Coastal Biodiversity Conservation Research Articles

The importance of identifying and protecting coastal wildness

Conservation of coastal biodiversity and associated ecosystem services requires protection and management for attributes of coastal wildness, which we define to include physical and ecological intactness and connectivity, native species and habitat diversity, and limited human disturbance. Coastal wildness is threatened by high demand for access to and development of coastal margins; sea level rise exacerbates this threat. As a case study, California (USA), a biodiversity hotspot, has a network of marine and terrestrial protected areas along the coast and strong coastal policy. While 35% of California’s coast has wildness attributes, only 9% of California’s coast is characterized as wild and also protected on both land and in the adjacent waters. A multi-tiered approach is needed to incorporate wild coast attributes into conservation planning and protection of coastal areas. A coastal wildness designation is needed, as well as policies that manage for wildness attributes in existing protected areas.

The intersection of marine and coastal conservation and nature-based solutions to climate change: Governance insights from Indian Ocean small island States

Despite an array of global interventions, climate change and biodiversity loss remain pressing environmental problems. Nations in the global south, and in particular small island developing states (SIDS), are frequently more vulnerable to climate change than other nations. Furthermore, these nations rely heavily on biodiversity for sustenance, livelihoods and economies. Yet, capacity and resources to address the challenges are often limited. Finding effective and efficient ways to respond to both climate change and biodiversity loss is, therefore, critical. This research explores natured-based solutions (NbS) to climate change and how these can simultaneously support marine and coastal biodiversity conservation. The paper focuses on international law and specifically the commitments made by Indian Ocean SIDS in their Nationally Determined Contribution documents (NDCs) submitted under the Paris Agreement. The commitments in these NDCs provide a foundation for climate change action, and now must be implemented if goals are to be achieved.

An Assessment of Seasonal Differences in Fish Populations in Laizhou Bay Using Environmental DNA and Conventional Resource Survey Techniques

In recent years, environmental DNA (eDNA) technology has gradually improved, and it has been increasingly used to monitor marine fish. The decline and seasonal fluctuations of fish resources in Laizhou Bay, Bohai were studied using eDNA technology and compared with the results of conventional fish resource survey methods. In November 2020 (autumn), March 2021 (spring), and July 2021 (summer), 12 samples were collected each quarter in Laizhou Bay and adjacent waters for a total of 36 eDNA samples, and 47 fish species were identified. During the same trip, ground cages, gillnets, and trawls were used during two seasons. Fishery resource surveys were conducted at 12 sites from November 2020 (autumn) to March 2021 (spring), and in total 11 fish species were found. Our study found that fishery resources in Laizhou Bay significantly fluctuated with seasonal changes. Additionally, compared with traditional surveys, eDNA information included the same results, but also included fish that could not be collected because of the technical limitations of traditional surveys. Therefore, this study provides more accurate seasonal information for fish in Laizhou Bay, which is of great significance for the long-term management and conservation of coastal biodiversity.

A global horizon scan of issues impacting marine and coastal biodiversity conservation.

The biodiversity of marine and coastal habitats is experiencing unprecedented change. While there are well-known drivers of these changes, such as overexploitation, climate change and pollution, there are also relatively unknown emerging issues that are poorly understood or recognized that have potentially positive or negative impacts on marine and coastal ecosystems. In this inaugural Marine and Coastal Horizon Scan, we brought together 30 scientists, policymakers and practitioners with transdisciplinary expertise in marine and coastal systems to identify new issues that are likely to have a significant impact on the functioning and conservation of marine and coastal biodiversity over the next 5-10 years. Based on a modified Delphi voting process, the final 15 issues presented were distilled from a list of 75 submitted by participants at the start of the process. These issues are grouped into three categories: ecosystem impacts, for example the impact of wildfires and the effect of poleward migration on equatorial biodiversity; resource exploitation, including an increase in the trade of fish swim bladders and increased exploitation of marine collagens; and new technologies, such as soft robotics and new biodegradable products. Our early identification of these issues and their potential impacts on marine and coastal biodiversity will support scientists, conservationists, resource managers and policymakers to address the challenges facing marine ecosystems.

