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IMBeR Newsletter

Your news from the Integrated Marine Biosphere Research International Project Office

December 2024,

No. 48

IMBeR and Its Sponsors' News

In This Issue


Cover News

- IMBeR Season's Greeting 2024

---------------------------IMBeR and Its Sponsors' News

-Future Ocean 3

- 2025 ESSAS Open Science Meeting

- EXPAND

- IMECaN Newsletter

- 2025 SCOR Annual Meeting

- 10 New Insights

- SRI2025

---------------------------Editor Picks

-New Publications

---------------------------

Events, Webinars and Conferences

---------------------------

Jobs and Opportunities

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IMBeR International Project Office is fully sponsored by



IMBeR is a Large-Scale Ocean Research Project under SCOR and a Global Research Network under Future Earth

























Editors:

Suhui QIAN,

GiHoon HONG,

Fang ZUO,

Kai QIN

from IMBeR IPO


Layout Assistant: Zhixun YU (Intern)

IMBeR Synthesis and Future Planning Meeting (Future Ocean 3) & IMBeR Scientific Steering Committee Meeting 2025: Navigating a future ocean: Inward, outward, and forward to Be Held on 13–16 May 2025 in Shanghai, China. Stay tuned for more details.

Abstract Submission and Registration Now Open for the 2025 ESSAS Open Science Meeting on Ecosystem Studies of the Subarctic and Arctic Seas, 24–26 June 2025, Tokyo, Japan.

We Are Delighted to Announce a New IMBeR Endorsed Project: EXPAND - will nitrogEn fiXaTion offset nitrogen dePletion in expAnding oceaN Deserts?

Interdisciplinary Marine Early Career Network (IMECaN) December 2024 Newsletter Released

Mark Your Calendar for the 2025 SCOR Annual Meeting: 29–31 October in Santa Marta, Colombia, with a Pre-Meeting Event on 28 October.

10 New Insights in Climate Science Report Spotlighted at COP29 Side Event

Registration and Scholarship Applications Now Open for SRI2025: Shaping a Sustainable Future, 16–19 June 2025, Chicago & Online.

Editor Picks

This month's Editor Picks delve into cutting-edge research across marine ecology, biogeochemistry, and climate science. Topics include the discovery of animal communities in deep-sea hydrothermal vents, and advancements in monitoring phytoplankton carbon dynamics using BGC-Argo floats. Other studies explore the inefficiency of diatoms in carbon transfer in the Southern Ocean, mixing processes influencing autumn phytoplankton blooms, and the impacts of weakening winds on Arabian Gulf biogeochemistry. Research on modular denitrification mechanisms in oxygen minimum zones and the role of Marine Protected Areas in kelp forest resilience further highlights the complex interplay of ecological processes. These studies showcase innovative methodologies, from high-resolution satellite data to ecosystem modeling, and emphasize the pressing need for sustainable ocean management amid climate change.

Animal life in the shallow subseafloor crust at deep-sea hydrothermal vents

Authors: Monika Bright, Sabine Gollner, André Luiz de Oliveira, Salvador Espada-Hinojosa, Avery Fulford, Ian Vincent Hughes, Stephane Hourdez, Clarissa Karthäuser, Ingrid Kolar, Nicole Krause, Victor Le Layec, Tihomir Makovec, Alessandro Messora, Jessica Mitchell, Philipp Pröts, Ivonne Rodríguez-Ramírez, Fanny Sieler, Stefan M. Sievert, Jan Steger, Tinkara Tinta, Teresa Rosa Maria Winter, Zach Bright, Russel Coffield, Carl Hill, Kris Ingram & Alex Paris 


