Coastal ecosystems are multidisciplinary research topics encompassing the structure, function, and dynamics of biological communities and physical environments at the land–sea interface, including salt marshes, mangroves, seagrass meadows, tidal flats, estuaries, rocky shores, and coastal dunes. Scientific study focuses on biogeochemical cycles, primary productivity, trophic interactions, sediment transport, and hydrodynamic forcing (tides, waves, currents) that shape habitat distribution and resilience. Research also examines nutrient loading, contaminant fate, habitat fragmentation, and climate-driven stressors such as sea-level rise, ocean acidification, and warming, often integrating remote sensing, numerical modeling, and long-term ecological monitoring to quantify ecosystem services and assess vulnerability to anthropogenic impacts.
Large blooms of seaweed are increasingly being reported along coastlines globally, from Europe and Asia to the tropics and beyond.
Ecology
Feb 9, 2026
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22
Recent storms washed away large sections of roads in the UK after sea defenses were damaged. For residents, it was a shock. But for coastal scientists, it was not unexpected.
Environment
Feb 7, 2026
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32
European coastal areas are under increasing pressure. Researchers are investigating ways to reverse this trend and help communities adapt to climate change. From Arctic fjords to Mediterranean seagrass meadows, centuries ...
Environment
Feb 7, 2026
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22
Should we protect an emblematic species if it may come at the cost of another one—particularly in ecosystems that are still recovering from human impacts? This is the conservation dilemma facing Monte Leon National Park, ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 4, 2026
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32
Blue carbon refers to organic carbon captured and stored by the marine and vegetated coastal ecosystems such as mangrove forests, salt marshes, and seagrass meadows. These ecosystems act as powerful carbon sinks, sequestering ...
Environment
Jan 31, 2026
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28
Mangrove forests play an important role in the global carbon cycle, particularly within the marine carbon system. Growing along tropical and subtropical coastlines, these salt-tolerant trees are among nature's most efficient ...
Mangroves, typical of tropical and subtropical latitudes, have become veritable natural traps for land- and sea-based waste. The roots of these trees, known as mangroves, have a great capacity to trap litter—from both land ...
Environment
Jan 22, 2026
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19
The long-term health of the ocean off the coast of Southern California, and the health of the region's freshwater streams and rivers and lakes, soon could hinge on the Trump administration's definition of a single word: ditch.
Earth Sciences
Jan 19, 2026
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27
A study led by researchers at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and the University of Rhode Island (URI) provides the most comprehensive assessment to date of the economic damage caused by recurring sargassum ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 15, 2026
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809
Rivers State on Nigeria's coastline has some of Africa's largest mangrove ecosystems. The Niger Delta itself contains the third-largest mangrove forest in the world. These trees support fisheries, biodiversity and the livelihoods ...
Ecology
Jan 12, 2026
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16
