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124 results on '"Ashford, Oliver"'

1. Enhancing Human Health and Wellbeing through Sustainably and Equitably Unlocking a Healthy Oceans Potential.

Author

Fleming, Lora, Landrigan, Philip, Ashford, Oliver, Whitman, Ella, Swift, Amy, Gerwick, William, Heymans, Johanna, Hicks, Christina, Morrissey, Karyn, White, Mathew, Alcantara-Creencia, Lota, Alexander, Karen, Astell-Burt, Thomas, Berlinck, Roberto, Cohen, Philippa, Hixson, Richard, Islam, Mohammad, Iwasaki, Arihiro, Praptiwi, Radisti, Raps, Hervé, Remy, Jan, Sowman, Georgina, Ternon, Eva, Thiele, Torsten, Thilsted, Shakuntala, Uku, Jacqueline, Ockenden, Stephanie, and Kumar, Pushpam

Subjects
biodiversity, biotechnology, blue economy, blue health, environmental justice, equity, marine protected areas (MPAs), natural products, seafood, Humans, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Conservation of Natural Resources, Health Care Sector, Human Rights, Oceans and Seas, Social Justice, Sustainable Development
Abstract

A healthy ocean is essential for human health, and yet the links between the ocean and human health are often overlooked. By providing new medicines, technologies, energy, foods, recreation, and inspiration, the ocean has the potential to enhance human health and wellbeing. However, climate change, pollution, biodiversity loss, and inequity threaten both ocean and human health. Sustainable realisation of the oceans health benefits will require overcoming these challenges through equitable partnerships, enforcement of laws and treaties, robust monitoring, and use of metrics that assess both the oceans natural capital and human wellbeing. Achieving this will require an explicit focus on human rights, equity, sustainability, and social justice. In addition to highlighting the potential unique role of the healthcare sector, we offer science-based recommendations to protect both ocean health and human health, and we highlight the unique potential of the healthcare sector tolead this effort.

