Ocean ecology : marine life in the age of humans

A comprehensive introduction to ocean ecology and a new way of thinking about ocean life Marine ecology is more interdisciplinary, broader in scope, and more intimately linked to human activities than ever before. Ocean Ecology provides advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and practitioners with an integrated approach to marine ecology that reflects these new scientific realities, and prepares students for the challenges of studying and managing the ocean as a complex adaptive system. This authoritative and accessible textbook advances a framework based on interactions among four major features of marine ecosystems―geomorphology, the abiotic environment, biodiversity, and biogeochemistry―and shows how life is a driver of environmental conditions and dynamics. Ocean Ecology explains the ecological processes that link organismal to ecosystem scales and that shape the major types of ocean ecosystems, historically and in today's Anthropocene world. Provides an integrated new approach to understanding and managing the ocean Shows how biological diversity is the heart of functioning ecosystems Spans genes to earth systems, surface to seafloor, and estuary to ocean gyre Links species composition, trait distribution, and other ecological structures to the functioning of ecosystems Explains how fishing, fossil fuel combustion, industrial fertilizer use, and other human impacts are transforming the Anthropocene ocean An essential textbook for students and an invaluable resource for practitioners Cover Contents Preface Chapter 1: Introduction A Framework for Functional Marine Ecology Plan of the book Some recurrent themes Humans in marine ecosystems Ecology in Practice The central challenges of marine ecology The ocean and the shore The major patterns Chapter 2: Life in the Ocean The Magnitude of Biodiversity Diversity on Land and Sea Phylogenetic Classification of Marine Biodiversity The tree of life Phylogenetic relationships and tree thinking The web of life Functional Organization of Pelagic and Benthic Life Functional groups of pelagic life Functional groups of benthic life Marine Life in the Anthropocene Future Directions Summary Chapter 3: Geography of Marine Life A Short History of the Oceans and Continents Climate and Circulation of the World Ocean Geostrophic flow and the central ocean gyres Convergence zones and fronts Thermohaline circulation and the origins of deep water Coasts, shallows, and their consequences Major Patterns in the Distribution of Marine Life A conceptual framework for understanding biodiversity The spatial organization of diversity The latitudinal diversity gradient The longitudinal diversity gradient The depth diversity gradient The role of bottom type The Origin of Species The ecology of speciation Habitat area and geographic range Habitat age Temperature, energy, and metabolic rate Body size Life history and dispersal ability Ecological specialization Ecological opportunity and speciation The Dispersal of Species The Theory and Evidence for Island Biogeography The End of Species: Extinction Integrative Models of Marine Diversification Biogeographic Classifications of the Ocean The ecological geography of the sea Marine ecoregions of the world Large marine ecosystems The Biogeography of Functional Traits The Biogeography of Species Interactions Biogeography of the Anthropocene Ocean Climate warming and redistribution of global marine fauna Tropicalization The Arctic opening The sixth mass extinction? Future Directions Summary Chapter 4: Introduction to the Anthropocene Ocean First, the Good News The Great Acceleration Coal and climate change Nitrogen: Detonator of the population explosion The limits to growth The Natural and Cultural History of Homo Sapiens Ecology for the Anthropocene Culture and the evolution of human society Energetics and economics of Homo sapiens The tragedy and triumph of the commons The Anthropocene ocean Ocean Warming Warming effects on communities Sea level rise Ocean Acidification Effects of acidification on organisms Effects of acidification on communities Homo Sapiens: Top Predator of the Ocean The history and extent of fishing The current state of marine fisheries Ecosystem impacts of fishing The future of fisheries Marine Biodiversity in the Anthropocene Species decline and extinction Functional consequences of declining biodiversity Marine globalization Evolution in the domesticated ocean Novel ecosystems Future Directions Science for solutions Policy for solutions Reasons for cautious optimism Summary Chapter 5: Organisms Building Blocks of Life Ecological stoichiometry Nutrient uptake and use Iron Powering Life Autotrophy Heterotrophy Kinetics of Life Dimensions of Life Mechanics of Life Coding Life Natural selection and adaptation Genotype and phenotype Functional Ecology and the Niche Historical and modern concepts of the niche Toward a trait-based ecology of marine organisms Functional Ecology of Marine Primary Producers Functional groups of phytoplankton Functional groups of benthic macrophytes Macroecology Organisms in the Anthropocene Future Directions Summary Chapter 6: Populations Development and Life History The Problem of Larval Dispersal Population Growth: A Brief Review Growth of Age-and Stage-Structured Populations: Matrix Approaches Demographic Models in Conservation and Management Maximum sustainable yield in fisheries Strategic conservation of vulnerable life stages Life history and the effectiveness of marine reserves Organismal Fitness and Adaptation to the Environment Dispersal, Recruitment, and Metapopulations Tagging and tracking Hydrodynamic simulation of larval movement Larval behavior Population genetic markers of dispersal and connectivity Geochemical tags Macroecology of Populations Metabolic scaling and life history Abundance and the energetic equivalence rule The macroecology of range size Marine Populations in the Anthropocene Future Directions Summary Chapter 7: Species Interactions Interactions among Species: General Considerations Interactions between Competitors Interactions between Plants