The tropicalization of temperate marine ecosystems: climate-mediated changes in herbivory and community phase shifts

Adriana Vergés; Peter D Steinberg; Mark E Hay; Alistair G B Poore; Alexandra H Campbell; Enric Ballesteros; Kenneth L Heck Jr; David J Booth; Melinda A Coleman; David A Feary; Will Figueira; Tim Langlois; Ezequiel M Marzinelli; Toni Mizerek; Peter J Mumby; Yohei Nakamura; Moninya Roughan; Erik van Sebille; Alex Sen Gupta; Dan A Smale; Fiona Tomas; Thomas Wernberg; Shaun K Wilson

doi:10.1098/rspb.2014.0846

The tropicalization of temperate marine ecosystems: climate-mediated changes in herbivory and community phase shifts

Proc Biol Sci. 2014 Aug 22;281(1789):20140846. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2014.0846.

Authors

Adriana Vergés¹, Peter D Steinberg², Mark E Hay³, Alistair G B Poore⁴, Alexandra H Campbell⁵, Enric Ballesteros⁶, Kenneth L Heck Jr⁷, David J Booth⁸, Melinda A Coleman⁹, David A Feary⁸, Will Figueira¹⁰, Tim Langlois¹¹, Ezequiel M Marzinelli¹², Toni Mizerek¹³, Peter J Mumby¹⁴, Yohei Nakamura¹⁵, Moninya Roughan¹⁶, Erik van Sebille¹⁷, Alex Sen Gupta¹⁷, Dan A Smale¹⁸, Fiona Tomas¹⁹, Thomas Wernberg¹¹, Shaun K Wilson²⁰

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia a.verges@unsw.edu.au.
² Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia Advanced Environmental Biotechnology Centre, Nanyang Technical University, Singapore 637551, Republic of Singapore.
³ School of Biology and Aquatic Chemical Ecology Center, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA.
⁴ Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia.
⁵ Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia.
⁶ Centre d'Estudis Avançats de Blanes-CSIC, Blanes, Girona 17300, Spain.
⁷ Dauphin Island Sea Laboratory and University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL 36688-0002, USA.
⁸ Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia School of the Environment, University of Technology Sydney, Broadway, New South Wales 2007, Australia.
⁹ Department of Primary Industries, NSW Fisheries, PO Box 4321, Coffs Harbour, New South Wales 2450, Australia.
¹⁰ Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia.
¹¹ UWA Oceans Institute and School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia.
¹² Centre for Marine Bio-Innovation, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia.
¹³ Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales 2109, Australia.
¹⁴ Marine Spatial Ecology Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
¹⁵ Graduate School of Kuroshio Science, Kochi University, Kochi 783-8502, Japan.
¹⁶ School of Mathematics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia Sydney Institute of Marine Sciences, Chowder Bay Road, Mosman, New South Wales 2088, Australia.
¹⁷ Climate Change Research Centre and ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales 2052, Australia.
¹⁸ UWA Oceans Institute and School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, Citadel Hill, Plymouth PL1 2PB, UK.
¹⁹ Instituto Mediterráneo de Estudios Avanzados (CSIC-UIB), Esporles, Illes Balears 07190, Spain Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331-3803, USA.
²⁰ UWA Oceans Institute and School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife, Kensington, Western Australia 6151, Australia.

Abstract

Climate-driven changes in biotic interactions can profoundly alter ecological communities, particularly when they impact foundation species. In marine systems, changes in herbivory and the consequent loss of dominant habitat forming species can result in dramatic community phase shifts, such as from coral to macroalgal dominance when tropical fish herbivory decreases, and from algal forests to 'barrens' when temperate urchin grazing increases. Here, we propose a novel phase-shift away from macroalgal dominance caused by tropical herbivores extending their range into temperate regions. We argue that this phase shift is facilitated by poleward-flowing boundary currents that are creating ocean warming hotspots around the globe, enabling the range expansion of tropical species and increasing their grazing rates in temperate areas. Overgrazing of temperate macroalgae by tropical herbivorous fishes has already occurred in Japan and the Mediterranean. Emerging evidence suggests similar phenomena are occurring in other temperate regions, with increasing occurrence of tropical fishes on temperate reefs.

Keywords: climate change; ecosystem impacts; functional diversity; macroalgae; range shift; western boundary currents.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Aquatic Organisms
Biodiversity
Climate Change*
Ecosystem*
Fishes
Herbivory*
Models, Biological
Seaweed

Grants and funding

U19 TW007401/TW/FIC NIH HHS/United States