Long-term seagrass monitoring in the Port of Mourilyan: 2013
Other Publication ResearchOnline@JCUAbstract
Key Findings: 1. Seagrasses have failed to recover since the large declines that occurred from 2008 associated with the impacts of two major cyclones and intense wet La Nina climate conditions over multiple consecutive years. 2. Seagrasses in Mourilyan Harbour were in a poor state with two of the five monitoring meadows absent and a further two with biomass (density) and area well below the historical long term average. 3. The foundation species (Zostera muelleri ssp. capricorni) that had been continually present since monitoring began in 1993 was absent for the fourth consecutive year. 4. The lack of recovery was despite improved growing conditions in 2012 and 2013 and was likely due to a lack of seagrass propagules. Seedbank surveys over the last two years have found very low densities of Z. muelleri seeds, with a high likelihood of remaining seeds being unviable. 5. In a regional context, seagrass at all long-term monitoring sites in the wet and dry tropics regions underwent severe declines from 2009-11. While there have been varying levels of recovery between sites, Mourilyan Harbour remains the only location where no recovery of the key high biomass foundation species has occurred. 6. It is likely that assisted restoration will be required to re-establish viable Zostera muelleri in Mourilyan Harbour, given the lack of a viable seedbank and the areas isolation from any healthy nearby populations from which seeds or propagules could disperse.
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14/06
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45
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TropWATER, James Cook University
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Cairns
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