Published
2024

2. Global fine-resolution data on springtail abundance and community structure

Author

Potapov, Anton M., Chen, Ting-Wen, Striuchkova, Anastasia V., Alatalo, Juha M., Alexandre, Douglas, Arbea, Javier, Ashton, Thomas, Ashwood, Frank, Babenko, Anatoly B., Bandyopadhyaya, Ipsa, Baretta, Carolina Riviera Duarte Maluche, Baretta, Dilmar, Barnes, Andrew D., Bellini, Bruno C., Bendjaballah, Mohamed, Berg, Matty P., Bernava, Verónica, Bokhorst, Stef, Bokova, Anna I., Bolger, Thomas, Bouchard, Mathieu, Brito, Roniere A., Buchori, Damayanti, Castaño-Meneses, Gabriela, Chauvat, Matthieu, Chomel, Mathilde, Chow, Yasuko, Chown, Steven L., Classen, Aimee T., Cortet, Jérôme, Čuchta, Peter, de la Pedrosa, Ana Manuela, De Lima, Estevam C. A., Deharveng, Louis E., Doblas Miranda, Enrique, Drescher, Jochen, Eisenhauer, Nico, Ellers, Jacintha, Ferlian, Olga, Ferreira, Susana S. D., Ferreira, Aila S., Fiera, Cristina, Filser, Juliane, Franken, Oscar, Fujii, Saori, Koudji, Essivi Gagnon, Gao, Meixiang, Gendreau-Berthiaume, Benoit, Gers, Charles, Greve, Michelle, Hamra-Kroua, Salah, Handa, I. Tanya, Hasegawa, Motohiro, Heiniger, Charlène, Hishi, Takuo, Holmstrup, Martin, Homet, Pablo, Høye, Toke T., Ivask, Mari, Jacques, Bob, Janion-Scheepers, Charlene, Jochum, Malte, Joimel, Sophie, Jorge, Bruna Claudia S., Juceviča, Edite, Kapinga, Esther M., Kováč, Ľubomír, Krab, Eveline J., Krogh, Paul Henning, Kuu, Annely, Kuznetsova, Natalya, Lam, Weng Ngai, Lin, Dunmei, Lindo, Zoë, Liu, Amy W. P., Lu, Jing-Zhong, Luciáñez, María José, Marx, Michael T., Mawan, Amanda, McCary, Matthew A., Minor, Maria A., Mitchell, Grace I., Moreno, David, Nakamori, Taizo, Negri, Ilaria, Nielsen, Uffe N., Ochoa-Hueso, Raúl, Oliveira Filho, Luís Carlos I., Palacios-Vargas, José G., Pollierer, Melanie M., Ponge, Jean-François, Potapov, Mikhail B., Querner, Pascal, Rai, Bibishan, Raschmanová, Natália, Rashid, Muhammad Imtiaz, Raymond-Léonard, Laura J., Reis, Aline S., Ross, Giles M., Rousseau, Laurent, Russell, David J., Saifutdinov, Ruslan A., Salmon, Sandrine, Santonja, Mathieu, Saraeva, Anna K., Sayer, Emma J., Scheunemann, Nicole, Scholz, Cornelia, Seeber, Julia, Shaw, Peter, Shveenkova, Yulia B., Slade, Eleanor M., Stebaeva, Sophya, Sterzynska, Maria, Sun, Xin, Susanti, Winda Ika, Taskaeva, Anastasia A., Tay, Li Si, Thakur, Madhav P., Treasure, Anne M, Tsiafouli, Maria, Twala, Mthokozisi N., Uvarov, Alexei V., Venier, Lisa A., Widenfalk, Lina A., Widyastuti, Rahayu, Winck, Bruna, Winkler, Daniel, Wu, Donghui, Xie, Zhijing, Yin, Rui, Zampaulo, Robson A., Zeppelini, Douglas, Zhang, Bing, Zoughailech, Abdelmalek, Ashford, Oliver, Klauberg-Filho, Osmar, and Scheu, Stefan

Published
2024
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3. Relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning proxies strengthen when approaching chemosynthetic deep-sea methane seeps

Author

Ashford, Oliver S, Guan, Shuzhe, Capone, Dante, Rigney, Katherine, Rowley, Katelynn, Cordes, Erik E, Cortés, Jorge, Rouse, Greg W, Mendoza, Guillermo F, Sweetman, Andrew K, and Levin, Lisa A

Subjects
Life Below Water, Biodiversity, Ecosystem, Geologic Sediments, Humans, Methane, biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, environmental gradients, resource supply, chemosynthesis, methane seep, Biological Sciences, Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, Medical and Health Sciences
Abstract

As biodiversity loss accelerates globally, understanding environmental influence over biodiversity-ecosystem functioning (BEF) relationships becomes crucial for ecosystem management. Theory suggests that resource supply affects the shape of BEF relationships, but this awaits detailed investigation in marine ecosystems. Here, we use deep-sea chemosynthetic methane seeps and surrounding sediments as natural laboratories in which to contrast relationships between BEF proxies along with a gradient of trophic resource availability (higher resource methane seep, to lower resource photosynthetically fuelled deep-sea habitats). We determined sediment fauna taxonomic and functional trait biodiversity, and quantified bioturbation potential (BPc), calcification degree, standing stock and density as ecosystem functioning proxies. Relationships were strongly unimodal in chemosynthetic seep habitats, but were undetectable in transitional 'chemotone' habitats and photosynthetically dependent deep-sea habitats. In seep habitats, ecosystem functioning proxies peaked below maximum biodiversity, perhaps suggesting that a small number of specialized species are important in shaping this relationship. This suggests that absolute biodiversity is not a good metric of ecosystem 'value' at methane seeps, and that these deep-sea environments may require special management to maintain ecosystem functioning under human disturbance. We promote further investigation of BEF relationships in non-traditional resource environments and emphasize that deep-sea conservation should consider 'functioning hotspots' alongside biodiversity hotspots.

