Seagrasses need to be resilient if they are to persist in the long term. Being able to build up a dormant seed bank in sediments is a key strategy that some species employ to regenerate from large-scale degradation. Much of the research on seed banks has focussed on temperate species, and little is known regarding the status of seed banks in tropical meadows. In the present study, we examined the seed bank status of three common seagrass species at six sites in Singapore and attempted to identify potential drivers of seed abundance. Our results indicated depauperate seed banks with few species setting viable seed and low seed densities. Halophila ovalis seeds were found at four sites and Halodule uninervis seeds at two sites, but Cymodocea rotundata seeds were absent from all six sites. Whereas H. ovalis seed viability ranged from 20% to 68.8%, none of the H. uninervis seeds was viable. Halophila ovalis seed densities (33–334m–2) were much higher than those of H. uninervis (9–21m–2). Of the variables examined, only H. ovalis cover was positively correlated with the number of seeds. Our study has highlighted the vulnerability of seagrass meadows in Singapore’s urban waters to future disturbances.

中文翻译：

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城市热带海草草地枯竭的种子库

如果海草要长期存在，它们就需要具有弹性。能够在沉积物中建立休眠种子库是一些物种从大规模退化中再生的关键策略。对种子库的大部分研究都集中在温带物种上，对热带草甸种子库的状况知之甚少。在本研究中，我们检查了新加坡六个地点的三种常见海草物种的种子库状况，并试图确定种子丰度的潜在驱动因素。我们的结果表明，种子库枯竭，几乎没有物种能产生可存活的种子和种子密度低。在四个地点发现了椭圆形 Halophila 种子，在两个地点发现了 Halodule uninervis 种子，但所有六个地点都没有 Cymodocea rotundata 种子。而 H.椭圆形种子活力范围从 20% 到 68.8%，没有一个 H.uninervis 种子是可行的。卵形嗜盐菌的种子密度 (33-334m-2) 远高于 H. uninervis (9-21m-2)。在所检查的变量中，只有卵圆形覆盖度与种子数量呈正相关。我们的研究强调了新加坡城市水域海草草甸对未来干扰的脆弱性。