An indicator-based approach for cross-realm coastal biodiversity assessments

Ecosystem status assessments are generally separated into realm-specific analyses (terrestrial, freshwater, estuarine or marine), but without integrating these into a coherent assessment of coastal biodiversity across the land–sea interface. Trends in assessment indicators in coastal versus non-coastal areas have also rarely been considered. In this study we aimed to compile the first cross-realm national biodiversity assessment for the South African coast using three key indicators. The ecological condition, ecosystem threat status, and ecosystem protection level of coastal ecosystem types (n = 186) were determined and compared with those of non-coastal ecosystem types (n = 444). Nearly half (46.9%) of the South African coastal habitat has been degraded compared with 20% of non-coastal areas. Proportionately, there are three-times (60%) as many threatened coastal ecosystem types (or 55% by area) as there are threatened non-coastal ecosystem types (19%, 6% by area). Despite the impacted state of coastal biodiversity, protection levels are generally higher in the coastal zone (87% of ecosystem types have some protection) compared with non-coastal areas (75%), although fewer coastal ecosystem types have met their biodiversity targets (24%, vs 28% for non-coastal ecosystem types). These results illustrate the importance of using a cross-realm approach for status assessments, management and conservation of coastal biodiversity. The assessment methods described are flexible and widely applicable to other regions.

Combined Use of eDNA Metabarcoding and Bottom Trawling for the Assessment of Fish Biodiversity in the Zhoushan Sea

With the increase in fishing intensity and the intensification of marine pollution, the fishery resources in the Zhoushan Sea are seriously degraded, and the difficulty of censusing fish diversity hampers effective management in marine fishes. Environmental DNA metabarcoding and bottom trawl methods were used to determine the ability of the methods to distinguish fish assemblages in the Zhoushan Sea. The species composition and diversity of the Zhoushan Sea were assessed via high-throughput sequencing analysis of eDNA coupled with bottom trawl fishery survey data, after which the two methods were compared. eDNA screening identified 38.2% more fish species than bottom trawls. Combining these two methods, 33 orders, 65 families, and 130 species of fishes were identified. Perciformes and Clupeiformes, the most abundant orders in the catch, represented 31.5 and 10.0% of the total fish abundance, respectively. The results of ANOSIM and redundancy analyses indicated that the fish community structure varied significantly between summer and winter, however depth and temperature being the main environmental factors influencing fish distribution. The biodiversity index was higher in summer than in winter. Thus, our work provides more detailed seasonal data on biodiversity in the Zhoushan Sea, which is essential for the long-term management and conservation of coastal biodiversity. Compared with traditional survey methods, eDNA determination is highly sensitive, accurate, cost-efficient, and suitable for fish diversity studies in relevant sea areas. Although this approach cannot completely replace traditional methods, our findings demonstrate that it provides a reliable complementary method for assessing fish diversity in marine ecosystems.

Assessing biomass and primary production of microphytobenthos in depositional coastal systems using spectral information.

In depositional intertidal coastal systems, primary production is dominated by benthic microalgae (microphytobenthos) inhabiting the mudflats. This benthic productivity is supporting secondary production and supplying important services to humans including food provisioning. Increased frequencies of extreme events in weather (such as heatwaves, storm surges and cloudbursts) are expected to strongly impact the spatiotemporal dynamics of the microphytobenthos and subsequently their contribution to coastal food webs. Within north-western Europe, the years 2018 and 2019 were characterized by record-breaking summer temperatures and accompanying droughts. Field-calibrated satellite data (Sentinel 2) were used to quantify the seasonal dynamics of microphytobenthos biomass and production at an unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution during these years. We demonstrate that the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) should be used with caution in depositional coastal intertidal systems, because it may reflect import of remains of allochthonous pelagic productivity rather than local benthic biomass. We show that the reduction in summer biomass of the benthic microalgae cannot be explained by grazing but was most probably due to the high temperatures. The fivefold increase in salinity from January to September 2018, resulting from reduced river run-off during this exceptionally dry year, cannot have been without consequences for the vitality of the microphytobenthos community and its resistance to wind stress and cloud bursts. Comparison to historical information revealed that primary productivity of microphytobenthos may vary at least fivefold due to variations in environmental conditions. Therefore, ongoing changes in environmental conditions and especially extreme events because of climate change will not only lead to changes in spatiotemporal patterns of benthic primary production but also to changes in biodiversity of life under water and ecosystem services including food supply. Satellite MPB data allows for adequate choices in selecting coastal biodiversity conservation and coastal food supply.

