Structurally complex habitats are becoming rarer across temperate marine environments;
indeed the coastal and marine world is getting flatter. In some cases marine habitats are lost
entirely (eg, wetlands are filled), but in many cases the loss is a gradual transition from a
more complex to a less complex habitat (ie, a change from canopy-forming to turf forming
algae). We explore the multiple ways habitat loss affects marine species diversity, and
propose a conceptual model that identifies the main interactions and feedbacks between …