Carter, A.B., Coles, R.G., McKenna, S.A., and Rasheed, M.A. (2016) A spatial management tool for seagrasses in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area. In: International Coral Reef Symposium: abstract book. 27805. p. 52. From: 13th International Coral Reef Symposium, 19-24 June 2016, Honolulu, HI, USA.

PDF (Abstract Only) - Published Version Restricted to Repository staff only

Abstract

The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) World Heritage Area includes one of the world's largest seagrass ecosystems (35 000 km2) with approximately 20% of the world's seagrass species. Key to understanding and managing this important ecosystem is reliable data on seagrass distribution, abundance and species composition, and how this changes through time. A range of mapping and monitoring programs since the 1980s have documented GBR seagrasses. These include GBR-wide coastal and seabed seagrass mapping through the 1980s and 1990s and a biodiversity mapping project in 2004; reef-top meadow mapping adjacent to shipping lanes as part of an oil spill response atlas in the remote northern GBR (2011-2014); and small-scale but long-term (>15 years) monitoring programs at coastal ports (e.g. Cairns and Gladstone). Until recently managers could not access the full range of seagrass spatial data in a format that included a range of scales, site and meadow information, nor could they interrogate the reliability of the dataset. We found, evaluated and incorporated over 300 seagrass spatial data sets collected from the GBR spanning 30 years into two publicly available GIS layers. We include information on seagrass presence/absence, percent cover, biomass, species present, dominant species, meadow area and survey date. This management tool allows seagrass information to be categorized depending on management questions regarding development, zoning, and planning, and is available for resource managers to model connectivity, better understand seagrass change, identify regions where seagrass information is deficient, and identify key seagrass areas for dugong and turtles.

Item ID:	83666
Item Type:	Conference Item (Abstract / Summary)
Keywords:	seagrass; management; spatial tools; Great Barrier Reef
Date Deposited:	17 Sep 2024 22:38
FoR Codes:	41 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES > 4104 Environmental management > 410404 Environmental management @ 50% 31 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 3103 Ecology > 310305 Marine and estuarine ecology (incl. marine ichthyology) @ 50%
SEO Codes:	18 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT > 1805 Marine systems and management > 180501 Assessment and management of benthic marine ecosystems @ 50% 18 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT > 1805 Marine systems and management > 180502 Assessment and management of pelagic marine ecosystems @ 50%
	More Statistics