Yaakub Siti Maryam, McKenzie Len J, Erftemeijer Paul L A, Bouma Tjeerd, Todd Peter A
Experimental Marine Ecology Laboratory, National University of Singapore, Blk S3 Level 2, Science Drive 4, Singapore 117543, Singapore; Singapore-Delft Water Alliance, National University of Singapore, Blk E1 Engineering Drive 2, #08-25, Singapore 117567, Singapore; Tropical Marine Science Institute, National University of Singapore, 18 Kent Ridge Road, Singapore 119227, Singapore.
Centre for Tropical Water & Aquatic Ecosystem Research (TropWATER), James Cook University, P.O. Box 6811, Cairns, Queensland 4870, Australia.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2014 Jun 30;83(2):417-24. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2014.01.012. Epub 2014 Feb 6.
Due to increasing development Southeast Asia's coastlines are undergoing massive changes, but the associated impacts on marine habitats are poorly known. Singapore, a densely populated island city-state, is a quintessential example of coastal modification that has resulted in the (hitherto undocumented) loss of seagrass. We reconstructed the historic extent and diversity of local seagrass meadows through herbarium records and backwards extrapolation from contemporary seagrass locations. We also determined the current status of seagrass meadows using long-term monitoring data and identified the main threats to their presence in Singapore. Results show that, even though ∼45% of seagrass has been lost during the last five decades, species diversity remains stable. The main cause of seagrass loss was, and continues to be, land reclamation. We conclude that strict controls on terrestrial runoff and pollution have made it possible for seagrass to persist adjacent to this highly urbanised city-state.
由于东南亚海岸线开发的不断增加，其正在经历巨大变化，但相关的对海洋栖息地的影响却鲜为人知。新加坡，一个人口密集的岛屿城邦，是海岸改造的典型例子，这导致了海草（迄今未记录）的消失。我们通过植物标本记录和从当代海草位置进行反向推断，重建了当地海草草甸的历史范围和多样性。我们还利用长期监测数据确定了海草草甸的现状，并确定了它们在新加坡存在的主要威胁。结果表明，尽管在过去五十年中约45%的海草已经消失，但物种多样性仍然保持稳定。海草消失的主要原因过去是、现在仍然是填海造地。我们得出结论，对陆地径流和污染的严格控制使得海草能够在这个高度城市化的城邦附近持续存在。