Published
2021

4. Climate change considerations are fundamental to management of deep‐sea resource extraction

Author

Levin, Lisa A, Wei, Chih‐Lin, Dunn, Daniel C, Amon, Diva J, Ashford, Oliver S, Cheung, William WL, Colaço, Ana, Dominguez‐Carrió, Carlos, Escobar, Elva G, Harden‐Davies, Harriet R, Drazen, Jeffrey C, Ismail, Khaira, Jones, Daniel OB, Johnson, David E, Le, Jennifer T, Lejzerowicz, Franck, Mitarai, Satoshi, Morato, Telmo, Mulsow, Sandor, Snelgrove, Paul VR, Sweetman, Andrew K, and Yasuhara, Moriaki

Subjects
Oceanography, Ecological Applications, Environmental Management, Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Climate-Related Exposures and Conditions, Life Below Water, Climate Action, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Ecosystem, Humans, Minerals, Mining, Oceans and Seas, biodiversity maintenance, bottom fishing, climate projections, conservation, deep ocean, deep-seabed mining, environmental management, habitat suitability modeling, larval connectivity modeling, Biological Sciences, Ecology, Biological sciences, Earth sciences, Environmental sciences
Abstract

Climate change manifestation in the ocean, through warming, oxygen loss, increasing acidification, and changing particulate organic carbon flux (one metric of altered food supply), is projected to affect most deep-ocean ecosystems concomitantly with increasing direct human disturbance. Climate drivers will alter deep-sea biodiversity and associated ecosystem services, and may interact with disturbance from resource extraction activities or even climate geoengineering. We suggest that to ensure the effective management of increasing use of the deep ocean (e.g., for bottom fishing, oil and gas extraction, and deep-seabed mining), environmental management and developing regulations must consider climate change. Strategic planning, impact assessment and monitoring, spatial management, application of the precautionary approach, and full-cost accounting of extraction activities should embrace climate consciousness. Coupled climate and biological modeling approaches applied in the water and on the seafloor can help accomplish this goal. For example, Earth-System Model projections of climate-change parameters at the seafloor reveal heterogeneity in projected climate hazard and time of emergence (beyond natural variability) in regions targeted for deep-seabed mining. Models that combine climate-induced changes in ocean circulation with particle tracking predict altered transport of early life stages (larvae) under climate change. Habitat suitability models can help assess the consequences of altered larval dispersal, predict climate refugia, and identify vulnerable regions for multiple species under climate change. Engaging the deep observing community can support the necessary data provisioning to mainstream climate into the development of environmental management plans. To illustrate this approach, we focus on deep-seabed mining and the International Seabed Authority, whose mandates include regulation of all mineral-related activities in international waters and protecting the marine environment from the harmful effects of mining. However, achieving deep-ocean sustainability under the UN Sustainable Development Goals will require integration of climate consideration across all policy sectors.

Published
2020

5. Illuminating the deep : an exploration of deep-sea benthic macrofaunal ecology in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean

Author

Ashford, Oliver Simon, Grient, Jesse van der, Horton, Tammy, Frojan, Christopher Barrio, Downie, Anna, Rogers, Alex David, and Kenny, Andrew

Subjects
577.7, Ecology, Marine biology, Biology, Peracarida, Benthic ecology, Deep-sea
Abstract

