Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean

Area of the Coral Triangle (CT), namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste, comprises 5.7 million km2 of the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most bio-diverse marine eco-regions on the planet, as well as a global hotspot for seagrass species. Many sea...

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Main Authors: Al-Asif, Abdulla-, Kamal, Abu Hena Mustafa, Hamli, Hadi, Idris, Mohd Hanafi, Gerusu, Geoffery James, Ismail, Johan, Bhuiyan, Md Khurshid Alam, Abualreesh, Muyassar H., Musa, Najiah, Wahid, Mohd Effendy Abd, Mishra, Manoranjan
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Published: Springer 2022
Online Access:http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/103295/
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12601-022-00068-w?error=cookies_not_supported&code=77f82bbb-4e3b-43a3-a609-d5a552d476aa
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spelling my.upm.eprints.1032952024-06-30T08:51:51Z http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/103295/ Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean Al-Asif, Abdulla- Kamal, Abu Hena Mustafa Hamli, Hadi Idris, Mohd Hanafi Gerusu, Geoffery James Ismail, Johan Bhuiyan, Md Khurshid Alam Abualreesh, Muyassar H. Musa, Najiah Wahid, Mohd Effendy Abd Mishra, Manoranjan Area of the Coral Triangle (CT), namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste, comprises 5.7 million km2 of the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most bio-diverse marine eco-regions on the planet, as well as a global hotspot for seagrass species. Many sea creatures of this eco-region rely on the seagrass ecosystem, especially dugong species extensively (a total number of 2279 individuals), sea turtles (4–6 species), benthic organisms, and fish. Apart from these ecological services, carbon sequestration (2.6 billion Mg CO2 storage) by the seagrass ecosystem is considerably higher in comparison to terrestrial vegetation. In this paper, we scrutinized previously acknowledged seagrass species distribution, the associated fauna in seagrass meadows, the total carbon sequestration in the Coral Triangle, past and present research conducted on seagrass and other aspects, and major threats to seagrass ecosystems within this biogeographic region. Depending on their different locations, the six CT countries have a minimum of 10 to a maximum of 19 seagrass species that belong to four distinct families (Hydrocharitaceae, Cymodoceaceae, Zosteraceae, and Ruppiaceae) and cover almost 58,550.63‬ km2. While a total of 21 species of seagrass have been found throughout this eco-region, very little research has been conducted to assess the overall status of the ecosystems within this eco-region. Seagrass ecosystems and services from these habitats within the Coral Triangle are also associated with 100 million human inhabitants, who are supported directly or indirectly by the resources of this ecosystem. These inhabitants may cause considerable disturbance to seagrass ecosystems. For the long-term sustainable management and conservation of these ecosystems, two types of threats, namely local human activities and global transboundary issues including climate change, have been identified and need to be taken into consideration. In terms of human activities, local threats include water quality deterioration due to sewage and pollutant discharge, agricultural activities mainly from palm oil plantations, over-exploitation of seagrass-associated resources, sediment runoff, and destructive fishing practices. Global threats comprise macro and microplastics, sea-level rise due to climate change, global warming, and acidification. Further study of social, cultural, and economic interaction between the local inhabitants and seagrass ecosystems is highly recommended for assessing the ecological and economic contribution of this habitat to the human societies of the Coral Triangle. Despite their importance for human food services and the maintenance of the food web for marine and coastal animals, human activities have a negative impact on seagrass ecosystems around the world, particularly in the Coral Triangle. Springer 2022 Article PeerReviewed Al-Asif, Abdulla- and Kamal, Abu Hena Mustafa and Hamli, Hadi and Idris, Mohd Hanafi and Gerusu, Geoffery James and Ismail, Johan and Bhuiyan, Md Khurshid Alam and Abualreesh, Muyassar H. and Musa, Najiah and Wahid, Mohd Effendy Abd and Mishra, Manoranjan (2022) Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean. Ocean Science Journal, 57 (2). pp. 147-173. ISSN 1738-5261; ESSN: 2005-7172 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12601-022-00068-w?error=cookies_not_supported&code=77f82bbb-4e3b-43a3-a609-d5a552d476aa 10.1007/s12601-022-00068-w
