Nagelkerken has spent his career determining the extent and
complexitiesofpopulationconnectivitiesoffishesamongtropicalcoastalhabitats.
Henowtakesontheroleofeditortopulltogetherbiogeochemical,ecological,and
populationlinkagesamongcoastalhabitatsandguidingustoconclusionsforman-
agementpoliciesandsocioeconomicimplications.
Thecapacity ofsystemsforself-sustainabilitycanincreasewithdiversityatall
levels.Amorediversegenotypeprovidesagreaterpotentialcapacityforaspeciesto
adapttoclimatechangeandotherlarge-scaleeffectsofhumanactivities.Agreater
speciesdiversityofprimaryproducers,frameworkconstructingspecies,herbivores,
andpredatorsprovidepotentialcapacityforahabitatorecosystemtoaccommodate
eutrophicationandothereffectsofhumanactivities.Wemustnowincludeconsid-
eration of the diversity of interactions among habitats. Coral reefs protect inshore
habitats from wave action while mangroves can buffer coral reefs from terrestrial
input of sediment and other pollutants, and so while the coastal habitats can exist
in isolation, they are probably more resilient to large-scale changes from human
activities when they constitute adiverse interacting seascape. This book addresses
notonlytheseinteractionsofcoastalhabitatsamongthemselves,butalsoconsiders
interconnectivityandrelationshipswithsurroundingterrestrialuplands,rivers,and
offshoremarinesystems.
Corals and mangroves are ‘foundation species’ in that they actually construct
andexpandthecoastlineandprovidethephysicalstructureofmuchofthetropical
coastalecosystem.Thepopularterm‘reclamation’demonstratesthelackofunder-
standingofthegeneralpublicofthefundamentalimportanceofthesesystems.Itis
inappropriatetoassumetherightto‘takeback’landoriginallycreatedbymangroves
v
vi Foreword
andcorals.Thehabitatsarenotjust‘foundations’bythemselves,buttheyalsoserve
as parts of an interacting system. Many fish and crustacean species of commer-
cial importance spend different stages in their life cycles in different habitats and
for some, the neighboring habitat is required. Some fishes and crustaceans move
between habitats on a daily basis, providing a daily interconnection of biomass,
nutrients,andeffectsofpredation.Thisbookisneededtosummarizeandclarifythe
complexinteractionsthatleadtotheecosystemservicesprovidedbythesecoastal
habitats. By providing the latest information on the ecological interactions among
thecoastalhabitatsintermsofphysicalprocesses,nutrients,organicmatter,living
organisms, and effects of predation, shelter, and substrata, and by providing the
latest techniques in studying these processes, this book addresses the fundamental
importanceofdealingwiththeneedsandperspectivesoflocalhumanpopulations.
Althoughcoralreefs,mangroves,andseagrassmeadowshaveamongthehighest
grossprimaryproductivityofterrestrialormarineecosystems,theyarealsoinespe-
ciallyvulnerablesituations.Unfortunately,thebesthabitatsforproductivity,diver-
sity,andcoastalformationarealsothemostbeneficialandlogisticallyefficientfor
human settlement and activity. Sixty percent of the human population lives within
50 miles of the ocean coasts. Anthropogenic and natural disturbances such as sea
level rise, sedimentation, and cyclones are especially focused at the boundaries of
thethreecoastalecosystems.Withhumanpopulationgrowthandwiththeincreased
technological abilities of humans to harvest and remove resources at a greater per
capita rate, degradation of coastal habitats and resources are increasing with posi-
tivefeedbackfromtheincreasingdemandsofthegrowinghumanpopulation.The
need for increased understanding of the interactions among these essential coastal
habitats is becoming more critical as the demands of growing human populations
fororganicresourcesandecologicalservicesareincreasing.Ihopethisbookisdis-
tributed broadly and rapidly so that the decision-makers and managers of tropical
coastal resources and development are brought into awareness of the need to not
justprotecthabitatandspecies,buttosustainecosystemservicesandresourcesby
maintainingthehigherlevelinteractionsamongcoastalsystems.
