Tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs
Climate-mediated changes to biotic interactions have the potential to fundamentally alter global ecosystems. However, the capacity for novel interactions to drive or maintain transitions in ecosystem states remains unresolved. We examined temperate reefs that recently underwent complete seaweed cano...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Published: |
Ecological Society of America
2015
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/11826 |
| _version_ | 1848747909439291392 |
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| author | Bennett, S. Wernberg, T. Harvey, Euan Santana-Garcon, J. Saunders, Ben |
| author_facet | Bennett, S. Wernberg, T. Harvey, Euan Santana-Garcon, J. Saunders, Ben |
| author_sort | Bennett, S. |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Climate-mediated changes to biotic interactions have the potential to fundamentally alter global ecosystems. However, the capacity for novel interactions to drive or maintain transitions in ecosystem states remains unresolved. We examined temperate reefs that recently underwent complete seaweed canopy loss and tested whether a concurrent increase in tropical herbivores could be maintaining the current canopy-free state. Turf-grazing herbivorous fishes increased in biomass and diversity, and displayed feeding rates comparable to global coral reefs. Canopy-browsing herbivores displayed high (~ 10 000 g 100 m−2) and stable biomass between 2006 and 2013. Tropical browsers had the highest abundance in 2013 and displayed feeding rates approximately three times higher than previously observed on coral reefs. These observations suggest that tropical herbivores are maintaining previously kelp-dominated temperate reefs in an alternate canopy-free state by grazing turfs and preventing kelp reestablishment. This remarkable ecosystem highlights the sensitivity of biotic interactions and ecosystem stability to warming and extreme disturbance events. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T06:56:38Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-11826 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T06:56:38Z |
| publishDate | 2015 |
| publisher | Ecological Society of America |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-118262017-09-13T14:53:17Z Tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs Bennett, S. Wernberg, T. Harvey, Euan Santana-Garcon, J. Saunders, Ben coral reef kelp Climate change fishes tropicalisation regime shift Climate-mediated changes to biotic interactions have the potential to fundamentally alter global ecosystems. However, the capacity for novel interactions to drive or maintain transitions in ecosystem states remains unresolved. We examined temperate reefs that recently underwent complete seaweed canopy loss and tested whether a concurrent increase in tropical herbivores could be maintaining the current canopy-free state. Turf-grazing herbivorous fishes increased in biomass and diversity, and displayed feeding rates comparable to global coral reefs. Canopy-browsing herbivores displayed high (~ 10 000 g 100 m−2) and stable biomass between 2006 and 2013. Tropical browsers had the highest abundance in 2013 and displayed feeding rates approximately three times higher than previously observed on coral reefs. These observations suggest that tropical herbivores are maintaining previously kelp-dominated temperate reefs in an alternate canopy-free state by grazing turfs and preventing kelp reestablishment. This remarkable ecosystem highlights the sensitivity of biotic interactions and ecosystem stability to warming and extreme disturbance events. 2015 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/11826 10.1111/ele.12450 Ecological Society of America restricted |
| spellingShingle | coral reef kelp Climate change fishes tropicalisation regime shift Bennett, S. Wernberg, T. Harvey, Euan Santana-Garcon, J. Saunders, Ben Tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs |
| title | Tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs |
| title_full | Tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs |
| title_fullStr | Tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs |
| title_short | Tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs |
| title_sort | tropical herbivores provide resilience to a climate-mediated phase shift on temperate reefs |
| topic | coral reef kelp Climate change fishes tropicalisation regime shift |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/11826 |