What is the importance of epiphytes on seagrass bed?
Epiphytes of seagrass are algae and other seaweeds and these epiphytes use the seagrass merely for physical support. Epiphytes can be an important food source for animals in and around seagrass beds. Animals can also use the seagrass and epiphytes to hide in and therefore protect them from predation or to stalk prey. However, epiphytes are not necessarily beneficial to the seagrass. Epiphytes growing on the seagrass cover the photosynthetic area of the seagrass blade and therefore reduce the photosynthetic capabilities of the seagrass. In fact, a problem in seagrass beds, in mainly tropical systems, is fouling. Fouling occurs when there is a rapid growth of epiphytes, usually diatoms, that completely cover the entire seagrass blade. This coverage prevents the seagrass from receiving sunlight and thereby inhibits photosynthesis and the seagrass eventually dies. The rapid growth of epiphytes, such as diatoms is usually the result of high nutrients. These high nutrients levels are usually