Understanding of the fundamental ecology of deep-sea ecosystems remains immature relative to more familiar shallow-water and terrestrial habitats, despite more than two hundred years of scientific investigation. This thesis aims to progress knowledge of deep-sea benthic ecology by the analysis of over three hundred box core samples collected from the Northwest Atlantic continental slope as part of the international NEREIDA programme. Aspects of the ecology of Peracarida (Crustacea) are studied, and this is facilitated by the coupling of a large faunal dataset with extensive environmental information. To further enhance the power of this dataset, phylogenetic and functional characteristics of assemblages are investigated. Using community phylogenetic methodology, it is demonstrated that the peracarid assemblages studied are structured more strongly by variation in environmental parameters than they are by competitive interactions. Analyses demonstrate that the intensity of bottom trawling, seafloor temperature, current speed, food availability, sediment characteristics and physical habitat heterogeneity all influence deep-sea peracarid assemblage biodiversity metrics. Further, the importance of high poriferan biomass for the promotion of peracarid assemblages of high density, biomass, richness and diversity is highlighted. Of relevance to the management of deep-sea ecosystems, the results of this thesis suggest that caution should be exercised when applying species distribution models to data-deficient environments, whilst the location of spatial closures in the NAFO Regulatory Area may not be fully optimal for the protection of all components of diverse benthic assemblages against the impacts of bottom trawling. The importance of deep-sea diversity is demonstrated by the finding of positive biodiversity – ecosystem functioning relationships. However, the form of these relationships is found to be dependent on the biodiversity and ecosystem functioning metrics employed, and a hypothesis for a generalised form of biodiversity – ecosystem functioning relationships is proposed. Finally, this thesis calls for more ambitious deep-sea ecological investigations, and it is hoped that its findings will encourage future research initiatives, helping to further illuminate this enigmatic and fascinating environment.

