The Impact of Global Climate Change on Seagrasses

Cassandra Vongrej

Marine Academy of Technology and Environmental Science

Advanced Oceanographic Research

Dr. Wnek

November 11, 2020

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Throughout recent years, climate change has increasingly

affected species of Submerged Aquatic Vegetation, also known as

SAVs. Various species of SAV are located throughout the globe,

except in Antarctica. These species include Eelgrass (​Zostera

marina​), which occurs throughout the North Atlantic and North

Pacific Oceans; widgeon grass (​Ruppia maritima​), which occurs in

tropical and temperate bioregions and fresh to hyper-saline waters;

turtle grass (​Thalassia testudinum​), which occurs in clear waters,

such as in the Tropical Atlantic bioregion; Neptune grass

(​Posidonia oceanica​), which occurs in the Mediterranean Sea.

Overall, there are 60 species of seagrasses found worldwide,

covering over 177,000 km² (Green and Short, 2003; Björk et al.,

2008; Arnold et al., 2017). These seagrasses are marine flowering plants, spending their entire

life cycle submerged underwater (Hemminga and Duarte, 2000). They represent the principal

component of shallow aquatic habitats, with many meadows compromising one seagrass species.

The meadows are productive ecosystems, providing key ecological services, such as organic

carbon production, biodiversity

enhancement, trophic transfers to nearby

habitats, nutrient cycling, and sediment

stabilization (Orth et al., 2006). In

particular, their blades trap suspended

materials from the water, therefore

clearing the water from these materials.

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The seagrass rhizome structure helps stabilize sediments, preventing these sediments from

suspending into the water body; this ability helps prevent erosion along the coasts (Koch, 2001).

Additionally, they are an important food source for a variety of different organisms, including

green sea turtles and dugongs; they provide critical habitat for organisms as well, including

important fishery species (Beck et al., 2001). Overall, seagrasses are important for keeping a

stabilized environment.

Even with the large importance of seagrasses, they have been declining rapidly in the past

years for various reasons, largely from environmental changes. With the increasing global

temperatures, CO₂ concentrations, and sea level rise, seagrass species can face threats towards

their populations. Climate change refers to environmental changes caused by increasing CO₂

emissions and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere (Harley et al., 2006). Climate change

causes multiple occurrences in the ocean, including increasing carbon dioxide levels, decreasing

the pH, increasing the water temperatures, changing UV radiation, increasing sea level rise, and

increasing intense storms and flood events.

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To begin, climate change causes an increase in carbon dioxide concentrations, both in the

atmosphere and in the water. In 1880, the atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration was 280

parts per million (ppm), and in 2005, it increased to around 380 ppm (IPCC, 2007). With the

increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide, there is a positive, direct effect on photosynthesis and

growth. While an increase in these factors could be beneficial towards these species, higher CO₂

levels can increase the production of epiphytic algae on seagrass blades, causing shading,

therefore negatively impacting health, decreasing photosynthesis, and causing competition

within their environment (Beer and Koch, 1996; Björk et al., 2008). Ultimately, carbon dioxide

can have major influences on seagrass populations.

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Seagrass meadows are “blue carbon” ecosystems as they store globally relevant carbon

stocks within their biomass and sediments. With climate change, it threatens the preservation of

these carbon stock bearing beds. Since seagrass beds can store 12% of the ocean carbon

worldwide, diebacks of these species can speed and increase CO₂ release globally (Durate,

1996). In particular, at Shark Bay in Western Australia, the seagrass beds suffered widespread

losses in population and growth due to increased temperatures ranging from 2-4℃ above normal

average temperatures resulting from strong La Niña conditions. As Shark Bay is home to

approximately 2% of the world’s seagrass area and contains up to 1.3% of total Carbon

concentrations from seagrass beds, the ecosystem could decline with fast acceleration, resulting

in large CO₂ emissions into the atmosphere, being between 2 and 9 Tg of carbon dioxide in the

following three years (Arias-Ortiz et al., 2018).