and Herbivores Controls on herbivory: Plant traits Controls on herbivory: Herbivore traits Interactions between Prey and Predators Controls on predation: Prey traits Controls on predation: Predator traits Parasitism and disease Predation and community diversity Facilitation and Mutualism Ecological Networks Functional traits as a lens into community organization Traits in interaction networks Emergent properties of ecological networks Ecological Interactions in the Anthropocene Changing species interactions in a changing climate Food web decapitation and trophic skew Future Directions Summary Chapter 8: Ecological Communities What Is a Community? Community Dynamics: A Conceptual Framework Ecological selection Dispersal and metacommunities Ecological drift Synthesis: Diversity in Ecological Communities Neutral models and their assumptions The unified neutral theory of biodiversity Testing the neutral theory in nature Disturbance and diversity in communities The role of history Dispersal and species richness Metabolic theory and species diversity Space and species diversity Linking Communities to Ecosystems Functional structure of communities Phylogenetic structure of communities Communities in the Anthropocene Climate change and communities Marine defaunation and trophic skew Future Directions Summary Chapter 9: Ecosystems History of the Ecosystem Concept Evolution of the ecosystem concept Ecosystems as complex adaptive systems Primary Production Light and photosynthesis Nutrient uptake and use Herbivory Control of Biomass Distribution and Productivity in Marine Ecosystems The green world hypothesis Bottom-up control of biomass and productivity by resources Top-down control of biomass and productivity by consumers Trophic cascades in the ocean Detritus-consumer interactions Functional Structure of Marine Ecosystems Organismal traits in ecosystems The size spectrum The macroecology of trophic interactions Biodiversity and the Functioning of Ecosystems Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: Theory Biodiversity and ecosystem production: Empirical evidence Biodiversity and ecosystem stability Alternative Stable States and Regime Shifts in Complex Adaptive Ecosystems Empirical evidence for regime shifts in marine ecosystems Mechanisms of marine regime shifts Applications of Marine Ecosystem Modeling in Fisheries and Management Models of the Global Ecosystem Marine Ecosystems in the Anthropocene Eutrophication Defaunation and trophic skew Future Directions Summary Chapter 10: The Open Ocean Physical Forcing of Pelagic Ecosystems The global distribution of ocean productivity Vertical structure of the pelagic water column The spring bloom High-nitrogen low-chlorophyll (HNLC) regions Organisms and Traits The phytoplankton: Major functional types Grazers: Major functional types Grazing Structure and Organization of Pelagic Communities Specialization and resource partitioning Nonequilibrium dynamics Chaos Functioning of Pelagic Ecosystems Pelagic food webs: The microbial loop The biological pump and the global carbon cycle Trophic control in pelagic ecosystems The Deep Sea Adaptations to life in the deep sea Pelagic-benthic coupling Deep-sea biodiversity Chemosynthetic Ecosystems: Vents and Seeps Hydrothermal vents Cold seeps Macroecology of the Open Ocean Controls on biodiversity in the open ocean Global controls on microbial diversity Macroecology of open-ocean ecosystem processes Deep-Sea Fisheries The Open Ocean in the Anthropocene Climate and the Anthropocene ocean Ocean acidification High-seas fisheries Future Directions Summary Chapter 11: Estuaries and Coastal Seas The Edge of the Sea Interacting ocean and continents Estuaries Coastal life and communities Coastal ecosystem processes Rocky Shores Geomorphology and environment Organisms and traits Community organization and key interactions Ecosystem processes and services Rocky shores in the Anthropocene Sediment Bottoms Geomorphology and environment Organisms and traits Community organization and key interactions Ecosystem processes and services Sediment bottoms in the anthropocene Seagrass Meadows Geomorphology and environment Organisms and traits Community organization and key interactions Ecosystem processes and services Seagrass meadows in the Anthropocene Salt Marshes Geomorphology and environment Organisms and traits Community organization and key interactions Ecosystem processes and services Salt marshes in the Anthropocene Mangrove Forests Geomorphology and environment Organisms and traits Community organization and key interactions Ecosystem processes and services Mangrove forests in the Anthropocene The Seascape: Interactions among Habitats Coastal Ecosystems in the Anthropocene Climate change and the coast Decline of foundation species Trophic skew Nonnative and invasive species in coastal ecosystems Coastal fisheries Eutrophication and hypoxia Multiple stressors in coastal ecosystems Coastal anthropogenic biomes: Urbanized estuaries Future Directions Summary Chapter 12: Coral Reefs Geomorphology and Environment of Coral Reefs Geomorphology Abiotic environment Organisms and Traits: Functional Diversity in Reef Ecosystems Biodiversity: Foundation species Diversity and functional ecology of primary producers Diversity and functional ecology of consumers Community Organization and Key Interactions Origin and maintenance of diversity in reef communities Herbivory in reef ecosystems Trophic cascades in reef ecosystems Disease in reef ecosystems Phase shifts and alternative stable states on coral reefs Regional variation in coral reef dynamics Ecosystem and Biogeochemical Processes Coral reef production and nutrient cycling Coral reef fisheries Coral Reefs in the Anthropocene Coral reefs in a warming ocean Ocean acidification Coral reef fisheries The future of coral reefs Strategic coral reef conservation and management Future Directions Summary Chapter 13: Ocean 2.0 The Earth Is a Complex Adaptive System Biodiversity Is as Important as Climate Humans Are Now the Force of Nature Apocalypse Not But What about Nature? Rays of Hope Glossary Literature Cited Photo Credits Index Blank Page