Published
2017

6. Global fine-resolution data on springtail abundance and community structure

Author

Russian Science Foundation, Leipzig University, German Research Foundation, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (Brasil), Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Germany), Carl Tryggers Foundation, Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (France), Australian Research Council, National Science Foundation (US), American Association of University Women, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, Ministry of Innovation and Technology (Hungary), National Natural Science Foundation of China, South African National Antarctic Programme, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España), Agencia Estatal de Investigación (España), European Commission, Estonian Science Foundation, Government of Canada, St. John's University, Ministére de l'Education Nationale de la Recherche et de la Technologie (France), Latvian Council of Science, Massey University, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Royal Society Te Apārangi, Slovak Research and Development Agency, Higher Education Commission (Pakistan), Natural Resources Canada, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Nanyang Technological University, Potapov, Anton [0000-0002-4456-1710], Striuchkova, Anastasia V. [0000-0002-6666-5844], Alatalo, Juha M. [0000-0001-5084-850X], Arbea, Javier I. [0000-0001-6122-1331], Babenko, Anatoly [0000-0002-6077-0619], Barnes, Andrew D. [0000-0002-6499-381X], Bellini, Bruno C. [0000-0001-7881-9436], Bernava, Verónica [0000-0002-7654-7913], Bokhorst, Stef [0000-0003-0184-1162], Castaño-Meneses, Gabriela [0000-0002-5405-5221], Chauvat, Matthieu [0000-0002-4831-5904], Chomel, Mathilde [0000-0001-5110-2355], Chown, Steven L. [0000-0001-6069-5105], Classen, Aimme T. [0000-0002-6741-3470], de Lima, Estevam C. A. [0000-0002-1680-4818], Doblas-Miranda, E. [0000-0003-3366-2759], Drescher. Jochen [0000-0002-5162-9779], Eisenhauer, Nico [0000-0002-0371-6720], Ferlian, Olga [0000-0002-2536-7592], Filser, Juliane [0000-0003-1535-6168], Franken, Oscar [0000-0001-8361-3117], Greve, Michelle [0000-0002-6229-8506], Holmstrup, Martin [0000-0001-8395-6582], Homet, Pablo [0000-0002-4285-6953], Høye, Toke T. [0000-0001-5387-3284], Janion-Scheepers, C. [0000-0001-5942-7912], Jochum, Malte [0000-0002-8728-1145], Jucevica, Edite [0000-0002-0710-9450], Kapinga, Esther M. [0000-0002-2454-6820], Kovac, L'ubomír [0000-0001-8194-2128], Krab, Eveline J. [0000-0001-8262-0198], Henning Krogh, Paul [0000-0003-2033-553X], Lindo, Zoë [0000-0001-9942-7204], Lu, Jing-Zhong [0000-0002-4051-8993], Luciánez Sánchez, Mª J. [0000-0001-5679-0951], Mawan, Amanda [0000-0003-1820-7432], Moreno Mateos, D. [0000-0002-1539-5848], Negri, Ilaria [0000-0001-5188-1408], Nielsen, Uffe N. [0000-0003-2400-7453], Ochoa-Hueso, Raúl [0000-0002-1839-6926], Oliveira Filho, Luís Carlos I. [0000-0002-9010-481X], Palacios-Vargas, José [0000-0001-9097-6813], Pollierer, Melani M. [0000-0002-1498-2362], Potapov, Mikhail B. [0000-0002-6111-3354], Rashid, Muhammad Imtiaz [0000-0002-5178-4445], Raymond-Léonard, Laura J. [0000-0002-7324-7843], Saifutdinov, Ruslan [0000-0002-8878-3630], Sayer, Emma J. [0000-0002-3322-4487], Seeber, Julia [0000-0003-0189-7377], Shveenkova, Yulia B. [0000-0003-1887-8551], Slade, Eleanor M. [0000-0002-6108-1196], Sterzynska, Maria [0000-0001-9712-4285], Sun, Xin [0000-0002-3988-7847], Taskaeva, Anastasia A. [0000-0002-4519-8458], Thakur, Madhav P. [0000-0001-9426-1313], Tsiafouli, Maria A. [0000-0003-0203-8347], Twala, Mthokozisi N. [0000-0001-6499-1892], Winck, Bruna [0000-0002-7996-9855], Winkler, Daniel E.