However, an increase in CO₂ would cause a decrease in the pH levels of the water. Since

CO₂ forms an equilibrium with carbonic acid, which then dissociates and adds protons, it lowers

the pH of the water. Lower pH values, similar to the increased carbon dioxide concentrations,

can have a positive effect on seagrasses regarding increased production (Björk et al., 2008). But,

these conditions may also fuel the production of fouling organisms, such as epiphytic diatoms

and cyanobacteria. Furthermore, acidification can benefit certain macroalgae species, including

fleshy seaweed species. These species have the ability to rapidly overgrow within the water,

dominating the ecosystems, increasing competition, and causing phase changes within the

seagrass communities (Kroeker et al., 2013). Since these conditions increase the macroalgae

populations, they can also allow non-native species to invade new areas, resulting in further

problems (Kübler and Dudgeon, 2015). Acidification within bodies of water may also increase

the susceptibility of seagrasses to diseases. With the increase in carbon dioxide and the decrease
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of the pH, there is a loss of antimicrobial phenolics in various species of seagrasses. The

antimicrobial phenolics inhibit the growth of ​Labyrinthula​ spp., also known as the seagrass

wasting disease. These phenolics reduced “as much as ~95% under ‘acidified’ conditions”

(Arnold et al., 2017). With the decrease of these protective compounds, there have been

increases in wasting disease outbreaks and higher seagrass mortality (Buchsbaum, Short, and

Cheney, 1990; Vergeer, Aarts, and De Groot, 1995; Vergeer and Develi, 1997). In the 1930s,

there was a “90% eelgrass loss” within 5 years due to a wasting disease outbreak in the North

Atlantic, and an additional outbreak in New Hampshire during the 1980s resulted in “80%

eelgrass loss in 2 years” (Björk et al., 2008). With the lack of the needed phenolics to protect

seagrass species, there is a substantial risk for the decrease and deterioration of seagrass

meadows.

Temperature variations also have impacts on seagrass species and their corresponding

populations. Since the 1880s, the Earth has increased by 0.6-0.8°C, and researchers projected it

to increase between 2-4°C by the year 2100 (Houghton et al., 2001; IPCC, 2007). Temperature

changes can have many negative effects on seagrass health, including in distribution shifts,

altered growth rates, changes in metabolism, changes in carbon balance, and changes in sexual
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reproduction patterns (Short and Neckles, 1998; Short et al., 2001). With an increase in

temperature, species can reach their upper thermal limit, causing a decrease in productivity and

ultimately leading to plant death (Coles et al., 2004). Regarding ​Zostera marina​, extended

periods of warm water temperature caused population declines through shoot mortality

(Glemarec, Lefaou, and Cuq, 1997). For this species, an

increase of 5℃ caused significant loss within shoot density

(Reusch et al. 2005; Ehlers et al., 2008). Increasing

temperatures may also increase the growth and production

of certain algae and epiphyte species that pose a

competitive threat to seagrasses; the competitive species

overgrow seagrasses, reducing the available sunlight

needed for productivity and photosynthesis (Short and

Neckles, 1998). Furthermore, increasing temperatures

cause variations within flowering and seed germination

rates of seagrasses, altering seagrass distribution and

abundance (de Cock 1981, McMillan 1982, Phillips et al.,

1983; Durako and Moffler, 1987). Another species of

seagrass, ​Ruppia maritima​, suffered negative effects from

increasing temperatures. When the temperatures reached beyond 23-25°C within these widgeon

grass beds, there was a negative influence on photosynthesis (Anderson, 1969). Increasing

temperatures also affected the reproduction of this species, as optimal seed germination takes

place at temperatures ranging from 15-20°C. If the temperatures were to increase, it may be too

warm for ​Ruppia maritima​ to reproduce through seed germination (van Vierssen et al., 1984;
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Arnold et al., 2017). As shown, temperature variations can drastically affect seagrass

populations.

Along with increasing temperatures, global climate

change can bring changes in relation to UV radiation. Altered

weather patterns in response to the changing climate can

increase the percentage of cloud formation, and it thus

reduces the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) of

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visible light. For seagrasses that grow close to their low-light limitations, this can be detrimental

(Arnold et al., 2017). Additionally, with climate change, there is an increase in solar UV, which

affects seagrass by altering the UV-B blocking compounds production. These compounds help

protect seagrasses from harmful radiation; however, they may negatively change plant growth

and success by the expenditure of plant resources (Novak and Short, 2010; Arnold et al., 2017).

Therefore, UV radiation has an impact on seagrass species.

Sea level rise in response to global warming also influences seagrass survival throughout

the globe. By 2100, there could be a 1-5 meter rise in sea level, which considers the melting of

glaciers and thermal expansion of the ocean (Overpeck et al., 2006; Hansen, 2007). With

increasing sea levels, water depths would therefore increase, reducing the light available for

seagrass beds and meadows. Increasing sea levels could also change currents, ultimately leading

to erosion and increased turbidites (Short et al., 2001). In the Mediterranean, sea level rise was

responsible for the degradation of ​Posidonia oceanica​ beds in recent years (Pergent et al., 2015).

