Commercial fishing is one of the most important human impacts on marine benthic environment. One such impact through disturbance to habitats as gear (trawls and dredges) are dragged across seafloor. While direct effects an communities appear obvious, magnitude has been very difficult evaluate. Experimental fishing-disturbance studies have demonstrated changes in small areas; however, broader scale implications attributing these based long-term data considered equivocal. By testing a series...

The wider effects of fishing on marine ecosystems have become the focus growing concern among scientists, fisheries managers and industry. present review examines role habitat structure heterogeneity in ecosystems, (i.e. trawling dredging) these two components complexity. Three examples from New Zealand Australia are considered, where available evidence suggests that has been associated with degradation or loss through removal large epibenthic organisms, concomitant fish species which occupy...

An important ecological issue is developing an understanding of how patterns and processes vary with scale. We designed a field experiment to test differences in the aerial extent disturbance affected macrofaunal recolonization on sandflat. Three different plot sizes (0.203 $m 2 $, 0.81 3.24 $) were dafaunted, samples collected assess recovery over 9—mo period. As sandflat used for was prone by wind—driven waves, we also measured changes sediment bed height (an indicator stability) course...

When changes in the frequency and extent of disturbance outstrip recovery potential resident communities, selective removal species contributes to habitat loss fragmentation across landscapes. The degree which change is likely influence community resilience will depend on metacommunity structure connectivity. Thus ecological connectivity central understanding for cumulative effects impact upon diversity. importance these issues coastal marine where prevailing concept open communities...

Ocean acidification is a well recognised threat to marine ecosystems. High latitude regions are predicted be particularly affected due cold waters and naturally low carbonate saturation levels. This of concern for organisms utilising calcium (CaCO3) generate shells or skeletons. Studies potential effects future levels pCO2 on high calcifiers at present limited, there little understanding their acclimate these changes. We describe laboratory experiment compare physiological metabolic...

Processes interacting across scales of space and time influence emergent patterns in ecological systems, but to obtain strong inference empirical generalities, ecologists need balance reality with the practicalities design analyses. This article discusses heterogeneity, scaling, analysis problems offers potential solutions improve empirically based research. In particular, we recommend bridging dichotomy between correlative manipulative studies by nesting within a framework. We suggest that...

Global climate change will undoubtedly be a pressure on coastal marine ecosystems, affecting not only species distributions and physiology but also ecosystem functioning. In the zone, environmental variables that may drive ecological responses to include temperature, wave energy, upwelling events freshwater inputs, all act interact at variety of spatial temporal scales. To date, we have poor understanding how climate-related changes affect ecosystems or which are likely produce priority...

Disturbance-mediated species loss has prompted research considering how ecosystem functions are changed when biota is impaired. However, there still limited empirical evidence from natural environments evaluating the direct and indirect (i.e. via biota) effects of disturbance on functioning. Oxygen deficiency a widespread threat to coastal estuarine communities. While negative impacts hypoxia benthic communities well known, few studies have assessed in situ subjected different degrees...

The concept of ecosystem services has gained traction as a means linking societal benefits to the underlying ecology and functioning ecosystems, is now frequently included in decision-making legislation. Moving service from theory into practice crucial. However, advancements this area research differ by type, marine systems lag significantly behind terrestrial counterparts terms understanding, implementation number studies. In paper we explore several reasons why been limited outline...

Global climate change has profound implications on species distributions and ecosystem functioning. In the coastal zone, ecological responses may be driven by various biogeochemical physical environmental factors. Synergistic interactions can occur when combined effects of stressors exceed their individual effects. The Red Sea, characterized strong gradients in temperature, salinity, nutrients along latitudinal axis provides a unique opportunity to study over range these variables. Using...

Seafloor habitats throughout the world's oceans are being homogenized by physical disturbance. Even though seafloor sediments commonly considered to be simple and unstructured ecosystems, negative impacts of habitat homogenization widespread because resident organisms create much their habitat's structure. We combine insight gained from remote sensing with recently developed analytical techniques estimate species richness assess potential for change homogenization. Using habitat-dependent...

Suspension‐feeding bivalves play an important role in coastal ecosystems by affecting near‐bed hydrodynamics and, subsequently, rates of biodeposition. We designed a high‐resolution field study to investigate sedimentation and biodeposition around individuals within beds the large pinnid bivalve, Atrina zelandica , link these with sediment biogeochemical characteristics macrofaunal community structure. The was conducted at three sites arrayed along gradient increasing suspended seston...

Estuaries are highly productive ecosystems that can export organic matter to coastal seas (the 'outwelling hypothesis'). However the role of this food resource subsidy on ecosystem functioning has not been examined.We investigated influence estuarine primary production as a and estuaries biodiversity in mollusk-dominated sediment communities. Stable isotope values (δ(13)C, δ(15)N) demonstrated was exported adjacent coast contributed secondary up 4 km from estuary mouth. Further, signatures...

Interaction between the diversity of local communities and degree connectivity them has potential to influence recovery rates thus profoundly affect community dynamics in face cumulative impacts that occur across regions. Although such complex interactions have been modeled, field experiments natural ecosystems investigate importance regional processes are rare, especially so coastal marine seafloor habitats subjected many types disturbance. We conducted a defaunation experiment at eight...

Declining biodiversity and loss of ecosystem function threatens the ability habitats to contribute services. However, form relationship between (BEF) how relationships change with environmental is poorly understood. This limits our predict consequences on function, particularly in real-world marine ecosystems that are species rich, where multiple functions represented by indicators. We investigated spatial variation BEF across a 300 000 m 2 intertidal sandflat nesting experimental...

Abstract Sedimentation, nutrients and metal loading to coastal environments are increasing, associated with urbanization global warming, hence there is a growing need predict ecological responses such change. Using regression technique we predicted how maximum abundance of 20 macrobenthic taxa 22 functional traits separately interactively responded these key stressors. The most declined in response sedimentation while unimodal was often nutrient loading. Optimum abundances for both occurred...

Marine ecosystems are prone to tipping points, particularly in coastal zones where dramatic changes associated with interactions between cumulative stressors (e.g., shellfish harvesting, eutrophication and sediment inputs) ecosystem functions. A common feature of many degraded estuaries is elevated turbidity that reduces incident light the seafloor, resulting from multiple factors including loading, sea-level rise increased water column algal biomass. To determine whether effects may result...

The sustainability of marine ecosystems demands a focus on ecological improvement, necessitating managers and conservationists to consider range actions from those that limit stressors actively restore. Deciding the most appropriate action should be informed by environmental context, which includes assessing information both degradation recovery potential. Here, we provide an analysis how degree coupled with stressor regime can inform management conservation (e.g., reductions, adaptive...