Allometric models effectively predict Saccharina latissima (Laminariales, Phaeophyceae) fresh weight at local scales
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Allometric models effectively predict Saccharina latissima (Laminariales, Phaeophyceae) fresh weight at local scales Jillian Campbell 1
&
Samuel Starko 1
Received: 18 January 2020 / Revised and accepted: 22 October 2020 # Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract Obtaining reliable estimates of algal biomass is key to assessing the contributions of macroalgae to nearshore ecosystems and to monitoring the effects of environmental change on macroalgal-dominated reefs. Using non-destructive methods to estimate macroalgal biomass leaves algal beds intact but requires precise allometric models (e.g., length–weight relationships). In this study, we established allometric relationships for the widespread kelp, Saccharina latissima, in the Salish Sea. Thalli were harvested from five sites across two regions in Southern British Columbia and the abilities of four non-destructive metrics (stipe length, blade length, blade width, and total thallus length) to predict thallus fresh weight were compared. Allometric models were developed for each region for all combinations of thallus metrics to explain thallus fresh weight and models were ranked based on their AICc scores. Finally, using our largest sample (n = 114 individuals), we performed a resampling experiment to determine the appropriate sample size for constructing local models. These models can be developed from as little as 2 hours of field data collection and are inexpensive and effective methods for non-destructively estimating S. latissima biomass. Keywords Phaeophyceae . Allometry . Rocky subtidal . Salish Sea . Biomass
Introduction Kelps (Laminariales, Phaeophyceae) provide important ecosystem services to nearshore marine communities; they create habitat (Christie et al. 2003; Teagle et al. 2017), supply nutrients and detritus to food webs (Duggins et al. 1989; Krumhansl and Scheibling 2012), sequester carbon (Wilmers et al. 2012), and alter coastal hydrodynamics (Jackson and Winant 1983). Kelp forests are among the most productive habitats on the planet (Mann 1973; BradyCampbell et al. 1984; Duggins et al. 1989) and are hotspots for coastal biodiversity (Bodkin 1988; Christie et al. 2003; Teagle et al. 2017; Miller et al. 2018; Lamy et al. 2020). Unfortunately, recent reports suggest declines in kelp abundance in many parts of the world (Filbee-Dexter et al. 2016; Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-02002315-w. * Jillian Campbell [email protected] 1
Department of Biology, University of Victoria, PO Box 1700 STN CSC, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada
Krumhansl et al. 2016; Filbee-Dexter and Wernberg 2018; Christie et al. 2019; Smale 2020; Starko et al. 2019; Wernberg et al. 2019), raising concerns about the potential for losses of the ecological services kelp forests provide (Filbee-Dexter and Wernberg 2018; Smale et al. 2019; Wernberg et al. 2019). Having precise estimates of local kelp biomass is important for understanding how kelp forest ecosystems are changing and to accurately
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