Anthropogenic microparticles accumulation in small-bodied seagrass meadows: The case of tropical estuarine species in Brazil.

Seagrass meadows have recently been highlighted as potential hotspots for microplastic and anthropogenic microparticles (APs). This study assessed AP accumulation in shallow sediments vegetated by small-bodied seagrass species (Halodule wrightii, Halophila decipiens, and H. baillonii) and in the adjacent unvegetated area in a tropical estuary on the East Coast of South America, Brazil, over the seasonal cycle. Anthropogenic microparticles were detected in 80 % of the samples, with a mean abundance of 142 ± 140 particles kg-1 dw (N = 80). Particles were predominantly blue (51 %), fiber (73 %), and smaller than 1 mm (80 %). We observed that seagrass sediments retained APs, although no significant variation was observed between seagrass and the unvegetated area, nor between the dry and rainy seasons. A positive correlation was found between sediment grain size and AP abundance. This study represents the first record of AP contamination in seagrasses from the Tropical Southwestern Atlantic bioregion.

Global dataset of soil organic carbon in tidal marshes.

Tidal marshes store large amounts of organic carbon in their soils. Field data quantifying soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks provide an important resource for researchers, natural resource managers, and policy-makers working towards the protection, restoration, and valuation of these ecosystems. We collated a global dataset of tidal marsh soil organic carbon (MarSOC) from 99 studies that includes location, soil depth, site name, dry bulk density, SOC, and/or soil organic matter (SOM). The MarSOC dataset includes 17,454 data points from 2,329 unique locations, and 29 countries. We generated a general transfer function for the conversion of SOM to SOC. Using this data we estimated a median (± median absolute deviation) value of 79.2 ± 38.1 Mg SOC ha-1 in the top 30 cm and 231 ± 134 Mg SOC ha-1 in the top 1 m of tidal marsh soils globally. This data can serve as a basis for future work, and may contribute to incorporation of tidal marsh ecosystems into climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies and policies.

Sedimentary organic carbon and nitrogen stocks of intertidal seagrass meadows in a dynamic and impacted wetland: Effects of coastal infrastructure constructions and meadow establishment time.

Seagrass meadows, through their large capacity to sequester and store organic carbon in their sediments, contribute to mitigate climatic change. However, these ecosystems have experienced large losses and degradation worldwide due to anthropogenic and natural impacts and they are among the most threatened ecosystems on Earth. When a meadow is impacted, the vegetation is partial- or completely lost, and the sediment is exposed to the atmosphere or water column, resulting in the erosion and remineralisation of the carbon stored. This paper addresses the effects of the construction of coastal infrastructures on sediment properties, organic carbon, and total nitrogen stocks of intertidal seagrass meadows, as well as the size of such stocks in relation to meadow establishing time (recently and old established meadows). Three intertidal seagrass meadows impacted by coastal constructions (with 0% seagrass cover at present) and three adjacent non-impacted old-established meadows (with 100% seagrass cover at present) were studied along with an area of bare sediment and two recent-established seagrass meadows. We observed that the non-impacted areas presented 3-fold higher percentage of mud and 1.5 times higher sedimentary organic carbon stock than impacted areas. Although the impacted area was relatively small (0.05-0.07 ha), coastal infrastructures caused a significant reduction of the sedimentary carbon stock, between 1.1 and 2.2 Mg OC, and a total loss of the carbon sequestration capacity of the impacted meadow. We also found that the organic carbon stock and total nitrogen stock of the recent-established meadow were 30% lower than those of the old-established ones, indicating that OC and TN accumulation within the meadows is a continuous process, which has important consequences for conservation and restoration actions. These results contribute to understanding the spatial variability of blue carbon and nitrogen stocks in coastal systems highly impacted by urban development.

Loss of surficial sedimentary carbon stocks in seagrass meadows subjected to intensive clam harvesting.

Seagrass carbon stocks are vulnerable to physical disturbance. We assessed the effect of clam harvesting on the organic carbon (Corg) stocks in surface sediments in four intertidal Zostera noltei meadows on the Iberian Atlantic coast (Spain and Portugal), by comparing undisturbed and harvested areas. We also monitored the spatial cover of the meadows throughout the growing season. Sedimentary Corg content and Corg stocks were about four times lower in intensively harvested areas than in control areas, but there were not differences between areas with low harvesting pressure and control areas. Reductions of 53-85% in sedimentary Corg stocks of Z. noltei meadows were caused by intensive clam harvesting. The effect of intensive clam harvesting on Corg stocks increased throughout the growing season, but the area covered by the seagrass increased from 21 to 37%, suggesting rapid recovery of seagrass canopies and potential recovery of sedimentary Corg stocks.