Journal: Nature Communications 


It was once believed that only microbes and viruses inhabited the subseafloor crust beneath hydrothermal vents. Yet, on the seafloor, animals like the giant tubeworm Riftia pachyptila thrive. Their larvae are thought to disperse in the water column, despite never being observed there. We hypothesized that these larvae travel through the subseafloor via vent fluids. In our exploration, lifting lobate lava shelves revealed adult tubeworms and other vent animals in subseafloor cavities. The discovery of vent endemic animals below the visible seafloor shows that the seafloor and subseafloor faunal communities are connected. The presence of adult tubeworms suggests larval dispersal through the recharge zone of the hydrothermal circulation system. Given that many of these animals are host to dense bacterial communities that oxidize reduced chemicals and fix carbon, the extension of animal habitats into the subseafloor has implications for local and regional geochemical flux measurements. These findings underscore the need for protecting vents, as the extent of these habitats has yet to be fully ascertained.

Click to read the full paper


Fig.1: Proposed connectivity model between seafloor surface and crustal subseafloor hydrothermal vents.

Carbon-centric dynamics of Earth’s marine phytoplankton

Authors: Adam C. Stoer and Katja Fennel


Journal: PNAS


Marine phytoplankton are fundamental to Earth’s ecology and biogeochemistry. Our understanding of the large-scale dynamics of phytoplankton biomass has greatly benefited from, and is largely based on, satellite ocean color observations from which chlorophyll-a (Chla), a commonly used proxy for carbon biomass, can be estimated. However, ocean color satellites only measure a small portion of the surface ocean, meaning that subsurface phytoplankton biomass is not directly monitored. Chla is also an imperfect proxy for carbon biomass because cellular physiology drives large variations in their ratio. The global network of Biogeochemical (BGC)-Argo floats now makes it possible to complement satellite observations by addressing both these issues at once. In our study, we use ~100,000 water-column profiles from BGC-Argo to describe Earth’s phytoplankton carbon biomass and its spatiotemporal variability. We estimate the global stock of open ocean phytoplankton biomass at ~314 Tg C, half of which is present at depths not accessible through satellite detection. We also compare the seasonal cycles of carbon biomass stocks and surface Chla visible from space and find that surface Chla does not accurately identify the timing of the peak annual biomass in two-thirds of the ocean. Our study is a demonstration of global-scale, depth-resolved monitoring of Earth’s phytoplankton, which will be crucial for understanding future climate-related changes and the effects of geoengineering interventions if implemented.

Click to read the full paper


Inefficient transfer of diatoms through the subpolar Southern Ocean twilight zone

Authors: J. R. Williams, S. L. C. Giering, C. A. Baker, K. Pabortsava, N. Briggs, H. East, B. Espinola, S. Blackbird, F. A. C. Le Moigne, M. Villa-Alfageme, A. J. Poulton, F. Carvalho, C. Pebody, K. Saw, C. M. Moore, S. A. Henson, R. Sanders & A. P. Martin 


Journal: Nature Geoscience


The Southern Ocean, a region highly vulnerable to climate change, plays a vital role in regulating global nutrient cycles and atmospheric CO2 via the biological carbon pump. Diatoms, photosynthetically active plankton with dense opal skeletons, are key to this process as their exoskeletons are thought to enhance the transfer of particulate organic carbon to depth, positioning them as major vectors of carbon storage. Yet conflicting observations obscure the mechanistic link between diatoms, opal and particulate organic carbon fluxes, especially in the twilight zone where greatest flux losses occur. Here we present direct springtime flux measurements from different sectors of the subpolar Southern Ocean, demonstrating that across large areas of the subpolar twilight zone, carbon is efficiently transferred to depth, albeit not by diatoms. Rather, opal is retained near the surface ocean, indicating that processes such as diatom buoyancy regulation and grazer repackaging can negate ballast effects of diatoms’ skeletons. Our results highlight that the presence of diatoms in surface waters of the Southern Ocean’s largest biome does not guarantee their importance as vectors for efficient carbon transfer through the subpolar twilight zone. Climate change-driven shifts in phytoplankton community composition may affect biologically sequestered carbon pools less than currently predicted.

Click to read the full paper

Fig.2: Comparison of projected deep molar ratios with previous measurements.