In Australia, if the sea level were to rise 1.1 meters by 2100, there would be a “17% reduction in

seagrass area in Moreton Bay,” caused by insufficient light sources (Saunders et al., 2013; Short

et al., 2016). Additionally, sea level rise reduces the absorption of wave energy with a body of

water, which would alter the sheltered lagoonal conditions that flourish with seagrass species

(Saunders et al., 2014). Ultimately, sea level rise negatively affects seagrass meadows.
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Climate change can also cause more intense and frequent storms, including tropical

cyclones (Trenberth, 2005; IPCC, 2007). As temperature is a key factor in storm production,

climate change influences the formation and behavior of storms. For example, tropical cyclones

obtain their energy from warm, tropical oceans, and extratropical cyclones get their energy from

the jet stream and temperature differences from cold and warm air masses. The increasing global

temperatures will affect the intensity of storms (AMS Council, 2012; “Effects of Climate

Change,” 2020). These storms can cause massive sediment movement in coastal areas, which

ultimately can have disastrous effects on seagrass beds, as these storms can uproot or bury plants

(Short et al., 2006). Storms can also increase turbidity within the water, causing the shade-out of

the seagrass plants and decreased production (Björk et al., 2008). In Queensland, Australia,

storms destroyed around 1,000 km² of seagrasses from uprooting and sediment changes after a

cyclone and two major floods, all of which occurred during 3 weeks (Preen et al., 1995).

Additionally, in Puerto Morelos, Mexico, there was a large percentage of decreased growth

within seagrass meadows as a result of a hurricane in the 1990s (Björk et al., 2008). As certain

seagrass species need to establish extensive root systems to anchor themselves into the sediment,

these storms could cause drastic population declines (Björk et al., 2008). Therefore, these intense

storms impact seagrasses.

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Along with changes in weather patterns and storm formation, flooding is also a result of

climate change, caused by the extreme changes in these weather patterns. Flooding causes

decreased irradiances due to the increase in the water depth and increased rates of sedimentation

and turbidity (Björk et al., 2008). Flood events cause an increase in sediment exports from river

catchments to estuarine basins, which would therefore increase turbidity, decreasing light

availability needed for photosynthesis (De Boer, 2007; Saunders et al., 2017). Flooding events

may also cause a decrease in salinity, which would have a negative effect on seagrasses. For

instance, a flooding event in Venezuela caused a decrease in salinity, resulting in the degradation

and slow recovery of ​Thalassia testudinum​ meadows. Sedimentation in Westernport, Australia

was responsible for the “85% reduction” of seagrass meadows from 1973 to 1984 and a “90%

reduction” in Tauranga, New Zealand from 1959 to 1996 (Short and Wyllie-Echeverria, 1996;

Green and Short, 2003). Overall, flooding causes negative influences on seagrass species.

As shown, climate change can influence various effects throughout the marine

environment, all of which can negatively affect seagrass species. With the extreme importance of

seagrasses to the ecosystem, climate change is a threat in need of action. Such methods include

seagrass monitoring, seagrass management, and restoration efforts (Orth et al., 2006).

Researchers can create certain areas as marine protected areas and seagrass monitoring areas to

help with restoration. Additionally, the implementation of management plans can reduce

sediments and nutrients from surrounding watersheds that would aid in water quality

management, overall helping protect seagrass species (Kenworthy et al., 2006; Orth et al., 2006).

Managers can promote conservation and protection policies of seagrass, and they can assist in

mitigation and awareness efforts to help reduce impacts. Additional measures include mitigation

strategies to limit greenhouse gas emissions to alleviate the extent of climate change and
 Vongrej 11

resilience-building adaptation strategies. (Johnson and Marshall, 2007). Certain measures include

developing baseline maps of seagrass beds for monitoring use, implementing monitoring

programs, reducing the risk of seagrass loss from climate change through protection efforts,

restoring critical habitat areas of seagrasses, and raising awareness of the threats that seagrasses

face (Björk et al., 2008). Ultimately, we must take many measures to ensure the proper health of

important seagrass meadows and beds.

In conclusion, seagrass meadows have suffered greatly from global climate change.

Climate change increases carbon dioxide levels, decreases the pH, increases the water

temperatures, causes changes within UV radiation, increases sea level rise, and results in intense

storms and flood events. As seagrasses are extremely important within the environment and keep

a balanced ecosystem, there must be measures to help facilitate seagrass growth to help save the

environment.
 Vongrej 12

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