モニタリングサイト10 00における藻場調査の取リ組み

摘要

National surveys of seagrass and algal beds in Japan have been conducted since 1973. The Monitoring Sites 1000 project is a national survey that has been initiated since 2003 in accordance with the National Biodiversity Strategy of Japan. Several surveys have been conducted at about 1000 selected sites throughout Japan and long-term monitoring is being carried out. The aim of this project is to gather information on the status of each ecosystem and to detect signs of ecosystem degradation through con-tinuous monitoring surveys on various types of ecosystems throughout the country. Surveys of coastal areas include investigation of the biodiversity and ecosystem function of rocky shores, tidal flats, seagrass beds, algal beds, and coral reefs ecosystems through the assessment of index species and physical and chemical characteristics. We report the outline of the Monitoring Sites 1000 project and a brief overview of the seagrass and algal beds survey.