Professorincoralreefecologyandmanagement, Dr.CharlesBirkeland
Editor‘LifeandDeathofCoralReefs’
Preface
Theideatoeditthisbookstartedwithane-mailfromSuzanneMekkingofSpringer
ScienceandBusinessMediawhowantedtomakeanappointmenttotalkaboutcur-
rentneedsfornewbooksinthefieldofaquaticsciences.Duringthatmeeting,she
attemptedtopersuademeintowritingabookaboutmyfieldofresearch–ecological
interactionsamongcoralreefs,mangroves,andseagrassbedsbyreeffishes.Atfirst,
Iwasnotinterestedduetothelargeamountofworkthiswouldencompass,andmy
alreadyoverloadedworkschedule.Aftergivingitsomethoughtoverthefollowing
monthorso,Iquicklyrealizedthatmanyadvancesonthistopichadbeenmadein
thelastdecade,andthatthiswouldbetheperfecttimetoputtogetherthescattered
knowledge on this topic, for the first time, in the form of an edited book. The fast
demise and degradation of coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass beds worldwide
alsowasanimportantconsiderationtoeditthisbook,hopingthatitwouldincrease
the appreciation for these tropical coastal habitats, and provide insights that could
contribute to their conservation. Within a month, I had made a list of urgent top-
ics needing review, and had contacted various specialists from around the world
requesting their contribution to the book. I was delighted by the fast and enthusi-
asticresponsefromthemajorityofthepeoplethatIapproached.Asidefromafew
individualsnotkeepingtheirpromisetocontributeachapter,Ihavebeenexemptof
variousfrustrationsthatareknowntooccurwheneditingabook.Inthefollowing
twoyears,28authorsfromAustralia,USA,andvariousEuropeancountries,worked
hardtobringtogetherthisbook.Ithankthemforthisgreateffort,andforresponding
tomyrequestsforimprovements,changes,andhelpinatimelymanner.Thequality
ofthebookcouldnothavebeenimprovedwithoutthehelpofmanypeerreviewers.
I am extremely grateful to the following people who have provided fast and criti-
cal reviews of the various book chapters: Aaron Adams, Charles Birkeland, Steve
Blaber,DaveBooth,StevenBouillon,PaulChittaro,PatrickCollin,StephenDavis,
Thorsten Dittmar, Ashton Drew, Dave Eggleston, Craig Faunce, Bronwyn Gillan-
ders,WilliamGladstone,MickHaywood,AlanJones,RobKenyon,CraigLayman,
Jeff Leis, Christian Le´veˆque, Ivan Mateo, Bob McDowall, Jan-Olaf Meynecke,
RickNemeth,HeatherPatterson,SimonPittman,YvonneSadovy,JoeSerafy,Steve
Simpson,andMariekeVerweij.IamalsoindebtedtoCharlesBirkelandfortaking
thetimetowriteaforewordforthebook,andtoMartijnDorenboschforproviding
the front cover picture for the book. Lastly, I thank my wife Shauna Slingsby and
vii
viii Preface
my son Diego Nagelkerken for their support and understanding, during the many
days, nights, weekends, and holidays that I was working on this book instead of
being with them. Now that the book is finished, I hope it will prove valuable for
ecosystem managers, fisheries ecologists, graduate students, and other researchers
inthefield.
IvanNagelkerken
Contents
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
IvanNagelkerken
PartI Biogeochemical Linkages
2 Nitrogen and Phosphorus Exchange Among Tropical
CoastalEcosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
StephenE.DavisIII,DiegoLirmanandJeffreyR.Wozniak
3 CarbonExchangeAmongTropicalCoastalEcosystems. . . . . . . 45
StevenBouillonandRodM.Connolly
PartII Ecological Linkages
4 DynamicsofReefFishandDecapodCrustaceanSpawning
Aggregations:UnderlyingMechanisms,HabitatLinkages,
andTrophic Interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
RichardS.Nemeth
5 The Senses and Environmental Cues Used by Marine
LarvaeofFishandDecapodCrustaceanstoFindTropical
CoastalEcosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
MichaelArvedlundandKathrynKavanagh
6 MechanismsAffectingRecruitmentPatternsofFishand
DecapodsinTropicalCoastalEcosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
AaronJ.AdamsandJohnP.Ebersole
7 HabitatShiftsbyDecapods—anExampleofConnectivity
AcrossTropicalCoastalEcosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
MichaelD.E.HaywoodandRobertA.Kenyon
8 DielandTidalMovementsbyFishandDecapodsLinking
TropicalCoastalEcosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
UweKrumme
ix
x Contents
9 LivinginTwoWorlds:DiadromousFishes,andFactors
AffectingPopulationConnectivityBetweenTropicalRivers
andCoasts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
DavidA.Milton
10 EvaluationofNurseryfunctionofMangrovesandSeagrass
bedsforTropicalDecapodsandReeffishes:Patternsand
UnderlyingMechanisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357
IvanNagelkerken
11 Sources of Variation that Affect Perceived Nursery
FunctionofMangroves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
CraigH.FaunceandCraigA.Layman
PartIII Tools for Studying Ecological and Biogeochemical Linkages
12 ToolsforStudyingBiogeochemicalConnectivityAmong
TropicalCoastalEcosystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425
ThorstenDittmar,BorisKochandRudolfJaffe´
13 Tools for Studying Biological Marine Ecosystem
Interactions—NaturalandArtificialTags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457
BronwynM.Gillanders
14 ALandscapeEcologyApproachfortheStudyofEcological
ConnectivityAcrossTropicalMarineSeascapes . . . . . . . . . . . 493
RikkiGrober-Dunsmore,SimonJ.Pittman,ChrisCaldow,
MatthewS.KendallandThomasK.Frazer
PartIV Management and Socio-economic Implications
15 Relationships Between Tropical Coastal Habitats and
(offshore)Fisheries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 533
StephenJ.M.Blaber
16 ConservationandManagementofTropicalCoastalEcosystems . . 565
WilliamGladstone
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 607