Mixing of Top-Down and Bottom-Up Diffusing Reactive Tracers Within the Ocean Mixed Layer and Its Application to Autumn Phytoplankton Blooms

Authors: Y. Noh, H. J. Seunu, H. Song, Y. Choi


Journal: JGR Oceans


The mixing of reactive tracers within the ocean mixed layer, phytoplankton transported downwards from the sea surface and nutrients transported upwards from the mixed layer depth (MLD), is investigated using large eddy simulation coupled to a Lagrangian plankton model. The study focuses on how vertical and horizontal heterogeneity in tracer distribution is generated and how it influences an autumn phytoplankton bloom. The vertical gradient appears in the profiles of horizontal mean phytoplankton and nutrient concentrations, P and N, and it reduces phytoplankton production by photosynthesis compared to the cases with uniform distributions. The reduction ratio decreases as the mixed-layer mean N increases, but it remains relatively insensitive to other conditions such as MLD, surface forcing, stratification below the mixed layer, and the initial N. Phytoplankton and nutrient concentrations show a negative correlation in the horizontal plane, which becomes stronger with increasing depth. Its contribution to plankton production by photosynthesis is negligible, however, because the correlation is weak near the sea surface and the reaction time scale is much longer than the turbulent mixing time scale. It is also found that the vertical gradients of P and N are smaller, and the negative correlation is stronger in the convective mixed layer than in the shear-driven mixed layer. A simple box plankton model, which takes into account the mixing process of tracers, is proposed and used to investigate how mixing affects the prediction of an autumn phytoplankton bloom.

Click to read the full paper

 

Acceleration of Warming, Deoxygenation, and Acidification in the Arabian Gulf Driven by Weakening of Summer Winds

Authors: Z. Lachkar, M. Mehari, F. Paparella, J. A. Burt


Journal: Geophysical Research Letters


The Arabian Gulf (AG) exports hypersaline, dense waters into the Sea of Oman (SOO), replaced by fresher inflowing surface waters from the Indian Ocean. We investigate the impact of recent AG warming on its exchange with the SOO and the implications this has on the AG biogeochemistry. Using an eddy-resolving hindcast model simulation, we analyze the hydrography and biogeochemistry of the AG and the SOO from 1980 to 2018. Our study reveals that changes in summer surface winds have accelerated AG warming and weakened it in the SOO, reducing the density gradient and water exchange between the two seas during late summer. This has led to nutrient buildup, increased productivity, and heightened deoxygenation and acidification in the AG. These findings underscore how subtle wind changes can exacerbate the vulnerability of marginal seas to climate change and stress the need to properly represent regional winds in global climate models.

Click to read the full paper

Fig.3: Warming and surface wind changes in the Arabian Gulf (AG) and Sea of Oman (SOO). (a) Average summer (JJA) sea surface temperature (SST; in °C) in the northern Arabian Sea as simulated in the model over the study period (1980–2018). (b) Linear trends in summer (JJA) SST (in °C per decade) in the AG and northern Arabian Sea. The hatching indicates statistically significant trends at 95% confidence interval. (c and d) Trends in AG-averaged SST (c) and SST gradient between the AG and the SOO (d) during winter (blue), summer (red) and annual-mean (purple) based on the ROMS simulation and from different data products. (e and f) Trends in AG-averaged surface wind speed (e) and the difference in surface wind speed trends between the AG and the SOO (f) during winter (blue), summer (red) and for the month of August (pink) based on different atmospheric reanalyses products. White stars and triangles indicate statistically significant trends at 95% and 90% confidence levels, respectively.

