Seascape ecology : identifying research priorities for an emerging ocean sustainability science

Pittman, SJ; Yates, KL; Bouchet, PJ; Alvarez-Berastegui, D; Andréfouët, S; Bell, SS; Berkström, C; Boström, C; Brown, CJ; Connolly, RM; Devillers, R; Eggleston, D; Gilby, BL; Gullström, M; Halpern, BS; Hidalgo, M; Holstein, D; Hovel, K; Huettmann, F; Jackson, EL; James, WR; Kellner, JB; Kot, CY; Lecours, V; Lepczyk, C; Nagelkerken, I; Nelson, J; Olds, AD; Santos, RO; Scales, KL; Schneider, DC; Schilling, HT; Simenstad, C; Suthers, IM; Treml, EA; Wedding, LM; Yates, P; Young, M

Abstract

Seascape ecology, the marine-centric counterpart to landscape ecology, is rapidly emerging as an interdisciplinary and spatially explicit ecological science with relevance to marine management, biodiversity conservation, and restoration. While important progress in this field has been made in the past decade, there has been no coherent prioritisation of key research questions to help set the future research agenda for seascape ecology. We used a 2-stage modified Delphi method to solicit applied research questions from academic experts in seascape ecology and then asked respondents to identify priority questions across 9 interrelated research themes using 2 rounds of selection. We also invited senior management/conservation practitioners to prioritise the same research questions. Analyses highlighted congruence and discrepancies in perceived priorities for applied research. Themes related to both ecological concepts and management practice, and those identified as priorities include seascape change, seascape connectivity, spatial and temporal scale, ecosystem-based management, and emerging technologies and metrics. Highest-priority questions (upper tercile) received 50% agreement between respondent groups, and lowest priorities (lower tercile) received 58% agreement. Across all 3 priority tiers, 36 of the 55 questions were within a ±10% band of agreement. We present the most important applied research questions as determined by the proportion of votes received. For each theme, we provide a synthesis of the research challenges and the potential role of seascape ecology. These priority questions and themes serve as a roadmap for advancing applied seascape ecology during, and beyond, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).

Citation

Pittman, S., Yates, K., Bouchet, P., Alvarez-Berastegui, D., Andréfouët, S., Bell, S., …Young, M. (2021). Seascape ecology : identifying research priorities for an emerging ocean sustainability science. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 663, 1-29. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13661

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Feb 9, 2021
• Publication Date: Mar 31, 2021
• Deposit Date: Apr 15, 2021
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 15, 2021
• Journal: Marine Ecology Progress Series
• Print ISSN: 0171-8630
• Electronic ISSN: 1616-1599
• Publisher: Inter Research
• Volume: 663
• Pages: 1-29
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13661
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps13661
• Related Public URLs: https://www.int-res.com/journals/meps/meps-home/
• Additional Information: Additional Information : ** Article version: VoR ** From Crossref journal articles via Jisc Publications Router ** Licence for VoR version of this article starting on 31-03-2021: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ **Journal IDs: pissn 0171-8630; eissn 1616-1599 **History: issued 31-03-2021; published 31-03-2021