An Overview of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) of Bangladesh

This research was conducted Bangladesh (BD) and revised as an especial task study and review perspective of the coastal conditions and the features thus determine and critical analysis of integrated coastal zone management (ICZM). The coast length of Bangladesh is 710 kilometers wide. The coastal and ecosystem and habitats of the different animals are mostly depend on the features of coastal ecology and data analysis of both countries which have different strategies and techniques for the conservation of coastal biodiversity which were focused and brought together. Bangladesh coast contains vast biodiversity which are supported by the shingle beaches & sand dunes. The main features of the physical characteristics are the creeks, a lot of channels with crossing line, deltas of Ganges tidal plan with very low topology and mangroves. Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) in Bangladesh are greatly different because of variation in advanced and developed technology and the system of the creating legislative recommendations also varies; which could determine changes in sea level and coastal resources as well as habitats. This study targets to detect the background of coastal zone management (ICZM), scope, coastal development, challenges, environmental impacts, and necessary measures. Now, integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) is used for coastal development strategy in BD.

The role of coastal biodiversity conservation on sustainability and environmental awareness in mangrove ecosystem of southern Malang, Indonesia

Abstract. Abidin Z, Setiawan B, Muhaimin AW, Shinta A. 2021. The role of coastal biodiversity conservation on sustainability and environmental awareness in mangrove ecosystem of southern Malang, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 22: 648-658. Southern coast of Malang, East Java, Indonesia has several mangrove ecosystems used for ecotourism, such as Clungup Mangrove Conservation Tiga Warna (CMC Tiga Warna). This area has consistently implemented ecotourism principles. Previously, it was assumed to be vulnerable from the damage due to differences in environmental awareness of ecotourists and local communities. This study aims to (i) describe the strategy of coastal biodiversity conservation to enhance environmental awareness and its sustainability; (ii) analyze the role of conservation on sustainability and environmental awareness, with sustainability as a mediating variable between conservation and environmental awareness. Data analysis was conducted with descriptive and Warp Partial Least Square (WarpPLS). The results indicate that empirical facts of conservation, sustainability, and environmental awareness in CMC Tiga Warna are relevant to the result of statistical analysis. Conservation is believed to form the environmental awareness of ecotourists and local communities and to maintain the sustainability of ecotourism destinations. In addition, the sustainability of ecotourism destinations serves as an effective mediator between conservation and environmental awareness, along with the modeling of environmental awareness enhancement in conservation-based coastal ecotourism. The proposed model explains that sustainability and environmental awareness variances are 23% and 25%, respectively. In summary, Destination Marketing and Management Organization of CMC Tiga Warna ecotourism is believed to improve environmental awareness of ecotourist and local communities by strengthening coastal biodiversity conservation programs in ecotourism areas and in maintaining sustainability.

Monitoring Invasion Process of Spartina alterniflora by Seasonal Sentinel-2 Imagery and an Object-Based Random Forest Classification

In the late 1990s, the exotic plant Spartina alterniflora (S. alterniflora), was introduced to the Zhangjiang Estuary of China for tidal zone reclamation and protection. However, it invaded rapidly and has caused serious ecological problems. Accurate information on the seasonal invasion of S. alterniflora is vital to understand invasion pattern and mechanism, especially at a high temporal resolution. This study aimed to explore the S. alterniflora invasion process at a seasonal scale from 2016 to 2018. However, due to the uncertainties caused by periodic inundation of local tides, accurately monitoring the spatial extent of S. alterniflora is challenging. Thus, to achieve the goal and address the challenge, we firstly built a high-quality seasonal Sentinel-2 image collection by developing a new submerged S. alterniflora index (SAI) to reduce the errors caused by high tide fluctuations. Then, an object-based random forest (RF) classification method was applied to the image collection. Finally, seasonal extents of S. alterniflora were captured. Results showed that (1) the red edge bands (bands 5, 6, and 7) of Sentinel-2 imagery played critical roles in delineating submerged S. alterniflora; (2) during March 2016 to November 2018, the extent of S. alterniflora increased from 151.7 to 270.3 ha, with an annual invasion rate of 39.5 ha; (3) S. alterniflora invaded with a rate of 31.5 ha/season during growing season and 12.1 ha/season during dormant season. To our knowledge, this is the first study monitoring S. alterniflora invasion process at a seasonal scale during continuous years, discovering that S. alterniflora also expands during dormant seasons. This discovery is of great significance for understanding the invasion pattern and mechanism of S. alterniflora and will facilitate coastal biodiversity conservation efforts.

