Although macroalgae usually are inconspicuous on pristine coral reefs, they often thrive on reefs that are subjected to various types of anthropogenic disturbance. This thesis consists of five papers and investigates how biomass and composition of macroalgal communities on coral reefs are affected by regulating factors, such as nutrient availability, herbivory, substrate availability and hydrodynamic forces. In addition, ecological functions and potential impacts of both wild and farmed macroalgal communities are evaluated. Paper I describes a method for using macroalgal tissue nutrient concentrations as bioindicator for nutrient availability, with the possibility to map nutrient loading from larger coastal cities. Papers II and III are manipulative studies comparing top-down and bottom-up regulation of macroalgal communities, where herbivore consumption seems to be the main regulator of biomass whereas nutrient availability mainly influences community composition. Exclosure of large-bodied herbivores had a positive influence on algal biomass in both studies, and during different climatic periods. Paper III also includes the influence of hydrodynamic forces on algal community biomass and structure by comparing a reef crest and a back reef-habitat. Alterations of top-down and bottom-up regulation generally had a stronger effect within the protected back reef-habitat, suggesting that such environments may be more sensitive to anthropogenic influence. Paper IV confirms the general conclusions from papers II and III by studying macroalgal biomass and composition on reef sites with different environmental prerequisites. This study also supports the notion that herbivorous fish can suppress accumulation of macroalgal biomass if substrate availability is low, but not where coral cover is reduced and plenty of substrate is open to macroalgal colonization. The study also found a large temporal variation of macroalgal standing stock and associated nutrients at sites with low top-down regulation. Paper V evaluates potential impacts of seaweed farming on coral reefs and nutrients in the seascape by experimentally studying growth, survival and nutrient binding capacity of Eucheuma denticulatum. This study showed that seaweed farms counteract eutrophication through nutrient extraction and that the risk of farmed algae colonizing local reefs seems to be small as they were rapidly consumed. In conclusion, the studies in this thesis contribute to the understanding of macroalgal regulation and function in tropical seascapes, thereby adding to the knowledge base for coastal management. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Manuscript. Paper 4: Manuscript. Paper 5: Manuscript.</p>

Submitted by Biblioteca de Pós-Graduação em Geoquímica BGQ (bgq@ndc.uff.br) on 2017-09-04T17:31:07Z No. of bitstreams: 1 TESE_Viviane Figueiredo Souza versão final.pdf: 1973892 bytes, checksum: 8b1ac31fbe25c8a6584e68f8e3b8ff71 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-09-04T17:31:07Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 TESE_Viviane Figueiredo Souza versão final.pdf: 1973892 bytes, checksum: 8b1ac31fbe25c8a6584e68f8e3b8ff71 (MD5) / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Universidade Federal Fluminense. Instituto de Química. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Geoquímica, Niterói, RJ / O nitrogênio (N) é um elemento imprescindível para todos os organismos do nosso planeta, entretanto o composto nitrogenado mais abundante, o gás dinitrogênio (N2), é assimilável apenas por poucos micro-organismos. Isso torna o N limitante, refletindo na sua disponibilização via mineralização de matéria orgânica (MO) e a nitrificação, que produzem amônio (NH4+) e nitrato (NO3-), respectivamente. Em solos, esses processos são regulados por fatores como conteúdo de MO e água no solo, pH e temperatura. Em ecossistemas florestais, tropicais e boreais, esses processos são muito relevantes e ainda pouco estudados, principalmente em áreas de floresta secundária sob influência de manejo. A mudança de uso do solo causa alterações na ciclagem e disponibilidade do N, nos fatores reguladores, e na emissão de óxido nitroso (N2O), um gás de efeito estufa. Padrões de recuperação florestal são bastante distintos entre diferentes florestas tropicais, como visto para floresta de Mata Atlântica e Amazônica, com taxas de mineralização em florestas jovens (10 anos) muito elevadas na Amazônia (20,9 μg N g-1 SWD d-1) e mais baixas na Mata Atlântica (3,2 μg N g-1 SWD d-1). Já a nitrificação teve um padrão semelhante, com baixas taxas em ambas as florestas jovens (0,6 6,8 μg N g-1 SWD d-1 na Mata Atlântica e Amazônia, respectivamente), o que indica uma ciclagem de N conservativa, evitando perdas via emissão de gás e lixiviação de NO3-. Entretanto, a emissão de N2O em área de restauração na Mata Atlântica foi maior do que na pristina (22 e 2,5 μg N2O-N g-1 SWD h-1, respectivamente) devido à maior temperatura do solo que estimula os processos microbianos produtores de N2O. Em termos de floresta pristina, a taxa de nitrificação foi bastante distinta entre a floresta de Mata Atlântica e Amazônica (0,08 e 15,9 μg N2O-N g-1 SWD h-1, respectivamente). Isso evidencia os diferentes fatores reguladores de cada região tropical, como regime de chuvas, composição vegetal, tipos de solo, etc. Em florestas boreais, foi visto que o conteúdo de MO e água do solo e o pH do solo são os principais reguladores, limitando a disponibilidade de N em florestas bem drenadas dominadas por coníferas, em comparação com florestas pouco drenadas dominadas por turfa. Dessa forma, verificamos que a mineralização e, principalmente, a nitrificação, são processos muito relevantes no controle de N, e mesmo em ecossistemas diferentes, os fatores reguladores muitas vezes são os mesmos. Isso evidencia a necessidade de mais estudos acerca da dinâmica do N nesses ambientes, principalmente em florestas em restauração / Nitrogen (N) is an essential element for all organisms; however, the most abundant nitrogen compound, dinitrogen (N2), is assimilable only by a few microorganisms. This makes N limiting, which reflects in its availability via organic matter (OM) mineralization and nitrification, which produce ammonium (NH4+) and nitrate (NO3-), respectively. In soils, these processes are regulated by factors such as OM and soil water content, pH and temperature. In forest ecosystems, tropical and boreal, these processes are very relevant and still poorly understood, especially in secondary forest previously deforested. The land use change causes alterations in cycling and availability of N, regulating factors, and emission of nitrous oxide (N2O), a greenhouse gas. Forest recovery patterns are quite distinct among different rainforests, as seen for Atlantic and Amazon rainforest, with very high levels of mineralization in young forests (10 years) in Amazonia (20.9 μg N2O-N g-1 SWD h-1) and low in the Atlantic Forest (3.2 μg N2O-N g-1 SWD h-1). Nitrification had a similar pattern between them, with low rates in both young forests (0.6 and 6.8 μg N2O-N g-1 SWD h-1 in the Atlantic and Amazon forest, respectively), indicating a conservative N cycling, avoiding losses through gas emission and NO3- leaching. However, the N2O emission in restoration area in the Atlantic Forest was higher than in pristine (22 and 2.5 μg N2O-N g-1 SWD h-1, respectively) due to the higher soil temperature, which stimulates microbial production of N2O. In terms of pristine forest, the nitrification rate was very different between the Atlantic forest and Amazonian forest (0.08 and 15.9 μg N2O-N g-1 SWD h-1, respectively), showing the different regulatory factors of each tropical region, such as rainfall regime, vegetal composition, soil types, etc. In boreal forests, OM, soil water content and soil pH were the main regulators, limiting the availability of N in conifer-dominated well-drained forests compared to peat-dominated poorly drained forests. In this way, we verified that mineralization and, mainly, nitrification are very relevant processes in the control of N, and even in extremely different ecosystems, the regulating factors are often the same. This evidences the need for more studies about N dynamics in these environments, especially in restoration forests