Ecological dynamics explain modular denitrification in the ocean

Authors: Xin Sun, Pearse J. Buchanan, Irene H. Zhang, Magdalena San Roman, Andrew R. Babbin, and Emily J. Zakem


Journal: PNAS


Microorganisms in marine oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) drive globally impactful biogeochemical processes. One such process is multistep denitrification (NO3–→NO2–→NO→N2O→N2), which dominates OMZ bioavailable nitrogen (N) loss and nitrous oxide (N2O) production. Denitrification-derived N loss is typically measured and modeled as a single step, but observations reveal that most denitrifiers in OMZs contain subsets (“modules”) of the complete pathway. Here, we identify the ecological mechanisms sustaining diverse denitrifiers, explain the prevalence of certain modules, and examine the implications for N loss. We describe microbial functional types carrying out diverse denitrification modules by their underlying redox chemistry, constraining their traits with thermodynamics and pathway length penalties, in an idealized OMZ ecosystem model. Biomass yields of single-step modules increase along the denitrification pathway when organic matter (OM) limits growth, which explains the viability of populations respiring NO2– and N2O in a NO3–-filled ocean. Results predict denitrifier community succession along environmental gradients: Pathway length increases as the limiting substrate shifts from OM to N, suggesting a niche for the short NO3–→NO2– module in free-living, OM-limited communities, and for the complete pathway in organic particle-associated communities, consistent with observations. The model captures and mechanistically explains the observed dominance and higher oxygen tolerance of the NO3–→NO2– module. Results also capture observations that NO3– is the dominant source of N2O. Our framework advances the mechanistic understanding of the relationship between microbial ecology and N loss in the ocean and can be extended to other processes and environments.

Click to read the full paper

Fig.4: Schematic of denitrifier functional types. (A) The six modules of the denitrification pathway that are represented by microbial functional types in the ecosystem model, and their subsistence concentrations of OM (R*OM) and inorganic N (R*N) which reflect underlying thermodynamics of redox chemistry and proteome constraints via the biomass yields. A lower subsistence concentration allows microbes to be more competitive when the substrate is limiting (22) (Methods). The colors of bars represent different N substrates, and line types of bars represent the number of denitrification steps of each functional type. (B) Schematic of the redox-fueled metabolism for a denitrifier cell. OM participates in both the biomass synthesis (anabolic) and the denitrification (catabolic) reaction. The balance of the energy needed by the former and generated by the latter sets the biomass yields.

Marine Protected Areas That Preserve Trophic Cascades Promote Resilience of Kelp Forests to Marine Heatwaves

Authors: Joy A. Kumagai, Maurice C. Goodman, Juan Carlos Villaseñor-Derbez, David S. Schoeman, Kyle C. Cavanuagh, Tom W. Bell, Fiorenza Micheli, Giulio De Leo, Nur Arafeh-Dalmau


Journal: Global Change Biology


Under accelerating threats from climate-change impacts, marine protected areas (MPAs) have been proposed as climate-adaptation tools to enhance the resilience of marine ecosystems. Yet, debate persists as to whether and how MPAs may promote resilience to climate shocks. Here, we use 38 years of satellite-derived kelp cover to empirically test whether a network of 58 temperate coastal MPAs in Central and Southern California enhances the resistance of kelp forest ecosystems to, and their recovery from, the unprecedented 2014–2016 marine heatwave regime that occurred in the region. We also leverage a 22-year time series of subtidal community surveys to mechanistically understand whether trophic cascades explain emergent patterns in kelp forest resilience within MPAs. We find that fully protected MPAs significantly enhance kelp forests' resistance to and recovery from marine heatwaves in Southern California, but not in Central California. Differences in regional responses to the heatwaves are partly explained by three-level trophic interactions comprising kelp, urchins, and predators of urchins. Urchin densities in Southern California MPAs are lower within fully protected MPAs during and after the heatwave, while the abundances of their main predators—lobster and sheephead—are higher. In Central California, a region without lobster or sheephead, there is no significant difference in urchin or kelp densities within MPAs as the current urchin predator, the sea otter, is protected statewide. Our analyses show that fully protected MPAs can be effective climate-adaptation tools, but their ability to enhance resilience to extreme climate events depends upon region-specific environmental and trophic interactions. As nations progress to protect 30% of the oceans by 2030, scientists and managers should consider whether protection will increase resilience to climate-change impacts given their local ecological contexts, and what additional measures may be needed.

