Kelp Forest Foundation’s Post

🌿Can cultivated kelp forests support sessile species’ biodiversity? Meet Dortea NK Hamukoto, one of this year’s additions to the Blue House Fellowship Programme, supported by the Kelp Forest Foundation. Dortea is interested in finding out which marine species settle in cultivated kelp forests, using Kelp Blue’s farm in Lüderitz, Namibia as a case study.  Her goal is to assess how the attachment of sessiles such as mussels or anemones influence the cultivation of giant kelp. Why does this matter? 🌿 Sessile species are relatively immobile species and attach to the farm structures or the kelp itself. They play a vital role in the maintenance and efficiency of the marine ecosystem. 🌿 For example, sessile species such as mussels act as ecosystem engineers, removing bacteria or fungi from the environment to make it more suitable for themselves and other organisms. 🌿 These organisms also become a sort of underwater garden, attracting fish and other organisms to feed in the kelp forest. Dortea monitors native and cultivated kelp forests in the area to understand the diversity and composition of these ecosystems every month. She hopes to understand how sessile organisms interact in marine ecosystems, and how humans influence these processes. This research is part of the larger quest to understand if, and how, cultivated kelp farms support biodiversity. Learn more about Dortea and her work at the Blue House Programme below! #Biodiversity #bluecarbon #Kelp #UnlockingThePowerOfKelp

🌊 Exploring the Biodiversity of the Dohrn Canyon (Mediterranean Sea) with Environmental DNA Metabarcoding In a recent study, Russo et al. used environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding to investigate the largely unexplored biodiversity of the Dohrn Canyon, located in the Gulf of Naples (~800 m depth). This research provides important insights into deep-sea ecosystems, which are critical yet often overlooked due to their inaccessibility and the high costs of exploration. The study reveals an incredible diversity, including 41 planktonic phyla and 5 mesopelagic fish species. Notably, the copepod genus Clausocalanus was dominant among planktonic metazoans, while Radiolaria and the parasitic dinoflagellate Syndiniales were the most abundant protist taxa. Most of the fish identified belong to mesopelagic species. This research offers a valuable snapshot of deep-sea life in the Mediterranean, underscoring the need for further ecological investigations. By combining eDNA data with visual surveys, scientists aim to expand our understanding of these remote environments. Read the paper here: https://buff.ly/4dQPKDe

New, non-native plant species are constantly being discovered in Svalbard, and researchers are working to ascertain what threat these species pose to the native plants. Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet (NTNU) #ArcticEcosystems

📣📣📣New paper out Genome-Wide Population Structure in a Marine Keystone Species, the European Flat Oyster (Ostrea edulis) A collaboration within the #EUInterregÖresundSkagerrakKattegat projects #MarGenII and #BlueBioClimate.

🦪 MAPPING OF GENETIC DIVERSITY IN THE NATIVE EUROPEAN FLAT OYSTER SHOWS THE WAY TO SUCCESFUL NATURE RESTORATION The European flat oyster is a key species in coastal marine ecosystems and an important source of food for human populations since prehistoric times. However, the flat oyster has suffered dramatic population declines throughout its natural distribution from Norway to the Mediterranean Sea. In a new study, researchers have used genome sequencing technology to map the biodiversity in the native European flat oyster populations: “Biodiversity is essential for supporting climate resilient natural ecosystems, and genetic diversity within species, the intra-specific genetic diversity, serves important buffering functions for the species through potential adaptation to local environmental conditions,” says Homère J. Alves Monteiro, the lead author of the scientific paper published in Molocular Ecology and former PhD student at DTU Aqua. Learn more and find the link to the paper >> https://lnkd.in/d7CDbn7B 📷 Camille Saurel #dtu #dtuaqua @Native Oyster Restoration Alliance (NORA) Interreg Öresund-Kattegat-Skagerrak THE TOLLESBURY AND MERSEA NATIVE OYSTER FISHERY COMPANY LIMITED Blackwater Oysters Jakob Hemmer-Hansen Camille Saurel @dorte Bekkevold

