A Donor Registry: Genomic Analyses of Posidonia australis Seagrass Meadows Identifies Adaptive Genotypes for Future‐Proofing

ABSTRACT Globally, anthropogenic climate change has caused declines of seagrass ecosystems necessitating proactive restoration approaches that would ideally anticipate future climate scenarios, such as marine warming. In eastern Australia, estuaries with meadows of the endangered seagrass Posidonia...

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Main Authors: Matt J. Nimbs, Tim M. Glasby, Elizabeth A. Sinclair, Daniel Swadling, Tom R. Davis, Melinda A. Coleman
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024-12-01
Series:Ecology and Evolution
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70667
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author Matt J. Nimbs
Tim M. Glasby
Elizabeth A. Sinclair
Daniel Swadling
Tom R. Davis
Melinda A. Coleman
author_facet Matt J. Nimbs
Tim M. Glasby
Elizabeth A. Sinclair
Daniel Swadling
Tom R. Davis
Melinda A. Coleman
author_sort Matt J. Nimbs
collection DOAJ
description ABSTRACT Globally, anthropogenic climate change has caused declines of seagrass ecosystems necessitating proactive restoration approaches that would ideally anticipate future climate scenarios, such as marine warming. In eastern Australia, estuaries with meadows of the endangered seagrass Posidonia australis have warmed and acidified over the past decade, and seagrass communities have declined in some estuaries. Securing these valuable habitats will require proactive conservation and restoration efforts that could be augmented with restoration focussed on boosting resilience to future climate. Understanding patterns of selection and where seagrass meadows are adapted to particular environmental conditions is key for identifying optimal donor material for restoration. We used single nucleotide polymorphisms and genotype by environment analyses to identify candidate loci under putative selection to environmental stressors and assess genomic variation and allelic turnover along stressor gradients. The most important physicochemical variables driving selection were associated with temperature, water turbidity, and pH. We developed a preliminary ‘donor registry’ of pre‐adapted P. australis genotypes by mapping the distribution of alleles to visualise allelic composition of each sampled seagrass meadow. The registry could be used as a first step to select source material for future‐proofing restoration projects. A next step is to establish manipulative experiments that will be required to test whether pre‐adapted genotypes confer increased resistance to multiple environmental stressors.
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spelling doaj-art-cd4b2306a6a641cba6901f3b5ed7e68a2025-08-20T02:53:37ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582024-12-011412n/an/a10.1002/ece3.70667A Donor Registry: Genomic Analyses of Posidonia australis Seagrass Meadows Identifies Adaptive Genotypes for Future‐ProofingMatt J. Nimbs0Tim M. Glasby1Elizabeth A. Sinclair2Daniel Swadling3Tom R. Davis4Melinda A. Coleman5Fisheries Research, New South Wales Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development National Marine Science Centre Coffs Harbour New South Wales AustraliaFisheries Research, New South Wales Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development Port Stephens Fisheries Research Institute Taylors Beach New South Wales AustraliaSchool of Biological Science and Oceans Institute The University of Western Australia Nedlands Western Australia AustraliaFisheries Research, New South Wales Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development Port Stephens Fisheries Research Institute Taylors Beach New South Wales AustraliaNational Marine Science Centre Southern Cross University Coffs Harbour New South Wales AustraliaFisheries Research, New South Wales Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development National Marine Science Centre Coffs Harbour New South Wales AustraliaABSTRACT Globally, anthropogenic climate change has caused declines of seagrass ecosystems necessitating proactive restoration approaches that would ideally anticipate future climate scenarios, such as marine warming. In eastern Australia, estuaries with meadows of the endangered seagrass Posidonia australis have warmed and acidified over the past decade, and seagrass communities have declined in some estuaries. Securing these valuable habitats will require proactive conservation and restoration efforts that could be augmented with restoration focussed on boosting resilience to future climate. Understanding patterns of selection and where seagrass meadows are adapted to particular environmental conditions is key for identifying optimal donor material for restoration. We used single nucleotide polymorphisms and genotype by environment analyses to identify candidate loci under putative selection to environmental stressors and assess genomic variation and allelic turnover along stressor gradients. The most important physicochemical variables driving selection were associated with temperature, water turbidity, and pH. We developed a preliminary ‘donor registry’ of pre‐adapted P. australis genotypes by mapping the distribution of alleles to visualise allelic composition of each sampled seagrass meadow. The registry could be used as a first step to select source material for future‐proofing restoration projects. A next step is to establish manipulative experiments that will be required to test whether pre‐adapted genotypes confer increased resistance to multiple environmental stressors.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70667climate changeestuariesgenotype environment associationsgradient forestsingle‐nucleotide polymorphisms
spellingShingle Matt J. Nimbs
Tim M. Glasby
Elizabeth A. Sinclair
Daniel Swadling
Tom R. Davis
Melinda A. Coleman
A Donor Registry: Genomic Analyses of Posidonia australis Seagrass Meadows Identifies Adaptive Genotypes for Future‐Proofing
Ecology and Evolution
climate change
estuaries
genotype environment associations
gradient forest
single‐nucleotide polymorphisms
title A Donor Registry: Genomic Analyses of Posidonia australis Seagrass Meadows Identifies Adaptive Genotypes for Future‐Proofing
title_full A Donor Registry: Genomic Analyses of Posidonia australis Seagrass Meadows Identifies Adaptive Genotypes for Future‐Proofing
title_fullStr A Donor Registry: Genomic Analyses of Posidonia australis Seagrass Meadows Identifies Adaptive Genotypes for Future‐Proofing
title_full_unstemmed A Donor Registry: Genomic Analyses of Posidonia australis Seagrass Meadows Identifies Adaptive Genotypes for Future‐Proofing
title_short A Donor Registry: Genomic Analyses of Posidonia australis Seagrass Meadows Identifies Adaptive Genotypes for Future‐Proofing
title_sort donor registry genomic analyses of posidonia australis seagrass meadows identifies adaptive genotypes for future proofing
topic climate change
estuaries
genotype environment associations
gradient forest
single‐nucleotide polymorphisms
url https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70667
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