Integrating genetic approaches into sub-Antarctic deep sea research and management
Key Facts
FUNDING SCHEME Darwin Plus
VALUE £278,231
WHERE South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands
Summary
South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands Marine Protected Area is one of the world’s largest protected areas, protecting vast deep-ocean areas that harbour diverse vulnerable marine ecosystems. Understanding if the MPA is a source or sink of juvenile benthic organisms, and its role regionally, is important for conservation management and only possible to groundtruth with genetic approaches. This project investigates deep-sea diversity and the genetic connectivity of habitat-forming organisms within the SGSSI MPA and across the wider South Atlantic region.
Biodiversity monitoring efforts aimed at identifying the migration patterns of Endangered sea turtles highlight the urgent need for global conservation.
