Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-pftt2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-12T17:05:45.685Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The standing stock and CaCO3 contribution of Halimeda macroloba in the tropical seagrass-dominated ecosystem in Dongsha Island, the main island of Dongsha Atoll, South China Sea

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 November 2020

Jaruwan Mayakun*
Affiliation:
Division of Biological Science, Faculty of Science, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Songkhla90112, Thailand
Chen-Pan Liao
Affiliation:
Department of Life Science & Center for Ecology and Environment, Tunghai University, Taichung40704, Taiwan Department of Biology, National Museum of Natural Science, Taichung, Taiwan
Shao-Lun Liu
Affiliation:
Department of Life Science & Center for Ecology and Environment, Tunghai University, Taichung40704, Taiwan
*
Author for correspondence: Jaruwan Mayakun, E-mail: jaruwan.may@psu.ac.th

Abstract

Calcareous green alga in the genus Halimeda are important contributors to the marine carbonate budget. Dongsha Island is located in the northernmost South China Sea and is a seagrass-dominated ecosystem with intermixed Halimeda macroloba patches, making it an excellent system to better examine the extent of carbonate contribution by H. macroloba in such an ecosystem. To this end, we examined the standing stock and actual CaCO3 contribution of H. macroloba in the seagrass-dominated ecosystem (herein Dongsha Island) and compared them with those in Halimeda-dominated ecosystems. The density, growth rate, calcification rate and CaCO3 content of H. macroloba at four life stages were investigated. The mean density of H. macroloba was around 8.82 ± 1.57 thalli m−2 and the estimated standing stock was 61,740 to 72,730 thalli. Thalli produced 1 to 2 new segments day−1, giving a growth rate of 0.003 ± 0.001 g dry weight thallus−1 day−1. Calculated algal biomass and annual areal production were 0.03 g m−2 and 9.66 g m−2 year−1. In each square metre of this area, H. macroloba produced 8.82 to 17.64 new segments day−1, accumulating 0.002 ± 0.001 g CaCO3 thallus−1 day−1 or around 6.44 g CaCO3 m−2 year−1. Mean CaCO3 content was 0.32 ± 0.05 g thallus−1. As expected, the growth rate and CaCO3 production of H. macroloba in Dongsha Island were lower than in other studies from Halimeda tropical ecosystems. Overall, this work provides the baseline of carbonate production of H. macroloba in Dongsha Island and relevant systems where the ecosystem is dominated by seagrasses.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Barry, SC, Frazer, TK and Jacoby, CA (2013) Production and carbonate dynamics of Halimeda incrassata (Ellis) Lamouroux altered by Thalassia testudinum Banks and Soland ex König. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 444, 7380.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Borcard, D, Legendre, P and Drapeau, P (1992) Partialling out the spatial component of ecological variation. Ecology 73, 10451055.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Borowitzka, MA and Larkum, AWD (1976) Calcification in the green alga Halimeda, III. The sources of inorganic carbon for photosynthesis and calcification and a model of the mechanism of calcification. Journal of Experimental Botany 27, 879893.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Borowitzka, MA and Larkum, AWD (1977) Calcification in the green alga Halimeda, I. An ultrastructure study of thallus developemnt. Journal of Phycology 13, 616.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carneiro, PBDM and Morais, JO (2016) Carbonate sediment production in the equatorial continental shelf of South America: quantifying Halimeda incrassata (Chlorophyta) contributions. Journal of South American Earth Sciences 72, 16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carneiro, PBDM, Pereira, JU and Matthews-Cascon, H (2018) Standing stock variations, growth and CaCO3 production by the calcareous green alga Halimeda opuntia. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 98, 401409.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chou, W-C, Chu, H-C, Chen, Y-H, Syu, R-W, Hung, C-C and Soong, K (2018) Short-term variability of carbon chemistry in two contrasting seagrass meadows at Dongsha Island: implications for pH buffering and CO2 sequestration. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 210, 3644.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cremen, MaCM, Huisman, JM, Marcelino, VR and Verbruggen, H (2016). Taxonomic revision of Halimeda (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) in south-western Australia. Australian Systematic Botany 29, 4154.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davis, BC and Fourqurean, JW (2001) Competition between the tropical alga, Halimeda incrassata, and the seagrass, Thalassia testudinum. Aquatic Botany 71, 217232.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dijoux, L, Verbruggen, H, Mattio, L, Duong, N and Payri, C (2012) Diversity of Hallimeda (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) in New Caledonia: a combined morphological and molecular study. Journal of Phycology 48, 14651481.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Drew, EA and Abel, KM (1985) Biology, sedimentology and geography of the vast inter reefal Halimeda meadows within the Great Barrier Reef province. In Harmelin-Vivien, M and Salvat, B (eds) Proceedings of the Fifth International Coral Reef Congress, Vol. 5. Antenne Museum-Ephe, Tahiti, pp. 1520.Google Scholar
Harney, JN and Fletcher, CH III (2003) A budget of carbonate framework and sediment production, Kailua Bay, Oahu, Hawaii. Journal of Sedimentary Research 73, 856868.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hillis, L (1997) Coral reefs calcareous algae from a green perspective, and a first carbonate budget. In Lessios, HA and Macintyre, IG (eds), Proceedings of the Eighth International Coral Reef Symposium, Vol. 1. Panama: Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, pp. 761766.Google Scholar
