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Seagrass biology: Proceedings of an international workshop
Book reviews
89
Seagrass biology Seagrass Biology: Proceedings of an International Workshop, J. Kuo, R.C. Phillips, D.I. Walker and H. Kirkman (Editors), Faculty of Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, 1996, 385 pp., hardback, US$ 80.00, ISBN 0-86422-445-1. The Rottnest Seagrass Workshop resulted in a book that will be a standard resource for seagrass biologists. It brought together scientists from around the world who are asking interesting questions and gave them a forum for sharing ideas among themselves and now with the rest of us. Twenty-three years ago another international gathering of 37 leading seagrass researchers in Leiden made nine major recommendations for the types of research needed to establish the contribution of seagrass ecosystems to the ecology of coastal oceans. It is easy to find echoes of those deliberations in the 49 papers and 10 abstracts in the new volume which attest to the current vibrant state of research and show that much progress has been made in many areas. Since only four of the participants (C.P. McRoy, C. den Hartog, R.C. Phillips, and C. McMillan) in the Leiden workshop were also at the Rottnest Island workshop, it is fitting that they each contributed a short paper to the opening "Reflections" section of the proceedings. The "Reflections" provide a historical context for the current worldwide community of seagrass researchers and for those who will enter the community in years to come. Of particular interest in the year of his 65th birthday, is the contribution of C. den Hartog in which he tells the story of his initiation into seagrass research and the origins of his pioneering book "Seagrasses of the World". The rest of the book presents papers organized under the categories: Diversity and Plant Biology (distributions, floristics, seedling development); Molecular Genetics (applied to systematics and population structure); Hydrodynamics (effects of water movements on seagrasses and vice versa studied at different scales); Production and Nutrient Dynamics (growth measurement and photosynthesis, litter dynamics, nutrient availability and assimilation); Animal Interaction (use of seagrass as habitat and food, community structure); Decline and Recovery (short- and long-term studies of various causes of decline); and Monitoring and Management (practical and conceptual considerations). The papers reveal a dynamic and maturing research effort on six continents in at least 15 countries bordering on the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans. Some extend our basic knowledge through short-term but careful observations or floristic surveys in coastal areas of the world, for example in SE Asia, that have been poorly studied. It is encouraging for the future of seagrass research that many of those studies were led by local researchers. Other papers are experimental investigations, and although many have clear aims, not all of them test explicitly stated hypotheses and a range of experimental sophistication is evident. A few papers challenge accepted ideas, for example, about phylogenetic relationships and the control of growth by water movements, but many other paradigms of seagrass biology remain intact. One strong feature arising from the diversity of papers is the way that topics are addressed from many points of view. For example, a reader interested in the processes of population establishment and maintenance will find relevant material in several
90
Book reviews
sections of the book, in papers on genetic variability and reproductive biology, in-situ pollination, the effects of waves and storms on sediments and seed set, colonization after dredging, interference with vegetative propagation by infauna, monitoring with remote sensing, and modelling of the effects of tides and light. Some authors appeared to focus narrowly on the biology of individual taxa rather than on a process or mechanism and so missed some potentially useful references. The missing references generally will be found in other papers in the book, for the papers as a whole are well supported by citations to both the older and current literature. Other evidence of the current dynamic state of seagrass research is the wide range of experimental and analytical techniques demonstrated in these papers. For example, the well-known leaf-marking technique for measuring growth is used in several papers with modifications to suit particular taxa, enzyme studies are applied to questions of nutrient dynamics, DNA sequence analysis is used to re-evaluate phylogenetic relationships, and metapopulation and landscape ecology concepts as well as multivariate analysis are used to probe population- and community-level problems, Seagrass biologists are indeed adept at adopting concepts and adapting research techniques from other disciplines. More of that will be needed if seagrass research is to be more closely integrated into the rapidly developing conceptual side of ecology. The book was produced quickly but with generally adequate attention to detail. Speed was essential because all papers were reviewed and edited prior to the workshop so that all participants could be given their copies when they arrived. Many of the participants with whom I corresponded afterwards felt that having the published volume at the workshop enabled them