Saltmarsh seeds in motion: the relative importance of dispersal units and abiotic conditions

Zhiyuan Zhao; Liquan Zhang; Lin Yuan; Tjeerd J. Bouma

doi:10.3354/meps13891

Saltmarsh seeds in motion: the relative importance of dispersal units and abiotic conditions

Zhiyuan Zhao, Liquan Zhang, Lin Yuan^*, Tjeerd J. Bouma

^*Corresponding author for this work

Earth Surface Processes

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Propagule dispersal is fundamental to the colonization of new habitats, metapopulation connectivity, and gene flow and thus enables saltmarsh species to cope with global change. In this study, mesocosm and flume experiments were used to quantify the effects of different dispersal units (i.e. seed, spikelet, inflorescence, and plant fragment-containing seeds) and abiotic conditions on the dispersal processes of 4 globally distributed saltmarsh species: Salicornia europaea, Scirpus maritimus, Spartina anglica, and Elymus athericus. The results showed that (1) moving seawater has a species-specific effect on buoyancy, leading to prolonged floatability of high tidal-flat species E. athericus and reduced floatability of pioneer species; (2) tidal currents increase dispersal speed, whereas wind can have additive or antagonistic effects on currentdominated dispersal speed depending on its direction; (3) wave action reduces dispersal speed, but this effect becomes smaller with increasing wave magnitudes and/or applied co-directional wind; (4) dispersal speed may vary depending on the physical forcing and type and morphology of the dispersal units, but the largest species effect is related to the period in which units remain buoyant; and (5) the dispersal potential of saltmarsh species in wind wave-dominated coastal environments can be ordered as follows: E. athericus > S. maritimus > S. anglica > S. europaea. This study provides valuable guidance for future numerical hydrodynamic models of salt - marsh dispersal and establishment, allowing more accurate prediction of the distributional responses of saltmarsh species to climate change, thereby supporting appropriate management and restoration strategies.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	63-79
Number of pages	17
Journal	Marine Ecology Progress Series
Volume	678
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13891
Publication status	Published - 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Acknowledgements. We are indebted to Zhengquan Zhou and Jaco de Smit for their help in collecting plant materials. Special thanks go to the technical assistance of Lennart van IJzerloo in the preparation and setup of the mesocosm and flume experiments. This work was supported by the project ‘Coping with deltas in transition’ within the Programme of Strategic Scientific Alliances between China and the Ne - therlands (PSA) financed by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), project no. 2016YFE0133700. T.J.B. acknowledges the joint Chinese−Dutch SDWA-program from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), project no. PSA-SA-E-02. L.Y. and L.Z. acknowledge the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (project no. 41876093) and the Scientific Research Project of Shanghai & Technology Committee (project no. 21DZ1201803, 21DZ1201700). Z.Z. also acknowledges financial support from the China Scholarship Council.

Publisher Copyright:
© The authors 2021.

Funding

Acknowledgements. We are indebted to Zhengquan Zhou and Jaco de Smit for their help in collecting plant materials. Special thanks go to the technical assistance of Lennart van IJzerloo in the preparation and setup of the mesocosm and flume experiments. This work was supported by the project ‘Coping with deltas in transition’ within the Programme of Strategic Scientific Alliances between China and the Ne - therlands (PSA) financed by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), project no. 2016YFE0133700. T.J.B. acknowledges the joint Chinese−Dutch SDWA-program from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), project no. PSA-SA-E-02. L.Y. and L.Z. acknowledge the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (project no. 41876093) and the Scientific Research Project of Shanghai & Technology Committee (project no. 21DZ1201803, 21DZ1201700). Z.Z. also acknowledges financial support from the China Scholarship Council.

Keywords

Buoyancy
Dispersal speed
Dispersal unit
Salt marsh
Seed dispersal
Wave effect
Wind effect

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.3354/meps13891Licence: CC BY

m678p063Final published version, 4.74 MBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

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title = "Saltmarsh seeds in motion: the relative importance of dispersal units and abiotic conditions",

abstract = "Propagule dispersal is fundamental to the colonization of new habitats, metapopulation connectivity, and gene flow and thus enables saltmarsh species to cope with global change. In this study, mesocosm and flume experiments were used to quantify the effects of different dispersal units (i.e. seed, spikelet, inflorescence, and plant fragment-containing seeds) and abiotic conditions on the dispersal processes of 4 globally distributed saltmarsh species: Salicornia europaea, Scirpus maritimus, Spartina anglica, and Elymus athericus. The results showed that (1) moving seawater has a species-specific effect on buoyancy, leading to prolonged floatability of high tidal-flat species E. athericus and reduced floatability of pioneer species; (2) tidal currents increase dispersal speed, whereas wind can have additive or antagonistic effects on currentdominated dispersal speed depending on its direction; (3) wave action reduces dispersal speed, but this effect becomes smaller with increasing wave magnitudes and/or applied co-directional wind; (4) dispersal speed may vary depending on the physical forcing and type and morphology of the dispersal units, but the largest species effect is related to the period in which units remain buoyant; and (5) the dispersal potential of saltmarsh species in wind wave-dominated coastal environments can be ordered as follows: E. athericus > S. maritimus > S. anglica > S. europaea. This study provides valuable guidance for future numerical hydrodynamic models of salt - marsh dispersal and establishment, allowing more accurate prediction of the distributional responses of saltmarsh species to climate change, thereby supporting appropriate management and restoration strategies. ",

keywords = "Buoyancy, Dispersal speed, Dispersal unit, Salt marsh, Seed dispersal, Wave effect, Wind effect",