[0000-0002-6008-0562], Yin, Rui [0000-0002-4580-1317], Zeppelini, Douglas [0000-0002-9026-1129], Scheu, Stefan [0000-0003-4350-9520], Potapov, Anton, Chen, Ting-Wen, Striuchkova, Anastasia V., Alatalo, Juha M., Alexandre, Douglas, Arbea, Javier I., Ashton, Thomas, Ashwood, Frank, Babenko, Anatoly, Bandyopadhyaya, Ipsa, Duarte Maluche Baretta, Carolina R., Joimel, Sophie, Jorge, Bruna Claudia S., Jucevica, Edite, Kapinga, Esther M., Kovac, L'ubomír, Krab, Eveline J., Henning Krogh, Paul, Kuu, Annely, Kuznetsova, Natalia A., Lam Weng, Ngai, Russell, David J., Lin, Dunmei, Lindo, Zoë, Liu, Amy, Lu, Jing-Zhong, Luciánez Sánchez, Mª J., Marx, Michael T., Mawan, Amanda, McCary, Matthew A., Minor, María A., Mitchell, Grace I., Saifutdinov, Ruslan, Moreno Mateos, D., Nakamori, Taizo, Negri, Ilaria, Nielsen, Uffe N., Ochoa-Hueso, Raúl, Oliveira Filho, Luís Carlos I., Palacios-Vargas, José, Pollierer, Melani M., Ponge, Jean-François, Potapov, Mikhail B., Salmon, Sandrine, Querner, Pascal, Rai, Bibishan, Raschmanová, Natália, Rashid, Muhammad Imtiaz, Raymond-Léonard, Laura J., Reis, Aline S., Ross, Giles M., Rousseau, Laurent, Santoja, Mathieu, Saraeva, Anna K., Sayer, Emma J., Scheunemann, Nicole, Scholz, Cornelia, Seeber, Julia, Shaw, Peter, Baretta, Dilmar, Shveenkova, Yulia B., Slade, Eleanor M., Stebaeva, Sophya K., Sterzynska, Maria, Sun, Xin, Susanti, Winda I., Taskaeva, Anastasia A., Tay, Li Si, Thakur, Madhav P., Treasure, Anne M., Barnes, Andrew D., Tsiafouli, Maria A., Twala, Mthokozisi N., Uvarov, Alexei V., Vernier, Lisa A., Widenfalk, Lina A., Widyastuti, Rahayu, Winck, Bruna, Winkler, Daniel E., Wu, Donghui, Xie, Zhijing, Bellini, Bruno C., Yin, Rui, Zampaulo, Robson A., Zeppelini, Douglas, Zhang, Bing, Zoughailech, Abdelmalek, Ashford, Oliver, Klauberg-Filho, Osmar, Scheu, Stefan, Bendjaballah, Mohamed, Berg, Matty P., Bernava, Verónica, Bokhorst, Stef, Bokova, Anna I., Bolger, Thomas, Bouchard, Mathieu, Brito, Roniere A., Buchori, Damayanti, Castaño-Meneses, Gabriela, Chauvat, Matthieu, Chomel, Mathilde, Chow, Yasuko, Chown, Steven L., Classen, Aimme T., Cortet, Jérôme, Čuchta, Peter, Pedrosa, Ana M. de la, de Lima, Estevam C. A., Deharveng, Louis, Doblas-Miranda, E., Drescher. Jochen, Eisenhauer, Nico, Ellers, J., Ferlian, Olga, Ferreira, Susana S. D., Ferreira, Alisa S., Fiera, Cristina, Filser, Juliane, Franken, Oscar, Fujii, S., Gagnon Koudji, Essivi, Gao, Meixiang, Gendreau-Berthiaume, Benoit, Gers. Charles, Greve, Michelle, Hamra-Kroua, Salah, Tanya Handa, Ira, Hasegawa, Motohiro, Heiniger, Charlène, Hishi, Takuo, Holmstrup, Martin, Homet, Pablo, Høye, Toke T., Ivask, Mari, Jacques, Bob, Janion-Scheepers, C., Jochum, Malte, Russian Science Foundation, Leipzig University, German Research Foundation, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (Brasil), Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Germany), Carl Tryggers Foundation, Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (France), Australian Research Council, National Science Foundation (US), American Association of University Women, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, Ministry of Innovation and Technology (Hungary), National Natural Science Foundation of China, South African National Antarctic Programme, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España), Agencia Estatal de Investigación (España), European Commission, Estonian Science Foundation, Government of Canada, St. John's University, Ministére de l'Education Nationale de la Recherche et de la Technologie (France), Latvian Council of Science, Massey University, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Royal Society Te Apārangi, Slovak Research and Development Agency, Higher Education Commission (Pakistan), Natural Resources Canada, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Nanyang Technological University, Potapov, Anton [0000-0002-4456-1710], Striuchkova, Anastasia V. [0000-0002-6666-5844], Alatalo, Juha M. [0000-0001-5084-850X], Arbea, Javier I. [0000-0001-6122-1331], Babenko, Anatoly [0000-0002-6077-0619], Barnes, Andrew D. [0000-0002-6499-381X], Bellini, Bruno C. [0000-0001-7881-9436], Bernava, Verónica [0000-0002-7654-7913], Bokhorst, Stef [0000-0003-0184-1162], Castaño-Meneses, Gabriela [0000-0002-5405-5221], Chauvat, Matthieu [0000-0002-4831-5904], Chomel, Mathilde [0000-0001-5110-2355], Chown, Steven L. [0000-0001-6069-5105], Classen, Aimme T. [0000-0002-6741-3470], de Lima, Estevam C. A. [0000-0002-1680-4818], Doblas-Miranda, E. [0000-0003-3366-2759], Drescher. Jochen [0000-0002-5162-9779], Eisenhauer, Nico [0000-0002-0371-6720], Ferlian, Olga [0000-0002-2536-7592], Filser, Juliane [0000-0003-1535-6168], Franken, Oscar [0000-0001-8361-3117], Greve, Michelle [0000-0002-6229-8506], Holmstrup, Martin [0000-0001-8395-6582], Homet, Pablo [0000-0002-4285-6953], Høye, Toke T. [0000-0001-5387-3284], Janion-Scheepers, C. [0000-0001-5942-7912], Jochum, Malte [0000-0002-8728-1145], Jucevica, Edite [0000-0002-0710-9450], Kapinga, Esther M. [0000-0002-2454-6820], Kovac, L'ubomír [0000-0001-8194-2128], Krab, Eveline J. [0000-0001-8262-0198], Henning Krogh, Paul [0000-0003-2033-553X], Lindo, Zoë [0000-0001-9942-7204], Lu, Jing-Zhong [0000-0002-4051-8993], Luciánez Sánchez, Mª J. [0000-0001-5679-0951], Mawan, Amanda [0000-0003-1820-7432], Moreno Mateos, D. [0000-0002-1539-5848], Negri, Ilaria [0000-0001-5188-1408], Nielsen, Uffe N. [0000-0003-2400-7453], Ochoa-Hueso, Raúl [0000-0002-1839-6926], Oliveira Filho, Luís Carlos I. [0000-0002-9010-481X], Palacios-Vargas, José [0000-0001-9097-6813], Pollierer, Melani M. [0000-0002-1498-2362], Potapov, Mikhail B. [0000-0002-6111-3354], Rashid, Muhammad Imtiaz [0000-0002-5178-4445], Raymond-Léonard, Laura J. [0000-0002-7324-7843], Saifutdinov, Ruslan [0000-0002-8878-3630], Sayer, Emma J. [0000-0002-3322-4487], Seeber, Julia [0000-0003-0189-7377], Shveenkova, Yulia B. [0000-0003-1887-8551], Slade, Eleanor M. [0000-0002-6108-1196], Sterzynska, Maria [0000-0001-9712-4285], Sun, Xin [0000-0002-3988-7847], Taskaeva, Anastasia A. [0000-0002-4519-8458], Thakur, Madhav P. [0000-0001-9426-1313], Tsiafouli, Maria A. [0000-0003-0203-8347], Twala, Mthokozisi N. [0000-0001-6499-1892], Winck, Bruna [0000-0002-7996-9855], Winkler, Daniel E.[0000-0002-6008-0562], Yin, Rui [0000-0002-4580-1317], Zeppelini, Douglas [0000-0002-9026-1129], Scheu, Stefan [0000-0003-4350-9520], Potapov, Anton, Chen, Ting-Wen, Striuchkova, Anastasia V., Alatalo, Juha M., Alexandre, Douglas, Arbea, Javier I., Ashton, Thomas, Ashwood, Frank, Babenko, Anatoly, Bandyopadhyaya, Ipsa, Duarte Maluche Baretta, Carolina R., Joimel, Sophie, Jorge, Bruna Claudia S., Jucevica, Edite, Kapinga, Esther M., Kovac, L'ubomír, Krab, Eveline J., Henning Krogh, Paul, Kuu, Annely, Kuznetsova, Natalia A., Lam Weng, Ngai, Russell, David J., Lin, Dunmei, Lindo, Zoë, Liu, Amy, Lu, Jing-Zhong, Luciánez Sánchez, Mª J., Marx, Michael T., Mawan, Amanda, McCary, Matthew A., Minor, María A., Mitchell, Grace I., Saifutdinov, Ruslan, Moreno Mateos, D., Nakamori, Taizo, Negri, Ilaria, Nielsen, Uffe N., Ochoa-Hueso, Raúl, Oliveira Filho, Luís Carlos I., Palacios-Vargas, José, Pollierer, Melani M., Ponge, Jean-François, Potapov, Mikhail B., Salmon, Sandrine, Querner, Pascal, Rai, Bibishan, Raschmanová, Natália, Rashid, Muhammad Imtiaz, Raymond-Léonard, Laura J., Reis, Aline S., Ross, Giles M., Rousseau, Laurent, Santoja, Mathieu, Saraeva, Anna K., Sayer, Emma J., Scheunemann, Nicole, Scholz, Cornelia, Seeber, Julia, Shaw, Peter, Baretta, Dilmar, Shveenkova, Yulia B., Slade, Eleanor M., Stebaeva, Sophya K., Sterzynska, Maria, Sun, Xin, Susanti, Winda I., Taskaeva, Anastasia A., Tay, Li Si, Thakur, Madhav P., Treasure, Anne M., Barnes, Andrew D., Tsiafouli, Maria A., Twala, Mthokozisi N., Uvarov, Alexei V., Vernier, Lisa A., Widenfalk, Lina A., Widyastuti, Rahayu, Winck, Bruna, Winkler, Daniel E., Wu, Donghui, Xie, Zhijing, Bellini, Bruno C., Yin, Rui, Zampaulo, Robson A., Zeppelini, Douglas, Zhang, Bing, Zoughailech, Abdelmalek, Ashford, Oliver, Klauberg-Filho, Osmar, Scheu, Stefan, Bendjaballah, Mohamed, Berg, Matty P., Bernava, Verónica, Bokhorst, Stef, Bokova, Anna I., Bolger, Thomas, Bouchard, Mathieu, Brito, Roniere A., Buchori, Damayanti, Castaño-Meneses, Gabriela, Chauvat, Matthieu, Chomel, Mathilde, Chow, Yasuko, Chown, Steven L., Classen, Aimme T., Cortet, Jérôme, Čuchta, Peter, Pedrosa, Ana M. de la, de Lima, Estevam C. A., Deharveng, Louis, Doblas-Miranda, E., Drescher. Jochen, Eisenhauer, Nico, Ellers, J., Ferlian, Olga, Ferreira, Susana S. D., Ferreira, Alisa S., Fiera, Cristina, Filser, Juliane, Franken, Oscar, Fujii, S., Gagnon Koudji, Essivi, Gao, Meixiang, Gendreau-Berthiaume, Benoit, Gers. Charles, Greve, Michelle, Hamra-Kroua, Salah, Tanya Handa, Ira, Hasegawa, Motohiro, Heiniger, Charlène, Hishi, Takuo, Holmstrup, Martin, Homet, Pablo, Høye, Toke T., Ivask, Mari, Jacques, Bob, Janion-Scheepers, C., and Jochum, Malte

