TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Seagrass loss: The disaster is creeping
In Indonesia these habitats are incredibly important; not only are they responsible for keeping the coastlines clean and healthy by filtering the water, they play a pivotal role in supporting fisheries throughout the nation.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Colorful starfish live in a seagrass meadow in Komodo National Park, Indonesia. (Shutterstock/File)
S
eagrass meadows are shallow water habitats that are found along the coasts of Indonesia’s thousands of islands. These habitats, comprising incredibly productive flowering plants that are adapted to life in the sea, have been around since dinosaurs roamed the earth.
In Indonesia these habitats are incredibly important; not only are they responsible for keeping the coastlines clean and healthy by filtering the water, they play a pivotal role in supporting fisheries throughout the nation.
Like many of the natural environments of Indonesia increasing evidence shows rapid economic development is beginning to have a major negative impact upon seagrass.
Over the last 15 years we’ve studied the ecology and the human importance of these systems and worked with scientists from across Indonesia. We’ve seen for ourselves the sight of seagrass meadows where large shoals of thousands of fish move while feeding on algae, and alluring pipefish wrapped around the seagrass, as turtles are munching away. Seagrass meadows are an amazing haven of marine life.