to relax and enjoy the presentations. Presenters did not need to fill their allotted time with details, there was more time for discussion, and the many non-English speakers had a printed reference. The editors deserve high praise for the planning and execution of both the workshop and the publication of the proceedings. The style of the prose varies but that is expected given that, for many of the authors, the native tongue is not English. In most instances the meaning of the text is unambiguous if one ignores the occasional typographical error. Unfortunately, a few of those errors do affect the meaning so the reader must be cautious. Luckily, a comprehensive list of contact addresses for the contributors is included in the book, so queries about individual papers can be sent directly. The illustrations are adequate but not of superior quality. There are several sets of fine colour photographs of seagrasses which, although interesting, do not support particular papers so their purpose is unclear. Also, much space in some papers that is devoted to graphs could have been saved if the authors had used larger type sizes for axis labels, permitting a further reduction in overall size of the graphs. Some of the photomicrographs and black and white aerial photographs lack sufficient contrast, so their value is diminished. Perhaps the paper itself which is shiny, may have affected the clarity of the photographs. While comprehensive in its coverage of seagrass biology, the book does leave unanswered the question "What is the future of seagrass research?". Unlike most workshops in which participants pool their ideas and generate new directions or new conceptual frameworks, the Rottnest "workshop" seems to have been more of a symposium at which researchers with overlapping interests shared their findings. There
Book reviews
91
are few references to and no obvious attempts to understand the global ecological issues such as global warming which may affect the integrity of seagrass ecosystems. While the informal discussions among participants may have addressed such issues, the fact that the contributions were prepared prior to the meeting ensured that the published product represents individual ideas and not the outcome of workshop discussions. Make no mistake, however, about the value of this book. It is a major contribution, filled with useful and exciting work, and it will serve as a guide for seagrass biologists for many years. The Rottnest Island Workshop was a gathering that I was sorry to have missed. I thank the organizers for their work and congratulate them on the printed product. PAUL G. HARRISON Department of Botany #3529-6270 University Boulevard The University of British Columbia Vancouver, B.C. Canada, V6T 1Z4 PII S0304-3770(96)01088-1
89
Seagrass biology Seagrass Biology: Proceedings of an International Workshop, J. Kuo, R.C. Phillips, D.I. Walker and H. Kirkman (Editors), Faculty of Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Nedlands, 1996, 385 pp., hardback, US$ 80.00, ISBN 0-86422-445-1. The Rottnest Seagrass Workshop resulted in a book that will be a standard resource for seagrass biologists. It brought together scientists from around the world who are asking interesting questions and gave them a forum for sharing ideas among themselves and now with the rest of us. Twenty-three years ago another international gathering of 37 leading seagrass researchers in Leiden made nine major recommendations for the types of research needed to establish the contribution of seagrass ecosystems to the ecology of coastal oceans. It is easy to find echoes of those deliberations in the 49 papers and 10 abstracts in the new volume which attest to the current vibrant state of research and show that much progress has been made in many areas. Since only four of the participants (C.P. McRoy, C. den Hartog, R.C. Phillips, and C. McMillan) in the Leiden workshop were also at the Rottnest Island workshop, it is fitting that they each contributed a short paper to the opening "Reflections" section of the proceedings. The "Reflections" provide a historical context for the current worldwide community of seagrass researchers and for those who will enter the community in years to come. Of particular interest in the year of his 65th birthday, is the contribution of C. den Hartog in which he tells the story of his initiation into seagrass research and the origins of his pioneering book "Seagrasses of the World". The rest of the book presents papers organized under the categories: Diversity and Plant Biology (distributions, floristics, seedling development); Molecular Genetics (applied to systematics and population structure); Hydrodynamics (effects of water movements on seagrasses and vice versa studied at different scales); Production and Nutrient Dynamics (growth measurement and photosynthesis, litter dynamics, nutrient availability and assimilation); Animal Interaction (use of seagrass as habitat and food, community structure); Decline and Recovery (short- and long-term studies of various causes of decline); and Monitoring and Management (practical and conceptual considerations). The papers reveal a dynamic and maturing research effort on six continents in at least 15 countries bordering on the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans. Some extend our basic knowledge through short-term but careful observations or floristic surveys in coastal areas of the world, for example in SE Asia, that have been poorly studied. It is encouraging for the future of seagrass research that many of those studies were led by local researchers. Other papers are experimental investigations, and although many have clear aims, not all of them test explicitly stated hypotheses and a range of experimental sophistication is evident. A few papers challenge accepted ideas, for example, about phylogenetic relationships and the control of growth by water movements, but many other paradigms of seagrass biology remain intact. One strong feature arising from the diversity of papers is the way that topics are addressed from many points of view. For example, a reader interested in the processes of population establishment and maintenance will find relevant material in several
