Habitat loss 'hitting shellfish'
05/21/2009 12:07
Effective conservation measures can help oyster reefs
cover, the study says
Marine habitat loss is causing a decline in shellfish populations, which is having an adverse knock-on effect on sensitive ecosystems, a study suggests. Described as the first global assessment of its kind, it warns that 85% of the world's oyster reefs have already been lost.
The findings, published by The Nature Conservancy (TNC), adds that many other reefs are now "functionally extinct".
Oysters provide a number of key services within their ecosystems, such as filtering water, and provide food for other organisms, such as fish, crabs and birds.
The assessment identified a number of "driving forces" behind the reefs' decline, including "destructive fishing practices, coastal overdevelopment, poorly managed agriculture and poor water quality".
BBC News 5/21/09 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8061532.stm
Marine habitat loss is causing a decline in shellfish populations, which is having an adverse knock-on effect on sensitive ecosystems, a study suggests. Described as the first global assessment of its kind, it warns that 85% of the world's oyster reefs have already been lost.
The findings, published by The Nature Conservancy (TNC), adds that many other reefs are now "functionally extinct".
Oysters provide a number of key services within their ecosystems, such as filtering water, and provide food for other organisms, such as fish, crabs and birds.
The assessment identified a number of "driving forces" behind the reefs' decline, including "destructive fishing practices, coastal overdevelopment, poorly managed agriculture and poor water quality".
BBC News 5/21/09 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8061532.stm