Seagrasses are a vital and widespread but often overlooked coastal marine habitat. This volume provides a global survey of their distribution and conservation status.

The goal of the report project is to define the habitat requirements of seagrasses in the European coasts, the present threats to the sustainability of the ecosystem they form, and their resilience to disturbance in order to strengthen our forecast capacity and formulate cost-effective monitoring plans and management strategies.

Seagrasses are unique plants; the only group of flowering plants to recolonise the sea. They occur on every continental margin, except Antarctica, and form ecosystems which have important roles in fisheries, fish nursery grounds, prawn fisheries, habitat diversity and sediment stabilisation. Over the last two decades there has been an explosion of research and information on all aspects of seagrass biology. However the compilation of all this work into one book has not been attempted previously. In this book experts in 26 areas of seagrass biology present their work in chapters which are state-of–the-art and designed to be useful to students and researchers alike. The book not only focuses on what has been discovered but what exciting areas are left to discover. The book is divided into sections on taxonomy, anatomy, reproduction, ecology, physiology, fisheries, management, conservation and landscape ecology. It is destined to become the chosen text on seagrasses for any marine biology course.

Seagrasses are flowering plants that thrive in shallow oceanic and estuarine waters around the world. Although there are only about 60 species of seagrasses worldwide, these plants play an important role in many shallow, near-shore, marine ecosystems. There is growing evidence that seagrasses are declining globally because of anthropogenic impacts. This paper presents an overview of seagrasses, the impacts of climate change, and other threats to seagrass habitats. Finally, it proposes tools and strategies for managers to help support seagrass resilience.

Hardbound. Seagrasses are a common feature of inshore coastal waters of all continents except Antarctica. This book, the first to attempt a comprehensive coverage of seagrasses, will attract a wide audience including botanists, zoologists, geologists, and experts in fisheries and coastal management. There are individual chapters on all aspects of the plants themselves, from questions of taxonomy, reproduction and evolution, through ecology and biogeography, to the physiological aspects of photosynthesis, nutrition and salt balance.The fauna associated with seagrass beds are also dealt with extensively, including meiofauna, large grazers (including dugongs and turtles), and fish. The book examines the role of seagrass beds as nursery grounds for commercially important fish, and addresses the problems of human impact on seagrass communities, the conservation of seagrass beds, and their restoration.The book is written for an international audience lar