News

PacMAN by OBIS - A transposable sea-to-screen framework to fight marine biorisk

February 14, 2025 actionable data community capacity development IODC-III Policy

Explore how the OBIS framework developed within the PacMAN project can help fighting marine invasive species.

Exploring ocean DNA with Saara Suominen - A conversation on eDNA, science, and inspiration

February 11, 2025 eDNA community capacity development Women in science

Celebrating Women and Girls in Science Day with Saara Suominen, OBIS scientific officer, sharing her journey, marine science insights, and career advice.

Mapping marine biodiversity - How the OBIS Species Distribution Maps support Ocean conservation

January 23, 2025 actionable data mapping biodiversity monitoring MPA Europe Policy

Explore the OBIS Species Distribution Maps, a reliable marine biodiversity foresight solution and a tool for Ocean protection.

Second open call for marine biodiversity data - Contribute to the Digital Twin of the Ocean

January 17, 2025 European Digital Twin of the Ocean open call DTO-BioFlow

Data holders are encouraged to contribute to the European Digital Twin of the Ocean.

IODC-III, call for abstracts - Join forces with OBIS to showcase the importance of fit-for-purpose and actionable data for ocean biodiversity

January 3, 2025 actionable data community capacity development IODC-III Policy

Participate in the OBIS-led session at the third edition of the International Ocean Data Conference on 10-11 March 2025

Living Data 2025 - The call for sessions is open. Submit yours today!

December 26, 2024 data Living Data 2025

Participate in Living Data 2025 to increase collaboration, capacity and equitable access to data and tools supporting biodiversity monitoring and management.

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Recently published datasets

Use cases

State of knowledge on marine connectivity gathered by migratory marine species

ABNJ connectivity marine species management telemetry tracking

Advancements in technology have improved our knowledge of how different areas of the ocean are connected by the movement of migratory and mobile marine species. This information is vital to inform area-based management and conservation efforts. The authors of this study, led by the OBIS-SEAMAP node, performed a literature review of 25 years of accessible connectivity data for 173 marine mammal, fish, sea turtle, and seabird species to shed light on the current state of knowledge. They found telemetry methods are the most effective tool for demonstrating connectivity, but that significant gaps and obstacles remain in this field of research.

Invasive marine algae in the Mediterranean was misidentified for decades

Algae Invasive species Mediterranean Modelling

The red algae, "Lophocladia lallemandii", one of the worst invasive species in the Mediterranean, was misidentified for nearly three decades. The researchers who discovered this error recommend genetic analysis as a mandatory first step when identifying, monitoring and managing invasives. OBIS served as a useful data repository to confirm the occurrence of this misidentified species.

Preserving seagrasses in a changing climate

climate change modelling MPA seagrass

This study provides the first comprehensive global assessment of how climate change may affect the distribution and range of 66 seagrass species. It also examines how well the current global MPA coverage will protect these important ecosystems in the future. The authors relied on occurrence records from OBIS, along with other sources of data and expert knowledge, to develop species distribution models under various scenarios.

Metabarcoding is a promising tool for identifying species of fish from their eggs and larvae

DNA eggs fish larvae ichthyoplankton metabarcoding Indian Ocean

Understanding the diversity and distribution of fish egg and larvae in the ocean provides invaluable information on ecosystem health, capacity to recover from disturbances and helps guide management and conservation efforts. This study shows that metabarcoding is a promising tool that allows for rapid and accurate species identification. OBIS was used to validate and confirm the distribution range, habitat and occurrence of the species detected by metabarcoding.

How many species live in the world’s largest marine mineral exploration region?

Biodiversity Deep sea Pacific Taxonomy

This study offers the first comprehensive synthesis of published data for the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ) in the central and eastern Pacific. The authors report that this area, which covers 6 million km2, represents significant undescribed biodiversity with an estimated 88%–92% species waiting to be described. Data used in this research were extracted from OBIS highlighting its value as a global data repository for marine biodiversity.

Current knowledge on the reproduction of deep-sea corals

Corals Deep Sea Depth Distribution Reproduction

This study looks at the current state of research on the reproduction of deep-sea corals. Occurrence records were extracted from OBIS to find available information for species living at depths below 100m. Less than 7% of known deep-sea coral species were found to have any aspect of their reproduction reported in the literature highlighting significant gaps and priorities for future research.

More use cases...

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