EDNA metabarcoding as a promising conservation tool for monitoring fish diversity in a coastal wetland of the Pearl River Estuary compared to bottom trawling

The difficulty of censusing fish diversity hampers effective management and conservation in estuarine and coastal ecosystems, especially wetland ecosystems. Improved noninvasive fish diversity monitoring programs are becoming increasingly crucial for coastal ecosystems. In this study, we investigated fish diversity and its seasonal variation in the Nansha wetland ecosystem using environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding and bottom trawling, and the two approaches were compared. With the combination of the two methods, the identified fish taxa included 78 species within 60 genera and 33 families, and five nontarget taxa were only identified by eDNA metabarcoding. Compared to the two surveys, eDNA metabarcoding identified a significantly greater number of fish species per site and per season than bottom trawling (p < 0.05), with eDNA metabarcoding identifying 32.05% more fish species than bottom trawling. The overwhelming majority of the fish orders captured in the Nansha coastal wetland by bottom trawling were recovered from eDNA analysis, although certain taxa were not sampled due to limitations. Furthermore, the Whittaker index and relative abundance analysis of the two methods showed distinct differences between the sampling seasons, suggesting seasonal variations and reflecting the current or recent existence of fish species in the coastal ecosystem. Thus, our work provides more detailed seasonal data on biodiversity in the Nansha wetland of the Pearl River Estuary, which is essential for the long-term management and conservation of coastal biodiversity. Our study also adds to the evidence that the eDNA metabarcoding approach can be used in coastal environments to monitor a broad range of taxa and reflect seasonal fluctuations in fish diversity. As an emerging and transformative method, eDNA metabarcoding shows great potential for fish diversity monitoring in coastal wetland ecosystems.

Alternative strategies for scaling up marine coastal biodiversity conservation in Chile

The continued degradation of marine ecosystems, along with the ecosystem services they provide, suggest that new, innovative approaches are needed to scale up marine biodiversity protection and promote sustainable fishery practices. We synthesize information from Chile on the key processes involved in the development of alternative strategies for scaling up marine biodiversity conservation and discuss the complementarities with marine protected areas. Defined as “ancillary” marine conservation initiatives under the Convention of Biological Diversity, we suggest that these alternative strategies have the potential to capitalize on local stakeholders’ participation and contribute to solving livelihood and governance issues while playing a significant role in scaling up marine conservation. We specifically focus on two recent ancillary initiatives being piloted in Chile. The development of business model innovations which could enable biodiversity benefits from territorial user rights fisheries policies and the creation of municipal conservation areas. We identify how these initiatives could eventually help scale up marine conservation, discuss opportunities and challenges from these pilot experiences and conclude with the need for developing policy frameworks and cross-scale governance approaches which formally acknowledge marine ancillary conservation measures as part of an integrated way to manage marine biodiversity. Exploring and supporting alternative complementary marine conservation strategies is particularly relevant in Chile and Latin America, if biodiversity conservation initiatives are to scale in coverage, contribute to livelihood improvement of local communities, replenish fisheries and play key roles in adaptation to climate change.

Oroquieta City Households’ Willingness to Pay for Coastal Biodiversity Conservation

Over the years, ecosystem services have been undervalued since regarded as public good. Low appreciation on the benefits provided by the ecosystem has led to the overutilization of resources, causing negative impacts to biodiversity and environment. In the Philippines, biodiversity conservation has not been given enough priority, and has been beset with various problems such as insufficient funding. This usually applies in coastal communities, where majority of community members have low capacity to contribute monetarily. However, the rising occurrence of climate-related phenomena also increases the awareness of communities and their willingness to contribute to environmental conservation activities such as Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES). This study aimed to value the coastal conservation activities from households of Oroquieta City through contingent valuation method. The computed mean willingness to pay for coastal conservation using parametric estimation was PhP 30.39, wherein the estimated mean willingness to pay translates to 0.23% of their average income. Potential revenue to be collected annually could amount to PhP 1.8 million. In five years, the total collection could reach PhP 9 million, which is also substantial to make the biodiversity conservation activities sustainable. The estimation of this study could serve as basis for implementation of PES in the the coastal communities for sustainable biodiversity conservation.

