Explore research activities in the Biodiversity Challenges theme related to marine ecosystems. Names shown indicate authors or co-authors involved from the Centre of Conservation and Restoration Science.
Navigate to more Biodiversity Challenges research activities: All | Freshwater | Terrestrial
Habitat Degradation
Habitat degradation, including change, fragmentation and loss, is one of the greatest threats to biodiversity. Species and ecosystems respond differently to type and intensity of habitat degradation, which changes availability and quality of living space.
Projects
Marine Soundscapes and eDNA for Assessing Biodiversity and Functioning of Re-establishing European Flat Oyster Reefs, Ostrea edulis
Publications
Conceptualizing ecosystem degradation using mangrove forests as a model system (2021), Biological Conservation; (Diele)
The sediment carbon stocks of intertidal seagrass meadows in Scotland (2021), Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science; (Diele, Huxham)
Seagrass removal leads to rapid changes in fauna and loss of carbon. (2019), Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution; (Huxham)
The thin(ning) green line? Investigating changes in Kenya's seagrass coverage (2018), Biology Letters; (Huxham, Briers)
Pollution
The natural environment is exposed to multiple pollutants. Some of these have only recently been perceived as potential threats to species, for example plastic, noise and light.
Projects
Applicability of the optical mesoscope technology to assess physical effects of noise on statocysts of marine invertebrate embryos/larvae: A proof of concept
Quantifying metal bioaccumulation in Nephrops norvegicus larvae exposed to cadmium and pile-driving noise
Quantifying and reducing the environmental footprint of crab meat processing and scoping for bioactive compounds - a preliminary study
Effects of Combined Aquatic Noise and Chemical Pollution on Early Stage Marine Invertebrates in Different Temperature Contexts
Exposure of Marine Invertebrate Larvae to Underwater Speaker Playbacks of Noise Pollution Sources in the Field
Exposure of early life stage marine invertebrates to playbacks of marine renewable energy device vibration
Continuous Monitoring of Marine Soundscapes: Assessing Anthropogenic Noise Near Breeding Seabird Colonies
Effects of Anthropogenic Noise on the Embryogenesis of Squids, Loligo spp.
Effects of aquatic noise on the European sea urchin Echinus esculentus in different temperature contexts
Impacts of cliff-top walkers and boats on the nesting success of seabirds at St Abbs's Head, Scotland
Publications
Marine invertebrates and noise (2023), Frontiers in Marine Science; (Wale)
Effects of pile driving sound playbacks and cadmium co-exposure on the early life stage development of the Norway lobster, Nephrops norvegicus (2022), Marine Pollution Bulletin; (Stenton, Bolger, Dodd, Wale, Briers, Diele)
Quantification and Characterisation of Pre-Production Pellet Pollution in the Avon-Heathcote Estuary/Ihutai, Aotearoa-New Zealand (2022), Microplastics; (Briers)
Combined effects of temperature and hypoxia shape female brooding behaviors and the early ontogeny of the Chilean kelp crab Taliepus dentatus (2020), Marine Ecology Progress Series; (Fusi)
Sea urchin chronicles. The effect of oxygen super-saturation and marine polluted sediments from Bagnoli-Coroglio Bay on different life stages of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus (2020), Marine Environmental Research; (Fusi)
Increasing intensities of Anisakis simplex third-stage larvae (L3) in Atlantic salmon of coastal waters of Scotland (2020), Parasites & vectors; (Rueckert, Briers, Diele)
Response of a marine benthic invertebrate community and biotic indices to organic enrichment from sewage disposal (2019), Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom; (Briers)
Oxygen supersaturation protects coastal marine fauna from ocean warming (2019), Science Advances; (Fusi)
The toxicity of potentially toxic elements (Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn and Ni) to the cnidarian Hydra attenuata at environmentally relevant concentrations (2019), Science of The Total Environment; (Mckinley)
Climate Change
Human-caused climate change is driving both long-term and rapid changes in temperature, weather-patterns and the chemistry of aquatic and terrestrial environments. Biodiversity is susceptible to these changes and their consequences, but can also help deliver solutions at local and global scales.
Projects
Understanding the drivers of, and threats to, carbon sequestration in Scottish seagrass
Publications
Diel oxygen fluctuation drives the thermal response and metabolic performance of coastal marine ectotherms (2021), Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences; (Fusi, Diele)
Climate and intertidal zonation drive variability in the carbon stocks of Sri Lankan mangrove forests (2021), Geoderma; (Huxham)
Kropotkinâ's garden: facilitation in mangrove ecosystems (2019), ; (Huxham)
Oxygen supersaturation protects coastal marine fauna from ocean warming (2019), Science Advances; (Fusi)
Global phenological insensitivity to shifting ocean temperatures among seabirds (2018), Nature Climate Change; (Lewis)
Non-Native Species
Patterns of species’ dispersal and establishment around the globe have changed dramatically in recent history, caused by human activity. Receiving ecosystems may be disrupted in various ways by the introduction of novel species.
Projects
Publications
Over-Exploitation
In the last 50 years, the human population has more than doubled, increasing the pressure on the environment to provide food and materials. Over-exploitation happens when more individuals are removed from a population than are replaced naturally, risking species’ current viability and their benefits for future generations.
Projects
West of Scotland Herring Hunt (WOSHH)
Marine Soundscapes and eDNA for Assessing Biodiversity and Functioning of Re-establishing European Flat Oyster Reefs, Ostrea edulis
Optimizing Citizen-Science Tools for Mangrove Crab Fisheries Management in Brazil
Wester Ross Herring Spawning Ecology
Improving Science-Informed Crab Fisheries Management in Brazil
Quantifying and reducing the environmental footprint of crab meat processing and scoping for bioactive compounds - a preliminary study
Production of final version smartphone application and data queries for citizen science research in Brazil to improve mangrove crab fisheries management
Publications
Essential spawning grounds of Scottish herring: current knowledge and future challenges (2022), Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries; (Frost, Diele)
The harvesting process and fisheries production of the venus clam Anomalocardia flexuosa in a Brazilian Extractive Reserve, with implications for gender-sensitive management (2021), Ocean and Coastal Management; (Diele)
Fishers who rely on mangroves: Modelling and mapping the global intensity of mangrove-associated fisheries (2020), Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science; (Diele)
The influence of aquaculture unit proximity on the pattern of Lepeophtheirus salmonis infection of anadromous Salmo trutta populations on the isle of Skye, Scotland (2018), Journal of Fish Biology; (Dodd)
Antimicrobial Resistance
Pharmaceutical pollution contaminates the environment and can result in resistance to antimicrobials used for the control of microorganisms (including bacteria and viruses). The pathways that pharmaceuticals take to enter the environment and cause antimicrobial resistance are not sufficiently well understood.
Projects
Quantifying Antimicobial Resistance in the River Almond Catchment Area
Scotland-India Antimicrobial Resistance in the Environment Network (SIAMREN)
Publications
Zoonosis
Zoonosis is any disease that is transmitted from vertebrate animals to humans, for example rabies infection. Habitat degradation and human encroachment into wild landscapes increases the contact between wild animals and people and the spread of zoonotic diseases.
Projects
Publications
Top-Down Characterisation of an Antimicrobial Sanitiser, Leading from Quenchers of Efficacy to Mode of Action (2020), Frontiers in Microbiology; (Singleton)