Click to read the full paper



Fig.5: The study area with the distribution of giant kelp and the network of MPAs in Central and Southern California. The yellow horizontal line at 34.4°N represents the biogeographic barrier at Point Conception, where Central California is separated from Southern California. Map lines delineate study areas and do not necessarily depict accepted national boundaries.

Artificial Light Increases Nighttime Prevalence of Predatory Fishes,

 Altering Community Composition on Coral Reefs

Authors: Emma Weschke, Jules Schligler, Isla Hely, Thibaut Roost, Jo-Ann Schies, Ben Williams, Bartosz Dworzanski, Suzanne C. Mills, Ricardo Beldade, Stephen D. Simpson, Andrew N. Radford

 

Journal: Global Change Biology

 

Artificial light at night (ALAN) is an anthropogenic pollutant that is intensifying and expanding in marine environments, but experimental studies of community-level effects are generally lacking. The inshore, shallow, and clear-water locations of coral reefs and their diverse photosensitive inhabitants make these ecosystems highly susceptible to biological disturbances; at the same time, their biodiversity and accessibility make them model systems for wider insight. Here, we experimentally manipulated ALAN using underwater LED lights on a Polynesian reef system to investigate the influence on localised nighttime fish communities compared to control sites without ALAN. We collected infrared video censuses of baseline communities prior to manipulation, which we repeated following short-term (mean of three nights) and prolonged (mean of 25 nights) exposures to ALAN. Short-term ALAN exposure did not induce any significant alterations to the nighttime fish community, but prolonged ALAN exposure increased nighttime species richness. Species compositions exposed to prolonged ALAN were more dissimilar from their baseline compared to control sites. The difference between community compositions at prolonged ALAN exposure and control sites was not apparent at the family level; instead, it was observed from the composition of trait guilds. Following prolonged ALAN exposure, more diurnal and nocturnal predatory species (piscivores, invertivores, and planktivores)—particularly those that are site-attached or mobile within reefs—were present in nighttime assemblages. Our experimental findings show that coastal ALAN could cause trophic imbalances and circadian disturbances in localised nighttime reef fish communities. Given that community-wide consequences were only apparent after prolonged ALAN exposure suggests that management of the duration of artificial lighting could potentially be used to reduce impacts on marine ecosystems.

Click to read the full paper

Fig. 6: Species richness before (baseline) and after short-term and prolonged exposure to control conditions and ALAN at (a) dusk and (b) night. (c) Temporal contrasts in the species present (β-diversity) at night between exposure durations at control and ALAN sites. The plot is split by vertical dashed lines for each temporal contrast test: Pre-manipulation baseline versus short-term exposure, short-term versus prolonged exposure and baseline versus prolonged exposure. β-diversity index calculated using Sørensen dissimilarity, where a value of 0 indicates all species remain the same and a value of 1 indicates all species are different. In all panels, control sites are represented in blue and ALAN sites are represented in yellow; boxes denote median and interquartile range; whiskers indicate data that fall within 1.5 times the interquartile range; and contrasting letters above bars denote statistical significance. N = 16 sites.

COVID-19 highlights the need to improve resilience and equity

in managing small-scale fisheries

Authors: Sangeeta Mangubhai, Carolina Olguín-Jacobson, Anthony Charles, Joshua Cinner, Asha de Vos, Rachel T. Graham, Gaku Ishimura, Katherine E. Mills, Josheena Naggea, Daniel K. Okamoto, Jennifer K. O’Leary, Anne K. Salomon, U. Rashid Sumaila, Alan White & Fiorenza Micheli 

 

Journal: npj Ocean Sustainability

 

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the fragility of global and domestic seafood markets. We examined the main impacts and responses of the small-scale fisheries (SSF) sector, and found that mitigation and preparedness strategies should be prioritised to boost resilience in SSF. We provide five policy options and considerations: (1) improving access to insurance and financial services; (2) strengthening local and regional markets and supporting infrastructure; (3) recognising fisheries as an essential service; (4) integrating disaster risk management into fisheries management systems; and (5) investing in Indigenous and locally-led fisheries management. Response and recovery measures need to explicitly build strategies to maintain or boost inclusion and equity in SSF.