Nutrient enrichment and variation in community structure on rocky shores: The potential of molluscan assemblages for biomonitoring

Consideration of the impacts of pollutants on elements of biodiversity and the development of cost-effective biomonitoring tools to measure those impacts are essential to coastal biodiversity conservation. To examine the effects of nutrient enrichment and to develop biomonitoring tools, a network of 11 rocky intertidal sites differing in nutrient contamination levels was established on the west coast of Ireland. Communities of molluscs on the lower shore were sampled at the sites and a range of physicochemical variables was measured to characterize levels of contamination on the shores. Total abundance and number of taxa of molluscs were reduced in contaminated sites compared to control sites. Multivariate analyses showed that the structure of the molluscan assemblages differed between contaminated and control sites, discriminating between species that were more abundant at contaminated sites and those that were more abundant at control sites. Multivariate multiple regression analysis showed that nitrite, phosphate and ammonia levels in seawater accounted for more than 45% of the variability in the community structure of molluscs. This study suggests that molluscan assemblages could be a cost-effective tool to monitor and detect changes induced by nutrient enrichment in coastal areas.

Identificación de las prioridades de conservación de la biodiversidad marina y costera en Costa Rica

Costa Rica is recognized as one of the most diverse countries in species and ecosystems, in their terrestrial realm as well as in the marine. Besides this relevance, the country presents a delay on conservation and management of marine and coastal biodiversity, with respect to terrestrial. For 2006, the marine protected surface was 5,208.8 km2, with 331.5 km of coastline, in 20 protected areas. The country has made progress on the conservation priority sites identification for terrestrial and freshwater biodiversity, with few efforts on marine planning. This research presents the analysis and results of the gap identification process, for marine and coastal biodiversity conservation in the protected areas system of Costa Rica. The analysis was built with the spatial information available on the presence and distribution of coastal and marine biodiversity, the establishment of the conservation goals and a threat analysis over the ecological integrity of this biodiversity. The selection of high-priority sites was carried out using spatial optimization techniques and the superposition over the current shape of marine protected areas, in order to identify representation gaps. A total of 19,076 km2 of conservation gaps were indentified, with 1,323 km2 in the Caribbean and 17,753 km2 in the Pacific. Recommendations are aimed at planning and strengthening the marine protected areas system, using the gaps identified as a framework. It is expected that the results of this study would be the scientific base needed for planning and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in the country.

Conservation of Coastal Biodiversity

With more than half of the world’s population residing within 60 kms of the shoreline (IUCN 1995) and livelihoods and sustenance dependent on the coastal ecosystems, conservation of coastal biodiversity is critical. The crisis of the Konkan coast emphasizes the need to stop further degradation of terrestrial and marine resources, protect &amp; restore habitats and life sustaining ecological linkages and promote sustainable development to benefit residents and traditional communities. The author has identified 5 Biospheres and 12 Sites of Special Scientific Interest on the Konkan coast for conservation of biodiversity. The author also reiterates that this scheme should be implemented only after public debate, dissemination of scientific information and public participation in planning and decision making.

ECOLOGICAL INTELLIGENCE OF COASTAL COMMUNITY ON BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION (Case Study of Bajau Coastal Communities, Gorontalo)

Human behavior is a part of the ecological system, therefore overcoming the ecological crisis and living resources need to explore human traditions, way of life and human behavior toward natural resources. Understanding and translation of human harmonious relationship with all elements along with other living beings is a form of human ecological intelligence. The objective of this study was to describe the traditions and coastal communities behavior that contains the value of ecological intelligence in coastal biodiversity conservation. The study was based on observation, focus group discussion and identification of Bajau coastal community tradition in their lives and livelihoods on fishing, as well as the behavior toward biological resources. Bajau coastal communities settled in three villages in Pohuwato regency, Gorontalo. There are two themes that contains the value of ecological intelligence of Bajau communities in the conservation of biodiversity, namely; mamia kadialo in tradition of fishing, and fishing behavior. The prohibition in the tradition of mamia kadialo contains the value of conservation of biodiversity. Usage of simple equipment on fishing activities provide a positive ecological consequences for the conservation of coastal biodiversity.