institution Universiti Putra Malaysia
building UPM Library
collection Institutional Repository
continent Asia
country Malaysia
content_provider Universiti Putra Malaysia
content_source UPM Institutional Repository
url_provider http://psasir.upm.edu.my/
description Area of the Coral Triangle (CT), namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste, comprises 5.7 million km2 of the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the most bio-diverse marine eco-regions on the planet, as well as a global hotspot for seagrass species. Many sea creatures of this eco-region rely on the seagrass ecosystem, especially dugong species extensively (a total number of 2279 individuals), sea turtles (4–6 species), benthic organisms, and fish. Apart from these ecological services, carbon sequestration (2.6 billion Mg CO2 storage) by the seagrass ecosystem is considerably higher in comparison to terrestrial vegetation. In this paper, we scrutinized previously acknowledged seagrass species distribution, the associated fauna in seagrass meadows, the total carbon sequestration in the Coral Triangle, past and present research conducted on seagrass and other aspects, and major threats to seagrass ecosystems within this biogeographic region. Depending on their different locations, the six CT countries have a minimum of 10 to a maximum of 19 seagrass species that belong to four distinct families (Hydrocharitaceae, Cymodoceaceae, Zosteraceae, and Ruppiaceae) and cover almost 58,550.63‬ km2. While a total of 21 species of seagrass have been found throughout this eco-region, very little research has been conducted to assess the overall status of the ecosystems within this eco-region. Seagrass ecosystems and services from these habitats within the Coral Triangle are also associated with 100 million human inhabitants, who are supported directly or indirectly by the resources of this ecosystem. These inhabitants may cause considerable disturbance to seagrass ecosystems. For the long-term sustainable management and conservation of these ecosystems, two types of threats, namely local human activities and global transboundary issues including climate change, have been identified and need to be taken into consideration. In terms of human activities, local threats include water quality deterioration due to sewage and pollutant discharge, agricultural activities mainly from palm oil plantations, over-exploitation of seagrass-associated resources, sediment runoff, and destructive fishing practices. Global threats comprise macro and microplastics, sea-level rise due to climate change, global warming, and acidification. Further study of social, cultural, and economic interaction between the local inhabitants and seagrass ecosystems is highly recommended for assessing the ecological and economic contribution of this habitat to the human societies of the Coral Triangle. Despite their importance for human food services and the maintenance of the food web for marine and coastal animals, human activities have a negative impact on seagrass ecosystems around the world, particularly in the Coral Triangle.
format Article
author Al-Asif, Abdulla-
Kamal, Abu Hena Mustafa
Hamli, Hadi
Idris, Mohd Hanafi
Gerusu, Geoffery James
Ismail, Johan
Bhuiyan, Md Khurshid Alam
Abualreesh, Muyassar H.
Musa, Najiah
Wahid, Mohd Effendy Abd
Mishra, Manoranjan
spellingShingle Al-Asif, Abdulla-
Kamal, Abu Hena Mustafa
Hamli, Hadi
Idris, Mohd Hanafi
Gerusu, Geoffery James
Ismail, Johan
Bhuiyan, Md Khurshid Alam
Abualreesh, Muyassar H.
Musa, Najiah
Wahid, Mohd Effendy Abd
Mishra, Manoranjan
Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean
author_facet Al-Asif, Abdulla-
Kamal, Abu Hena Mustafa
Hamli, Hadi
Idris, Mohd Hanafi
Gerusu, Geoffery James
Ismail, Johan
Bhuiyan, Md Khurshid Alam
Abualreesh, Muyassar H.
Musa, Najiah
Wahid, Mohd Effendy Abd
Mishra, Manoranjan
author_sort Al-Asif, Abdulla-
title Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean
title_short Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean
title_full Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean
title_fullStr Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean
title_full_unstemmed Status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific ocean
title_sort status, biodiversity, and ecosystem services of seagrass habitats within the coral triangle in the western pacific ocean
publisher Springer
publishDate 2022
url http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/103295/
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12601-022-00068-w?error=cookies_not_supported&code=77f82bbb-4e3b-43a3-a609-d5a552d476aa
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score 13.211869