Click to read the full paper

Fig. 7: The impacts of COVID-19 on small-scale fisheries and the responses and recovery efforts of fisheries actors and governments. Five policy recommendations on mitigation and preparedness to boost the resilience of the small-scale fisheries sector.

Events, Webinars and Conferences

Information shared by our contacts:














Trainings

Information shared by our contacts:



  • GOOD-OARS Summer School 2025, 4-11 November 2025, Penang, Malaysia
  • The GOOD-OARS Summer School is organized under the Global Ocean Oxygen Decade (GOOD) and Ocean Acidification Research for Sustainability (OARS) programmes of the UN Ocean Decade. This program aims to equip the next generation of ocean oxygen and acidification scientists with foundational knowledge in these fields. Participants will benefit from lectures and hands-on training delivered by world experts in an engaging and collaborative environment.
  • Apply by 10 January 2025.
  • Read more...


  • Training Course: Introduction to Management Strategy Evaluation, 24–28 February 2025, Copenhagen, Denmark.
  • This course aims to provide a general introduction to MSE by covering a range of topics with associated case studies and practical sessions. Participants will acquire the knowledge, skills, and quantitative tools to undertake MSE on their own fisheries resources.
  • Apply by 10 January 2025​.
  • Read more...

Jobs and Opportunities

Information shared by our contacts:




  • PhD Opportunity: Southern Ocean Dynamics. Apply by 1 January 2025.
  • Irina Marinov’s group in the Earth and Environmental Science Department at the University of Pennsylvania is seeking a PhD student for a project focused on the Southern Ocean. The research spans ocean biogeochemistry, plankton ecology, physical oceanography, and climate dynamics, with potential collaboration on glacier/iceberg dynamics (Leigh Stearns) and climate dynamics (Michael Mann). Apply by sending your CV, statement of interest, transcripts, and writing samples to imarinov@upenn.edu.






  • Anthropocene Coasts Recruiting Position: Associate Editors
  • Applications will continue until the position is filled.
  • Anthropocene Coasts is a Golden Open Access journal hosted by East China Normal University, and published by Springer. The journal publishes multidisciplinary research addressing the interaction of human activities with our estuaries and coasts. To help build on the success of Anthropocene Coasts and to expand the opportunities for international collaboration and contributions to the work of the journal, the journal is seeking more international Associate Editors.








The Year in Review

As 2024 comes to an end, it is the perfect time to reflect on what has been a meaningful year for IMBeR—a year of milestones, transitions, and impactful collaborations.


This year, IMBeR welcomed new members to our community, including Executive Committee members, Fellows, IMECaN Co-Chair, National Contacts, and National Committee. Some are new faces, while others are long-standing contributors stepping into new roles. We sincerely welcome these transitions and deeply appreciate the contributions of those who have transitioned out of IMBeR for their invaluable efforts.


One of the year’s highlights was the signing of the trilateral Memorandum of Understanding among ECNU, IMBeR, and SCOR, marking the continuation of a fruitful collaboration.

We are thrilled to see our network continue to grow and thank you for your unwavering interest in IMBeR’s activities. Your support and engagement make our shared mission possible.


As we reflect on these accomplishments, we would also like to invite you to share your achievements and insights with us so we can amplify them across our network. We encourage our subscribers to click the button below to update your profiles, helping us tailor content that aligns with your interests.



With the holiday season upon us, we extend our warmest wishes for a peaceful, joyful, and inspiring New Year. We look forward to collaborating with you in 2025 to achieve even greater success together!

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