Microplastic retention by marine vegetated canopies: Simulations with seagrass meadows in a hydraulic flume.

Marine canopies formed by seagrass and other coastal vegetated ecosystems could act as sinks of microplastics for being efficient particle traps. Here we investigated for the first time the occurrence of microplastic retention by marine canopies in a hydraulic flume under unidirectional flow velocities from 2 to 30 cm s-1. We used as model canopy-forming species the seagrass Zostera marina with four canopy shoot density (0, 50, 100, 200 shoots m-2), and we used as microplastic particles industrial pristine pellets with specific densities from 0.90 to 1.34 g cm-3 (polypropylene PP; polystyrene PS; polyamide 6 PA; and polyethylene terephthalate PET). Overall, microplastics particles transported with the flow were retained in the seagrass canopies but not in bare sand. While seagrass canopies retained floating microplastics (PP) only at low velocities (<12 cm s-1) due to a barrier created by the canopy touching the water surface, the retention of sinking particles (PS, PA, PET) occurred across a wider range of flow velocities. Our simulations revealed that less dense sinking particles (PS) might escape from the canopy at high velocities, while denser sinking particles can be trapped in scouring areas created by erosive processes around the eelgrass shoots. Our results show that marine canopies might act as potential barriers or sinks for microplastics at certain bio-physical conditions, with the probability of retention generally increasing with the seagrass shoot density and polymer specific density and decreasing with the flow velocity. We conclude that seagrass meadows, and other aquatic canopy-forming ecosystems, should be prioritized habitats in assessment of microplastic exposure and impact on coastal areas since they may accumulate high concentration of microplastic particles that could affect associated fauna.

Species-specific plastic accumulation in the sediment and canopy of coastal vegetated habitats.

Plastic waste has become ubiquitous in ecosystems worldwide. Few, recent studies report evidence of coastal vegetated habitats acting as sink for plastics, yet assessments have been completed either for macro or microplastics and focussing on just one type of vegetated habitat. Here, we investigated the role of marine coastal vegetated habitats as sinks for macro (≥5 mm) and microplastics (<5 mm) through a comprehensive, multi-habitat approach. We assessed the occurrence, abundance and physical properties of macro and microplastics in the canopy and superficial sediment of two intertidal (seagrass Zostera noltei, saltmarsh Sporobolus maritimus) and two subtidal (mixed seagrass meadows of Cymodocea nodosa and Zostera marina, rhizophytic macroalga Caulerpa prolifera) habitats in the Ria Formosa lagoon (Portugal). Our results showed that coastal vegetated habitats trapped macro and microplastics in the sediment at variable degrees (1.3-17.3 macroplastics 100 m-2, and 18.2-35.2 microplastics kg-1). Macroplastics accumulated in all vegetated habitat but not in nearby unvegetated areas, yet only S. maritimus habitat presented a significant trapping effect. Microplastics occurred in the sediment of all vegetated and unvegetated areas with similar abundances and high variability. Microplastics, all of type fibre, were recorded on all canopies except for S. maritimus. Overall, the trapping capacity of microplastics in the sediment and on the canopy was higher for subtidal than for intertidal vegetated habitats. We conclude that generalizations in the trapping effect of coastal vegetated areas should be done with caution, since it may be highly variable and may depend on the plastic size, habitat and tidal position. Since these habitats support a high biodiversity, they should be included in assessments of plastic debris accumulation and impacts in coastal areas. Further research, including experimental studies, is needed to shed more light on the role of coastal vegetated habitats as plastic sinks.

Recent trend reversal for declining European seagrass meadows.

Seagrass meadows, key ecosystems supporting fisheries, carbon sequestration and coastal protection, are globally threatened. In Europe, loss and recovery of seagrasses are reported, but the changes in extent and density at the continental scale remain unclear. Here we collate assessments of changes from 1869 to 2016 and show that 1/3 of European seagrass area was lost due to disease, deteriorated water quality, and coastal development, with losses peaking in the 1970s and 1980s. Since then, loss rates slowed down for most of the species and fast-growing species recovered in some locations, making the net rate of change in seagrass area experience a reversal in the 2000s, while density metrics improved or remained stable in most sites. Our results demonstrate that decline is not the generalised state among seagrasses nowadays in Europe, in contrast with global assessments, and that deceleration and reversal of declining trends is possible, expectingly bringing back the services they provide.

Interaction of short-term copper pollution and ocean acidification in seagrass ecosystems: Toxicity, bioconcentration and dietary transfer.

