Plants

4.5

eISSN: 2223-7747

12, 1862

SCIE

[논문]Marine Floral Biodiversity, Threats, and Conservation in Vietnam: An Updated Review

Manh-Linh Nguyen

Myung-Sook Kim*, Nhu-Thuy Nhat Nguyen, Xuan-Thuy Nguyen, Van-Luong Cao*, Xuan-Vy Nguyen and Christophe Vieira*

Part of the Indo-Chinese peninsula and located on the northwest edge of the Coral Triangle
in the South China Sea, the Vietnamese coastal zone is home to a wealthy marine biodiversity
associated with the regional geological setting and history, which supports a large number of marine
ecosystems along a subtropical to tropical gradient. The diversity of coastal benthic marine primary
producers is also a key biological factor supporting marine biological diversity. The present review
provides: (1) an updated checklist of the Vietnamese marine flora, (2) a review of molecular-assisted
alpha taxonomic efforts, (3) an analysis of marine floral biodiversity spatial distribution nationally and
regionally (South China Sea), (4) a review of the impact of anthropogenic and environmental stressors
on the Vietnamese marine flora, and (5) the efforts developed in the last decade for its conservation.
Based on the studies conducted since 2013 and the nomenclatural changes that occurred during
this period, an updated checklist of benthic marine algae and seagrasses consisted in a new total of
878 species, including 439 Rhodophyta, 156 Ochrophyta, 196 Chlorophyta, 87 Cyanobacteria, and
15 phanerogam seagrasses. This update contains 54 new records and 5 new species of macroalgae. The
fairly poor number of new records and new species identified in the last 10 years in a “mega-diverse”
country can be largely attributed to the limited efforts in exploring algal biodiversity and the limited
use of genetic tools, with only 25.4% (15 species) of these new records and species made based on
molecular-assisted alpha taxonomy. The South Central Coast supports the highest species diversity
of marine algae, which coincides with the largest density of coral reefs along the Vietnamese coast.
Vietnam holds in the South China Sea one of the richest marine floras, imputable to the country’s
geographical, geological, and climatic settings. However, Vietnam marine floral biodiversity is
under critical threats examined here, and current efforts are insufficient for its conservation. A methodical molecular-assisted re-examination of Vietnam marine floral biodiversity is urgently
needed, complemented with in-depth investigations of the main threats targeting marine flora and
vulnerable taxa, and finally, conservation measures should be urgently implemented.

2023.04.30.

https://doi.org/10.3390/ plants12091862