4.6 Article

Restoring Eelgrass (Zostera marina L.) Habitats Using a Simple and Effective Transplanting Technique

Journal

PLOS ONE
Volume 9, Issue 4, Pages -

Publisher

PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0092982

Keywords

-

Funding

  1. National Natural Science Foundation of China [41121064/41176140]
  2. National Marine Public Welfare Research Project [201305043/201005009]
  3. Key Projects in the National Science & Technology Pillar Program [2011BAD13B06]
  4. Science & Technology Development Project of Qingdao City South District [2009517HY]

Ask authors/readers for more resources

Eelgrass beds in coastal waters of China have declined substantially over the past 30 years. In this study, a simple new transplanting technique was developed for eelgrass ( Zostera marina L.) restoration. To assist in anchoring single shoots, several rhizomes of rooted shoots were bound to a small elongate stone ( 50-150 g) with biodegradable thread ( cotton or hemp), and then the bound packet was buried at an angle in the sediments at a depth of 2-4 cm. This stone anchoring method was used to transplant eelgrass in early November 2009 and late May 2010 in Huiquan Bay, Qingdao. The method led to high success. Three month survivorship of the transplanted shoots at the two transplant sites was >95%. From April 20 to November 19, 2012, the following characteristics of the 2009 and 2010 transplanted eelgrass beds were monitored: morphological changes, shoot density, shoot height, leaf biomass, and sediment particle size. Results showed that the sexual reproduction period of the planted eelgrass was from April to August, and vegetative reproduction reached its peak in autumn. Maximum shoot height and biomass were observed in June and July. After becoming established, the transplanted eelgrass beds were statistically equal to natural eelgrass beds nearby in terms of shoot height, biomass, and seasonal variations. This indicates that the transplant technique is effective for eelgrass restoration in coastal waters.

Authors

I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.

Reviews

Primary Rating

4.6
Not enough ratings

Secondary Ratings

Novelty
-
Significance
-
Scientific rigor
-
Rate this paper

Recommended

No Data Available
No Data Available