Thermally Primed Zostera muelleri Seeds Exhibit Higher Germination Rates Than Those From Ambient Conditions
ABSTRACT Seagrasses provide critical ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration, sediment stabilisation and nursery habitat for juvenile fish. Zostera muelleri is ubiquitous within Australian and New Zealand estuaries, however, as a species is relatively understudied. We sourced seeds from a th...
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Wiley
2024-10-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70362 |
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| author | Tom Moir Megan J. Huggett Timothy M. Smith Troy F. Gaston |
| author_facet | Tom Moir Megan J. Huggett Timothy M. Smith Troy F. Gaston |
| author_sort | Tom Moir |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT Seagrasses provide critical ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration, sediment stabilisation and nursery habitat for juvenile fish. Zostera muelleri is ubiquitous within Australian and New Zealand estuaries, however, as a species is relatively understudied. We sourced seeds from a thermally affected east Australian estuary and investigated whether germination rates differed between ambient and thermally affected seeds over a variety of temperatures (16°C–28°C) to determine how seagrass systems might react in a warming climate. Germination for the experiment was low and totalled 5% of all seeds; however, similar numbers are typical in seed germination studies. Germination was highest at 16°C and was enhanced through the simulation of a 48‐h freshwater pulse. Thermally affected sites germinated faster and had greater mean maximum germination when compared to control sites regardless of experimental temperature. These findings indicate that Z. muelleri in this system may be exhibiting transgenerational plasticity due to the thermal stress the parent experiences. This result provides an alternate viewpoint to the current literature by suggesting that unknown transgenerational effects may provide Z. muelleri with greater germination plasticity against temperatures expected under predicted climate change scenarios than previously expected. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-04c9358375c44ee19dcf4af067c6ecb7 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-10-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
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| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj-art-04c9358375c44ee19dcf4af067c6ecb72024-12-20T09:05:58ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582024-10-011410n/an/a10.1002/ece3.70362Thermally Primed Zostera muelleri Seeds Exhibit Higher Germination Rates Than Those From Ambient ConditionsTom Moir0Megan J. Huggett1Timothy M. Smith2Troy F. Gaston3School of Environmental and Life Sciences University of Newcastle Ourimbah New South Wales AustraliaSchool of Environmental and Life Sciences University of Newcastle Ourimbah New South Wales AustraliaCentre for Tropical Water & Aquatic Ecosystem Research James Cook University Cairns Queensland AustraliaSchool of Environmental and Life Sciences University of Newcastle Ourimbah New South Wales AustraliaABSTRACT Seagrasses provide critical ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration, sediment stabilisation and nursery habitat for juvenile fish. Zostera muelleri is ubiquitous within Australian and New Zealand estuaries, however, as a species is relatively understudied. We sourced seeds from a thermally affected east Australian estuary and investigated whether germination rates differed between ambient and thermally affected seeds over a variety of temperatures (16°C–28°C) to determine how seagrass systems might react in a warming climate. Germination for the experiment was low and totalled 5% of all seeds; however, similar numbers are typical in seed germination studies. Germination was highest at 16°C and was enhanced through the simulation of a 48‐h freshwater pulse. Thermally affected sites germinated faster and had greater mean maximum germination when compared to control sites regardless of experimental temperature. These findings indicate that Z. muelleri in this system may be exhibiting transgenerational plasticity due to the thermal stress the parent experiences. This result provides an alternate viewpoint to the current literature by suggesting that unknown transgenerational effects may provide Z. muelleri with greater germination plasticity against temperatures expected under predicted climate change scenarios than previously expected.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70362climate changeestuaryseagrassseed germinationthermal effectsZostera |
| spellingShingle | Tom Moir Megan J. Huggett Timothy M. Smith Troy F. Gaston Thermally Primed Zostera muelleri Seeds Exhibit Higher Germination Rates Than Those From Ambient Conditions Ecology and Evolution climate change estuary seagrass seed germination thermal effects Zostera |
| title | Thermally Primed Zostera muelleri Seeds Exhibit Higher Germination Rates Than Those From Ambient Conditions |
| title_full | Thermally Primed Zostera muelleri Seeds Exhibit Higher Germination Rates Than Those From Ambient Conditions |
| title_fullStr | Thermally Primed Zostera muelleri Seeds Exhibit Higher Germination Rates Than Those From Ambient Conditions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Thermally Primed Zostera muelleri Seeds Exhibit Higher Germination Rates Than Those From Ambient Conditions |
| title_short | Thermally Primed Zostera muelleri Seeds Exhibit Higher Germination Rates Than Those From Ambient Conditions |
| title_sort | thermally primed zostera muelleri seeds exhibit higher germination rates than those from ambient conditions |
| topic | climate change estuary seagrass seed germination thermal effects Zostera |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70362 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT tommoir thermallyprimedzosteramuelleriseedsexhibithighergerminationratesthanthosefromambientconditions AT meganjhuggett thermallyprimedzosteramuelleriseedsexhibithighergerminationratesthanthosefromambientconditions AT timothymsmith thermallyprimedzosteramuelleriseedsexhibithighergerminationratesthanthosefromambientconditions AT troyfgaston thermallyprimedzosteramuelleriseedsexhibithighergerminationratesthanthosefromambientconditions |