ABSTRACT

Seagrass Zostera muelleri has been reported to reproduce mainly asexually in New Zealand. However, a recent study in Tauranga Harbour suggested that flowering might occur more often than previously thought. Here we provide evidence of intertidal seagrass flowering events in six New Zealand estuaries in which it has not before been documented. Further research on seagrass sexual reproduction is desirable as we hypothesise that either flowering events have formerly been missed due to the cryptic nature of the flowers, or that sexual reproduction is emerging as a response to increasing pressures on seagrass ecosystems. In addition, with evidence of seagrass decline occurring globally, and likely also in New Zealand, we recommend collection of seagrass seeds to preserve genetic variability and to attempt restoration efforts through assisted sexual reproduction techniques that have not yet been used in New Zealand.

摘要

海草大叶藻据报道在新西兰主要以无性繁殖。然而，陶朗加港最近的一项研究表明，开花的频率可能比之前想象的要高。在这里，我们提供了新西兰六个河口潮间带海草开花事件的证据，这些事件以前从未有过记录。对海草有性繁殖的进一步研究是可取的，因为我们假设，要么由于花朵的神秘性质而错过了开花事件，要么有性繁殖的出现是为了应对海草生态系统日益增加的压力。此外，有证据表明全球范围内都出现海草衰退，新西兰也可能如此，