author = "Zhiyuan Zhao and Liquan Zhang and Lin Yuan and Bouma, {Tjeerd J.}",

note = "Funding Information: Acknowledgements. We are indebted to Zhengquan Zhou and Jaco de Smit for their help in collecting plant materials. Special thanks go to the technical assistance of Lennart van IJzerloo in the preparation and setup of the mesocosm and flume experiments. This work was supported by the project {\textquoteleft}Coping with deltas in transition{\textquoteright} within the Programme of Strategic Scientific Alliances between China and the Ne - therlands (PSA) financed by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), project no. 2016YFE0133700. T.J.B. acknowledges the joint Chinese−Dutch SDWA-program from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), project no. PSA-SA-E-02. L.Y. and L.Z. acknowledge the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (project no. 41876093) and the Scientific Research Project of Shanghai & Technology Committee (project no. 21DZ1201803, 21DZ1201700). Z.Z. also acknowledges financial support from the China Scholarship Council. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The authors 2021.",

year = "2021",

doi = "10.3354/meps13891",

language = "English",

volume = "678",

pages = "63--79",

journal = "Marine Ecology Progress Series",

issn = "0171-8630",

publisher = "Inter-Research",

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T1 - Saltmarsh seeds in motion

T2 - the relative importance of dispersal units and abiotic conditions

AU - Zhao, Zhiyuan

AU - Zhang, Liquan

AU - Yuan, Lin

AU - Bouma, Tjeerd J.

N1 - Funding Information: Acknowledgements. We are indebted to Zhengquan Zhou and Jaco de Smit for their help in collecting plant materials. Special thanks go to the technical assistance of Lennart van IJzerloo in the preparation and setup of the mesocosm and flume experiments. This work was supported by the project ‘Coping with deltas in transition’ within the Programme of Strategic Scientific Alliances between China and the Ne - therlands (PSA) financed by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), project no. 2016YFE0133700. T.J.B. acknowledges the joint Chinese−Dutch SDWA-program from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), project no. PSA-SA-E-02. L.Y. and L.Z. acknowledge the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (project no. 41876093) and the Scientific Research Project of Shanghai & Technology Committee (project no. 21DZ1201803, 21DZ1201700). Z.Z. also acknowledges financial support from the China Scholarship Council. Publisher Copyright: © The authors 2021.

PY - 2021

Y1 - 2021

N2 - Propagule dispersal is fundamental to the colonization of new habitats, metapopulation connectivity, and gene flow and thus enables saltmarsh species to cope with global change. In this study, mesocosm and flume experiments were used to quantify the effects of different dispersal units (i.e. seed, spikelet, inflorescence, and plant fragment-containing seeds) and abiotic conditions on the dispersal processes of 4 globally distributed saltmarsh species: Salicornia europaea, Scirpus maritimus, Spartina anglica, and Elymus athericus. The results showed that (1) moving seawater has a species-specific effect on buoyancy, leading to prolonged floatability of high tidal-flat species E. athericus and reduced floatability of pioneer species; (2) tidal currents increase dispersal speed, whereas wind can have additive or antagonistic effects on currentdominated dispersal speed depending on its direction; (3) wave action reduces dispersal speed, but this effect becomes smaller with increasing wave magnitudes and/or applied co-directional wind; (4) dispersal speed may vary depending on the physical forcing and type and morphology of the dispersal units, but the largest species effect is related to the period in which units remain buoyant; and (5) the dispersal potential of saltmarsh species in wind wave-dominated coastal environments can be ordered as follows: E. athericus > S. maritimus > S. anglica > S. europaea. This study provides valuable guidance for future numerical hydrodynamic models of salt - marsh dispersal and establishment, allowing more accurate prediction of the distributional responses of saltmarsh species to climate change, thereby supporting appropriate management and restoration strategies.

AB - Propagule dispersal is fundamental to the colonization of new habitats, metapopulation connectivity, and gene flow and thus enables saltmarsh species to cope with global change. In this study, mesocosm and flume experiments were used to quantify the effects of different dispersal units (i.e. seed, spikelet, inflorescence, and plant fragment-containing seeds) and abiotic conditions on the dispersal processes of 4 globally distributed saltmarsh species: Salicornia europaea, Scirpus maritimus, Spartina anglica, and Elymus athericus. The results showed that (1) moving seawater has a species-specific effect on buoyancy, leading to prolonged floatability of high tidal-flat species E. athericus and reduced floatability of pioneer species; (2) tidal currents increase dispersal speed, whereas wind can have additive or antagonistic effects on currentdominated dispersal speed depending on its direction; (3) wave action reduces dispersal speed, but this effect becomes smaller with increasing wave magnitudes and/or applied co-directional wind; (4) dispersal speed may vary depending on the physical forcing and type and morphology of the dispersal units, but the largest species effect is related to the period in which units remain buoyant; and (5) the dispersal potential of saltmarsh species in wind wave-dominated coastal environments can be ordered as follows: E. athericus > S. maritimus > S. anglica > S. europaea. This study provides valuable guidance for future numerical hydrodynamic models of salt - marsh dispersal and establishment, allowing more accurate prediction of the distributional responses of saltmarsh species to climate change, thereby supporting appropriate management and restoration strategies.

KW - Buoyancy

KW - Dispersal speed

KW - Dispersal unit

KW - Salt marsh

KW - Seed dispersal

KW - Wave effect

KW - Wind effect

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DO - 10.3354/meps13891

M3 - Article

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SN - 0171-8630

VL - 678

SP - 63

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JO - Marine Ecology Progress Series

JF - Marine Ecology Progress Series

ER -

Saltmarsh seeds in motion: the relative importance of dispersal units and abiotic conditions

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Funding

Keywords

UN SDGs

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