                     ☘  Is Biodiversity important? 🏞 The term biodiversity (from “biological diversity”) refers to the variety of life on Earth at all its levels, from genes to ecosystems, and can encompass the evolutionary, ecological, and cultural processes that sustain life. Ecosystems are crucial for healthy human life. It’s essential to preserve these ecosystems as they provide us the water we drink, the air we breathe and the food we eat. All scientific studies confirm that the lack of biodiversity is one of the major causes of the degradation of these ecosystems. Biodiversity is essential for the processes that support all life on Earth, including humans. This is why the preservation of biodiversity is becoming a priority for an increasingly growing number of scientists.       #biodiversity #nature #plants #animals #wildlife #conservation #ecosystem #ecosystems #sustainability #biology #life #science #botanical #frenchteacher #french #education #teaching #doha #qatar #openforwork #openforjob #biologyteacher

🌊 MOOBYF: An Innovative Research Project to Monitor Biodiversity in the Indian Ocean 🌍 The European research project "Monitoring the Open-Ocean Biodiversity with Fishers" (MOOBYF) is pioneering a new approach to monitor biodiversity in pelagic ecosystems. In close collaboration with local fishers in Indonesia, the Maldives, and Mayotte, the researchers are using fish aggregating devices (FADs) to monitor the presence of pelagic fish species. With the involvement of seven research institutions from six countries, the project promotes transnational knowledge exchange aimed at the long-term preservation of marine ecosystems. Central to this effort is the integration of local fishers' traditional knowledge in a citizen science approach. The project is funded by the EU under the BiodivERsA+ programme. 🔍 Learn more about this project: https://lnkd.in/eMYCXMgs 📷 Copyright: MOOBYF #MarineBiodiversity #CitizenScience #Sustainability #IndianOcean #Research Partners: INSTITUT DE RECHERCHE POUR LE DEVELOPPEMENT(IRD) Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR) University of Liège Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional RI (BRIN RI) Marine Research Centre (MRC, Malediven), Università degli Studi di Padova --- Annette Breckwoldt Sebastian Ferse

(ANSA) - SIENA, JULY 29 - The white shark is disappearing in the Mediterranean Sea. This alarm was raised by a study by the University of Siena and the Sharks Studies Center - Scientific Institute eof Massa Marittima (Grosseto) which shows particularly alarming data on the presence of the white shark in our seas. "According to the research 'Monitoring and marking of the white shark in the Mediterranean' the possibility that this species has exceeded the limit of non-recovery is not remote, at least in Italian coastal waters", explains a note from the University of Siena. The white shark has been considered 'critically endangered' since 2016 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, that is, an endangered species that runs a serious risk of extinction in its habitat while the Mediterranean Sea was considered, as a whole, one of the eight global hotspots for the presence and abundance of white sharks. "The study highlights how no specimen of white shark was sighted during the more than 650 hours of field monitoring along the Italian coasts between 2017 and 2024; the study involved Scientifics with extensive expertise in the field, extensive means and advanced technology" underlines the University of Siena specifying: "the total absence of sightings during the field monitoring activities could mean that the species may have exceeded the threshold of no return, with a serious loss in terms of biodiversity for the Mediterranean basin, where it had been present for about three million years". The research, promoted by Professor Primo Micarelli of the University of Siena, involves: Francesca Romana Reinero, scientific coordinator and Consuelo Vicariotto of the Shark Study Center, Professor Letizia Marsili, coordinator of the team of the Department of Physical Sciences of the Earth and the Environment of the University of Siena, the Magiamare-Siena research group, active in the same university department with Guia Consales. (ANSA). The Research is in progress for scientific publication. Link: https://lnkd.in/dJS3PB7i https://lnkd.in/dVSB4s4J

New paper in Nature, 'Mutualisms weaken the latitudinal diversity gradient among oceanic islands.' Plant diversity is usually much higher near the equator than the poles — but ocean islands buck the trend. Why? A new study reveals mutual symbioses may be a major filter. The finding provides the clearest evidence to date that cooperation among species is necessary to support and maintain high diversity, particularly in tropical ecosystems. “Many plants rely on fungi to access soil nutrients, or on specialized pollinators to reproduce,” senior author Evan Gora explained. “If the odds of a plant surviving the journey to a far-flung island are low, then the odds of its mutualistic partner surviving the journey at the same time are even lower.” #biodiversity #islands #ecology #symbiosis To learn more and access the full article: https://lnkd.in/eesM3Zit

In a recent study, Dr Yonela Sithole, a postdoctoral researcher at NRF-SAIAB, and a team of taxonomists, made an exciting discovery: eight new fish species in Africa that were previously thought to be a single species. The study involved a comprehensive analysis of fish specimens housed at NRF-SAIAB’s National Fish Collections Facility and the Royal Museum for Central Africa in Belgium. NRF - South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity