Recently, researcher Wang Faming's team from the South China Botanical Garden of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with partners, has made significant progress in studying the invasion of Spartina alterniflora in coastal zones. For the first time, they systematically assessed the impact of Spartina alterniflora invasion on the organic carbon storage in mudflat soils along the Chinese coast. These findings have been published in Science Bulletin.
The gains and losses of soil organic carbon storage under the invasion of Spartina alterniflora from 1990 to 2020. Research team provides figures.
Spartina alterniflora, a herbaceous plant native to the Atlantic coast of North America, has rapidly invaded the coast of China in recent years, with 93% of the invaded areas being mudflats. Although the invasion of Spartina alterniflora is generally believed to have negative impacts on coastal wetlands, its effects on soil organic carbon storage remain unclear.
The latest research results indicate that the invasion of Spartina alterniflora has increased soil organic carbon storage, with this promoting effect being widespread across different invasion times, soil depths, and regions. This study provides new insights into the impact of Spartina alterniflora invasion on ecosystem services and emphasizes its important role as a potential natural solution in enhancing blue carbon sequestration in the coastal zones of China.
Researchers suggest that future studies should further focus on the impacts of Spartina alterniflora invasion on other ecosystem services, especially on biodiversity, and provide new insights and ideas for the management of Spartina alterniflora. They recommend a systematic consideration of the comprehensive effects of biological invasions in coastal zones, seeking benefits while avoiding harm, to maintain the health and sustainable development of coastal ecosystems.
This research was supported by the "Ocean Negative Emissions" Grand Science Plan, the Youth Team Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Youth Promotion Association Project, and the National Key R&D Program.
For more information, please refer to the related paper: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scib.2024.04.049
