Tuesday, 9:30 AM in PRV-IV (Westin)
(subject to change)
Ruppia is an adaptable and highly morphologically variable genus that reproduces well from seed. Not traditionally considered a seagrass, genetic and ecological studies over the last two decades suggest it should indeed be considered amongst the seagrass evolutionary lineages. As such, it is the most broadly distributed seagrass genus, growing from Iceland to the Faulkland Islands and from Mexico to India. Estuarine communities dominated by Ruppia support a diversity of key ecosystem services. As reports of declining seagrass meadows increase, comments of Ruppia increasing are also becoming common – United Sates examples include San Diego Bay (CA), Chesapeake Bay (MD & VA) and Florida Bay (FL). We suggest that Ruppia is better able to withstand increases in temperature and nutrients than other seagrass genera and thus changes may give an advantage to the usually competitively inferior Ruppia. Climate change predictions suggest temperatures in coastal regions will become more variable and generally warmer while concurrently increasing nutrient loads are expected in the foreseeable future. In locations where Ruppia becomes a more common component of seagrass communities in the future it should be seen as a significant indicator of ecosystem change, requiring implementation of broadscale management actions.