Hillis-Colinvaux, L (1980). Ecology and taxonomy of Halimeda: primary producer of coral reefs. Advances in Marine Biology 17, 1327.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Huang, YH, Lee, CL, Chung, CY, Hsiao, SC and Lin, HJ (2015) Carbon budgets of multispecies seagrass beds at Dongsha Island in the South China Sea. Marine Environmental Research 106, 92102.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kaewsrikhaw, R, Prathep, A, Darakai, A and Beer, S (2016) Photosynthesis and calcification in two Halimeda species from Phuket, Thailand. Botanica Marina 59, 187192.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lin, H-J, Hsieh, L-Y and Liu, P-J (2005) Seagrass of Tongsha Island, with descriptions of four new records to Taiwan. Botanical Bulletin of Academia Sinica 46, 163168.Google Scholar
Mayakun, J and Prathep, A (2019). Calcium carbonate productivity by Halimeda macroloba in the tropical intertidal ecosystem: the significant contributor to global carbonate budgets. Phycological Research 67, 94101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mayakun, J, Kim, JH, Lapointe, BE and Prathep, A (2012 a) Gametangial characteristics in the sexual reproduction of Halimeda macroloba Decaisne (Chlorophyta: Halimedaceae). Songklanakarin Journal of Science and Technology 34: 211216.Google Scholar
Mayakun, J, Kim, JH, Lapointe, BE and Prathep, A (2012 b) The effects of herbivore exclusion and nutrient enrichment on growth and reproduction of Halimeda macroloba Decaisne (Chlorophyta: Halimedaceae). ScienceAsia 38, 227234.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mayakun, J, Bunruk, P and Kongsaeng, R (2014). Growth rate and calcium carbonate accumulation of Halimeda macroloba Decaisne (Chlorophyta: Halimedaceae) in Thai waters. Songklanakarin Journal of Science and Technology 36, 419423.Google Scholar
McNeil, MA, Webster, JM, Beaman, RJ and Graham, TL (2016) New constraints on the spatial distribution and morphology of the Halimeda bioherms of the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Coral Reefs 35, 13431355.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Milliman, JD (1993) Production and accumulation of calcium carbonate in the ocean: budget of a nonsteady state. Global Biogeochemical Cycles 7, 927957.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ortegón-Aznar, I, Chuc-Contreras, A and Collado-Vides, L (2017) Calcareous green algae standing stock in a tropical sedimentary coast. Journal of Applied Phycology 29, 26852693.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Peach, KE, Koch, MS, Blackwelder, PL and Manfrino, C (2017) Calcification and photophysiology responses to elevated pCO2 in six Halimeda species from contrasting irradiance environments on Little Cayman Island reefs. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 486, 114126.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Perry, CT, Morgan, KM and Salter, MA (2016) Sediment generation by Halimeda on atoll interior coral reefs of the southern Maldives: a census-based approach for estimating carbonate production by calcareous green algae. Sedimentary Geology 346, 1724.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pongparadon, S, Zuccarello, GC and Prathep, A (2017) High morpho-anatomical variability in Halimeda macroloba (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) in Thai waters. Phycological Research 65, 136145.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Prathep, A, Kaewsrikhaw, R, Mayakun, J and Darakrai, A (2018) The effects of light intensity and temperature on the calcification rate of Halimeda macroloba. Journal of Applied Phycology 30, 34053412.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ree, SA, Opdyke, BN, Wilson, PA and Henstock, TJ (2007) Significance of Halimeda bioherms to the global carbonate budget based on a geological sediment budget for the Northern Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Coral Reefs 26, 177188.Google Scholar
Rolim, FA, Langlois, T, Rodrigues, PFC, Bond, T, Motta, FS, Neves, LM and Gadig, OBF (2019) Network of small no-take marine reserves reveals greater abundance and body size of fisheries target species. PLoS ONE 14, e0204970. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0204970 .CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sinutok, S (2008) Seasonal Variation in Distribution, Density, and Life Stage of Halimeda macroloba Decaisne at Tangkhen Bay, Phuket Province, Thailand (M.S thesis in Ecology). Prince of Songkla University, HatYai, Thailand.Google Scholar
Sinutok, S, Pongparadon, S and Prathep, A (2008) Seasonal variation in density, growth rate and calcium carbonate accumulation of Halimeda macroloba Decaisne at Tangkhen Bay, Phuket Province, Thailand. Malaysian Journal of Science 27, 18.Google Scholar
Tkachenko, KS and Soong, K (2017) Dongsha atoll: a potential thermal refuge for reef-building corals in the South China Sea. Marine Environmental Research 127, 112125.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tuntiprapas, P, Hayashizaki, K-I, Ogawa, H, Panyawai, J, Tamada, S, Stankovic, M and Prathep, A (2019) The contributions of allochthonous and autochthonous materials to organic carbon in coastal sediment: a case study from Tangkhen Bay, Phuket, Thailand. Ecological Research 34, 718729.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Tussenbroek, BI and van Dijk, JK (2007) Spatial and temporal variability in biomass and reproduction of psammophytic Halimeda incrassata (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) in a Caribbean reef lagoon. Journal of Phycology 43, 6977.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Verbruggen, H and Kooistra, WHCF (2004) Morphological characterization of lineages within the calcified tropical seaweed genus Halimeda (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta). European Journal of Phycology 39, 213228.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vroom, PS, Smith, CM, Coyer, JA, Walters, LJ, Hunter, CL, Beach, KS and Smith, JE (2003) Field biology of Halimeda tuna (Bryopsidales, Chlorophyta) across a depth gradient: comparative growth, survivorship, recruitment, and reproduction. Hydrobiologia 501, 149166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Supplementary material: Image

Mayakun et al. Supplementary Materials

Mayakun et al. Supplementary Materials 1

Download Mayakun et al. Supplementary Materials(Image)
Image 1.2 MB
Supplementary material: Image

Mayakun et al. Supplementary Materials

Mayakun et al. Supplementary Materials 2

Download Mayakun et al. Supplementary Materials(Image)
Image 276.6 KB