Bertness Mark D.

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Bertness
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Mark D.
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  • Article
    Indirect human impacts reverse centuries of carbon sequestration and salt marsh accretion
    (Public Library of Science, 2014-03-27) Coverdale, Tyler C. ; Brisson, Caitlin P. ; Young, Eric W. ; Yin, Stephanie F. ; Donnelly, Jeffrey P. ; Bertness, Mark D.
    Direct and indirect human impacts on coastal ecosystems have increased over the last several centuries, leading to unprecedented degradation of coastal habitats and loss of ecological services. Here we document a two-century temporal disparity between salt marsh accretion and subsequent loss to indirect human impacts. Field surveys, manipulative experiments and GIS analyses reveal that crab burrowing weakens the marsh peat base and facilitates further burrowing, leading to bank calving, disruption of marsh accretion, and a loss of over two centuries of sequestered carbon from the marsh edge in only three decades. Analogous temporal disparities exist in other systems and are a largely unrecognized obstacle in attaining sustainable ecosystem services in an increasingly human impacted world. In light of the growing threat of indirect impacts worldwide and despite uncertainties in the fate of lost carbon, we suggest that estimates of carbon emissions based only on direct human impacts may significantly underestimate total anthropogenic carbon emissions.
  • Article
    Supporting Spartina: Interdisciplinary perspective shows spartina as a distinct solid genus
    (Ecological Society of America, 2019-09-19) Bortolus, Alejandro ; Adam, Paul ; Adams, Janine B. ; Ainouche, Malika L. ; Ayres, Debra ; Bertness, Mark D. ; Bouma, Tjeerd J. ; Bruno, John F. ; Caçador, Isabel ; Carlton, James T. ; Castillo, Jesus M. ; Costa, Cesar S.B. ; Davy, Anthony J. ; Deegan, Linda A. ; Duarte, Bernardo ; Figueroa, Enrique ; Gerwein, Joel ; Gray, Alan J. ; Grosholz, Edwin D. ; Hacker, Sally D. ; Hughes, A. Randall ; Mateos‐Naranjo, Enrique ; Mendelssohn, Irving A. ; Morris, James T. ; Muñoz‐Rodríguez, Adolfo F. ; Nieva, Francisco J.J. ; Levin, Lisa A. ; Li, Bo ; Liu, Wenwen ; Pennings, Steven C. ; Pickart, Andrea ; Redondo‐Gómez, Susana ; Richardson, David M. ; Salmon, Armel ; Schwindt, Evangelina ; Silliman, Brian ; Sotka, Erik E. ; Stace, Clive ; Sytsma, Mark ; Temmerman, Stijn ; Turner, R. Eugene ; Valiela, Ivan ; Weinstein, Michael P. ; Weis, Judith S.
    In 2014, a DNA‐based phylogenetic study confirming the paraphyly of the grass subtribe Sporobolinae proposed the creation of a large monophyletic genus Sporobolus, including (among others) species previously included in the genera Spartina, Calamovilfa, and Sporobolus. Spartina species have contributed substantially (and continue contributing) to our knowledge in multiple disciplines, including ecology, evolutionary biology, molecular biology, biogeography, experimental ecology, biological invasions, environmental management, restoration ecology, history, economics, and sociology. There is no rationale so compelling to subsume the name Spartina as a subgenus that could rival the striking, global iconic history and use of the name Spartina for over 200 yr. We do not agree with the subjective arguments underlying the proposal to change Spartina to Sporobolus. We understand the importance of both the objective phylogenetic insights and of the subjective formalized nomenclature and hope that by opening this debate we will encourage positive feedback that will strengthen taxonomic decisions with an interdisciplinary perspective. We consider that the strongly distinct, monophyletic clade Spartina should simply and efficiently be treated as the genus Spartina.