We aimed to show how the predicted pH decrease in the ocean would alter the toxicity, bioconcentration and dietary transfer of trace metal copper on seagrass ecosystems, on a short-term basis. Seagrass Zostera noltei was exposed to two pH levels (8.36 and 8.03) and three copper levels (nominal concentrations, <3, 30 and 300 µg Cu L-1) in a factorial design during 21 days, while Gammarus locusta amphipods were continuously fed with the treated seagrass leaves. We found that the toxicity and bioconcentration of copper in seagrasses were not affected by pH, yet complex copper-pH interactions were observed in the seagrass photosynthesis. We demostrated that seagrasses can act as a copper source in the food web via direct consumption by herbivores. Future research need to investigate the interactive effects on a long-term basis, and to include biochemical and molecular endpoints to provide additional insights to the complex phisiological interactions observed.

Superficial sedimentary stocks and sources of carbon and nitrogen in coastal vegetated assemblages along a flow gradient.

Coastal vegetated ecosystems are major organic carbon (OC) and total nitrogen (TN) sinks, but the mechanisms that regulate their spatial variability need to be better understood. Here we assessed how superficial sedimentary OC and TN within intertidal vegetated assemblages (saltmarsh and seagrass) vary along a flow gradient, which is a major driver of sediment grain size, and thus of organic matter (OM) content. A significant relationship between flow current velocity and OC and TN stocks in the seagrass was found, but not in the saltmarsh. OC and TN stocks of the saltmarsh were larger than the seagrass, even though that habitat experiences shorter hydroperiods. Mixing models revealed that OM sources also varied along the flow gradient within the seagrass, but not in the saltmarsh, showing increasing contributions of microphytobenthos (17-32%) and decreasing contributions of POM (45-35%). As well, OM sources varied vertically as microphytobenthos contribution was highest at the higher intertidal saltmarsh (48%), but not POM (39%). Macroalgae, seagrass and saltmarsh showed low contributions. Local trade-offs between flow current velocities, hydroperiod and structural complexity of vegetation must be considered, at both horizontal and vertical (elevation) spatial dimensions, for better estimates of blue carbon and nitrogen in coastal ecosystems.

Statins: An undesirable class of aquatic contaminants?

Emerging pollutants, such as pharmaceuticals, may pose a considerable environment risk. Hypocholesterolaemic drugs such as statins are among the most prescribed human pharmaceuticals in western European countries. In vertebrates, this therapeutic class disrupts the cholesterol synthesis by inhibiting the enzyme 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGR), responsible for the limiting step in the mevalonate pathway. Recently, functional studies have shown that statins competitively inhibit HMGR in vertebrates and arthropods, two taxa that have diverged over 450 million years ago. Importantly, chronic simvastatin exposure disrupts crustacean reproduction and development at environmentally relevant concentrations. Hence, a fundamental question emerges: what is the taxonomic scope of statins-induced HMGR inhibition across metazoans? Here, we address this central question in a large sampling of metazoans using comparative genomics, homology modelling and molecular docking. Sequence alignment of metazoan HMGRs allowed the annotation of highly conserved catalytic, co-factor and substrate binding sites, including residues highjacked for statin binding. Furthermore, molecular docking shows that the catalytic domains of metazoan HMGRs are highly conserved regarding interactions, not only with HMG-CoA, but also with both simvastatin and atorvastatin, the top prescribed statins in Europe and USA. Hence, the data indicates that both statins are expected to competitively inhibit metazoan's HMGRs, and therefore all metazoan taxa might be at risk. The environmental relevance of these findings are discussed and research priorities established. We believe that the conceptual framework used in this study can be applied to other emerging pollutants and assist in the design of toxicity testing and risk assessment.

Ecological modelling and toxicity data coupled to assess population recovery of marine amphipod Gammarus locusta: Application to disturbance by chronic exposure to aniline.

A population agent-based model of marine amphipod Gammarus locusta was designed and implemented as a basis for ecological risk assessment of chemical pollutants impairing life-history traits at the individual level. We further used the model to assess the toxic effects of aniline (a priority hazardous and noxious substance, HNS) on amphipod populations using empirically-built dose-response functions derived from a chronic bioassay that we previously performed with this species. We observed a significant toxicant-induced mortality and adverse effects in reproductive performance (reduction of newborn production) in G. locusta at the individual level. Coupling the population model with the toxicological data from the chronic bioassay allowed the projection of the ecological costs associated with exposure to aniline that might occur in wild populations. Model simulations with different scenarios indicated that even low level prolonged exposure to the HNS aniline can have significant long-term impacts on G. locusta population abundance, until the impacted population returns to undisturbed levels. This approach may be a useful complement in ecotoxicological studies of chemical pollution to transfer individual-collected data to ecological-relevant levels.