90
Book reviews
sections of the book, in papers on genetic variability and reproductive biology, in-situ pollination, the effects of waves and storms on sediments and seed set, colonization after dredging, interference with vegetative propagation by infauna, monitoring with remote sensing, and modelling of the effects of tides and light. Some authors appeared to focus narrowly on the biology of individual taxa rather than on a process or mechanism and so missed some potentially useful references. The missing references generally will be found in other papers in the book, for the papers as a whole are well supported by citations to both the older and current literature. Other evidence of the current dynamic state of seagrass research is the wide range of experimental and analytical techniques demonstrated in these papers. For example, the well-known leaf-marking technique for measuring growth is used in several papers with modifications to suit particular taxa, enzyme studies are applied to questions of nutrient dynamics, DNA sequence analysis is used to re-evaluate phylogenetic relationships, and metapopulation and landscape ecology concepts as well as multivariate analysis are used to probe population- and community-level problems, Seagrass biologists are indeed adept at adopting concepts and adapting research techniques from other disciplines. More of that will be needed if seagrass research is to be more closely integrated into the rapidly developing conceptual side of ecology. The book was produced quickly but with generally adequate attention to detail. Speed was essential because all papers were reviewed and edited prior to the workshop so that all participants could be given their copies when they arrived. Many of the participants with whom I corresponded afterwards felt that having the published volume at the workshop enabled them to relax and enjoy the presentations. Presenters did not need to fill their allotted time with details, there was more time for discussion, and the many non-English speakers had a printed reference. The editors deserve high praise for the planning and execution of both the workshop and the publication of the proceedings. The style of the prose varies but that is expected given that, for many of the authors, the native tongue is not English. In most instances the meaning of the text is unambiguous if one ignores the occasional typographical error. Unfortunately, a few of those errors do affect the meaning so the reader must be cautious. Luckily, a comprehensive list of contact addresses for the contributors is included in the book, so queries about individual papers can be sent directly. The illustrations are adequate but not of superior quality. There are several sets of fine colour photographs of seagrasses which, although interesting, do not support particular papers so their purpose is unclear. Also, much space in some papers that is devoted to graphs could have been saved if the authors had used larger type sizes for axis labels, permitting a further reduction in overall size of the graphs. Some of the photomicrographs and black and white aerial photographs lack sufficient contrast, so their value is diminished. Perhaps the paper itself which is shiny, may have affected the clarity of the photographs. While comprehensive in its coverage of seagrass biology, the book does leave unanswered the question "What is the future of seagrass research?". Unlike most workshops in which participants pool their ideas and generate new directions or new conceptual frameworks, the Rottnest "workshop" seems to have been more of a symposium at which researchers with overlapping interests shared their findings. There
Book reviews
91
are few references to and no obvious attempts to understand the global ecological issues such as global warming which may affect the integrity of seagrass ecosystems. While the informal discussions among participants may have addressed such issues, the fact that the contributions were prepared prior to the meeting ensured that the published product represents individual ideas and not the outcome of workshop discussions. Make no mistake, however, about the value of this book. It is a major contribution, filled with useful and exciting work, and it will serve as a guide for seagrass biologists for many years. The Rottnest Island Workshop was a gathering that I was sorry to have missed. I thank the organizers for their work and congratulate them on the printed product. PAUL G. HARRISON Department of Botany #3529-6270 University Boulevard The University of British Columbia Vancouver, B.C. Canada, V6T 1Z4 PII S0304-3770(96)01088-1