Summary
This systematic review of 77 peer-reviewed studies synthesises current understanding of nutrient connectivity across tropical and subtropical coastal ecosystems. The authors identify critical gaps—particularly the limited consideration of interlinkages between multiple habitats and the dominance of studies on negative impacts of terrestrial runoff—and propose 'nutrientscape ecology' as an integrated, spatially explicit framework that leverages landscape ecology and systems thinking to enable predictive science for coastal management.
UK applicability
The nutrientscape ecology framework has limited direct applicability to UK farming systems, but may inform management of UK coastal zones (particularly mangrove and seagrass equivalents such as saltmarsh and kelp forests) and research approaches to understanding nutrient connectivity in marine-terrestrial interfaces. The emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and systems-level thinking could inform UK coastal and estuarine management policy.
Key measures
Literature review metrics including number of studies examining interlinkages between habitats, proportion of studies examining anthropogenic nutrient impacts, adoption of landscape ecology concepts, and identification of 15 research needs
Outcomes reported
A systematic review of 77 studies on nutrient flows in coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrasses identified that 73% of studies examining ecological impacts focused on anthropogenic terrestrial runoff with predominantly negative ecological responses. The authors propose an integrated 'nutrientscape ecology' framework to advance landscape ecology approaches to coastal nutrient connectivity research.
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