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Habitat loss is accelerating a global extinction crisis. Conservation requires understanding links between species and habitats. Emerging research is revealing important associations between vegetated coastal wetlands and marine megafauna, such as cetaceans, sea turtles, and sharks. But these links have not been reviewed and the importance of these globally declining habitats is undervalued. Here, we identify associations for 102 marine megafauna species that utilize these habitats, increasing the number of species with associations based on current International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) species assessments by 59% to 174, accounting for over 13% of all marine megafauna. We conclude that coastal wetlands require greater protection to support marine megafauna, and present a simple, effective framework to improve the inclusion of habitat associations within species assessments. Marine megafauna and vegetated coastal wetland habitats (seagrasses, saltmarshes, and mangroves) are under intense threat and declining globally. Emerging research and novel methodologies have unveiled important, previously unknown habitat associations between marine megafauna and these habitats. Unless we can conceptualize and critically examine these habitat associations, management and conservation can be undermined. Identifying threatened species that are dependent on threatened habitats is essential for informing on actions to prevent population declines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an urgent need to halt and reverse loss of mangroves and seagrass to protect and increase the ecosystem services they provide to coastal communities, such as enhancing coastal resilience and contributing to climate stability. 1,2 Ambitious targets for their recovery can inspire public and private investment in conservation, 3 but the expected outcomes of different protection and restoration strategies are unclear. We estimated potential recovery of mangroves and seagrass through gains in ecosystem extent to the year 2070 under a range of protection and restoration strategies implemented until the year 2050. Under a protection-only scenario, the current trajectories of net mangrove loss slowed, and a minor net gain in global seagrass extent (∼1%) was estimated. Protection alone is therefore unlikely to drive sufficient recovery. However, if action is taken to both protect and restore, net gains of up to 5% and 35% of mangroves and seagrasses, respectively, could be achieved by 2050. Further, protection and restoration can be complementary, as protection prevents losses that would otherwise occur post-2050, highlighting the importance of implementing protection measures. Our findings provide the scientific evidence required for setting strategic and ambitious targets to inspire significant global investment and effort in mangrove and seagrass conservation. • We estimated potential global recovery of mangroves and seagrass • Protection reduces net losses and supports long-term recovery • Restoration is critical to achieve net gains in ecosystem extent • Both protection and restoration are required to achieve and sustain global recovery Conservation action is needed to maintain and recover mangrove and seagrass ecosystems world-wide. Scenario-based models can inform ambitious and achievable global targets for coordinated action. Buelow et al. demonstrate that only protection and restoration combined can support substantial gains in mangrove and seagrass extent into the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]