Global estimates of seagrass blue carbon stocks in biomass and net primary production
Seagrass meadows play a key role in the global carbon cycle through storing carbon in their biomass and soils. However, the lack of global assessments of carbon stocks in seagrass biomass and net primary production (NPP) limits our understanding of their role in the carbon cycle. Here, we provide global estimates of biomass carbon stocks and NPP encompassing seagrasses with different life-history strategies, across bioregions and 66 countries. Seagrass meadows show up to 800-fold differences in biomass across different life-history strategies and bioregions (mean ± SE; 1551 ± 40 kg C ha<sup>-1</sup>), whereas seagrass NPP (5833 ± 557 kg C ha<sup>-1</sup> yr<sup>-1</sup>) ranks among the highest within photosynthetic ecosystems. We estimate seagrass biomass carbon stocks at 24-40 Tg C and NPP at 83-137 Tg C yr<sup>-1</sup> within 160,387 to 266,500 km<sup>2</sup> of global seagrass extent. This study showcases the role of seagrasses in the global carbon cycle and provides the basis for their inclusion in carbon crediting schemes towards implementing conservation actions for climate change mitigation.
Authors
- Anna Lafratta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8414-2417)
- Eduard Serrano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9082-473X)
- Paul S. Lavery (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5162-273X)
- Alexandra D’Cruz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9364-972X)
- Axel Werner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9445-8570)
- Glenn A. Hyndes
- Karina Inostroza (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3026-6291)
- Chanelle L. Webster (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8227-9791)
- Kathryn McMahon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4355-6247)
- Diana I. Montemayor (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1550-7248)
- Roisin McCallum (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0358-2371)
- Nicole R. Foster (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7159-7391)
- Simone Strydom (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0080-483X)
- Viena Puigcorbé (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5892-2305)
- Nicole E. Said
- Óscar Serrano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5973-0046)
- Natasha Dunham (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1261-7924)
- Cristian Salinas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4716-5991)
- Federico Vitelli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3289-9594)
- Carlos Manuel Duarte (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1213-1361)
- Caitlyn M. O’Dea (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9637-2682)
- Rachele Bernasconi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7973-8803)
- Enric Gomis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-2410-7238)
- Miguel Á. Mateo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7567-0277)
- Albert Pessarodona
Institutions
- Edith Cowan University (AU)
- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ES)
- The University of Western Australia (AU)
- Fremantle Hospital (AU)
- Department of the Premier and Cabinet (AU)
- Sustainability Institute (ZA)
- Centre d'Estudis Avançats de Blanes (ES)
- Institut Català de Ciències del Clima (ES)
- Ajuntament de L’Hospitalet (ES)
- Institute of Marine and Coastal Research (AR)
- Institut de Ciències del Mar (ES)
- King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (SA)
- Universitat de Barcelona (ES)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2025-10-29
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-64667-6
- Citations
- 3
- Primary Topic
- Marine and coastal plant biology
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 5.38