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Updated: Jun 18, 2025

A CO2 Concentration Gradient Facility for Testing CO2 Enrichment and Soil Effects on Grassland Ecosystem Function
Published on: November 21, 2015
Nutrient enrichment and herbivory alter carbon balance in temperate seagrass communities
Rocío Jiménez-Ramos1, Fernando G Brun1, Juan J Vergara1
1Instituto Universitario de Investigación Marina (INMAR), Campus de Excelencia Internacional del Mar (CEI·MAR), Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias del Mar y Ambientales Universidad de Cádiz, Campus Universitario de Puerto Real, Puerto Real, Cádiz, Spain.
Abstract:
Large nutrient levels and herbivory stress, particularly when acting together, drive a variety of responses in seagrass communities that ultimately may weaken their carbon balance. An in situ three-months experiment was carried out in two contrasting seasons to address the effects of two levels of nutrient load and three levels of artificial clipping on Cymodocea nodosa plants. Nutrient enrichment shifted the community from autotrophic to heterotrophic and reduced DOC fluxes in winter, whereas enhanced community carbon metabolism and DOC fluxes in summer. Herbivory stress decreased the net primary production in both seasons, whereas net DOC release increased in winter but decreased in summer. A reduction of seagrass food-web structure was observed under both disturbances evidencing impacts on the seagrass ecosystems services by altering the carbon transfer process and the loss of superficial OC, which may finally weaken the blue carbon storage capacity of these communities.
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