Abstract

Springtails (Collembola) inhabit soils from the Arctic to the Antarctic and comprise an estimated ~32% of all terrestrial arthropods on Earth. Here, we present a global, spatially-explicit database on springtail communities that includes 249,912 occurrences from 44,999 samples and 2,990 sites. These data are mainly raw sample-level records at the species level collected predominantly from private archives of the authors that were quality-controlled and taxonomically-standardised. Despite covering all continents, most of the sample-level data come from the European continent (82.5% of all samples) and represent four habitats: woodlands (57.4%), grasslands (14.0%), agrosystems (13.7%) and scrublands (9.0%). We included sampling by soil layers, and across seasons and years, representing temporal and spatial within-site variation in springtail communities. We also provided data use and sharing guidelines and R code to facilitate the use of the database by other researchers. This data paper describes a static version of the database at the publication date, but the database will be further expanded to include underrepresented regions and linked with trait data.

Published
2024

8. Revisiting nutrient cycling by litterfall—Insights from 15 years of litter manipulation in old-growth lowland tropical forest

Author

Sayer, Emma J., primary, Rodtassana, Chadtip, additional, Sheldrake, Merlin, additional, Bréchet, Laëtitia M., additional, Ashford, Oliver S., additional, Lopez-Sangil, Luis, additional, Kerdraon-Byrne, Deirdre, additional, Castro, Biancolini, additional, Turner, Benjamin L., additional, Wright, S. Joseph, additional, and Tanner, Edmund V.J., additional

Published
2020
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10. Collaborative research: Quantifying the biological, chemical, and physical linkages between chemosynthetic communities and the surrounding deep sea

Author

Ashford, Oliver

Abstract

The deep ocean supplies food, energy, novel drugs and materials, and plays essential roles in the global cycling of carbon, the nutrient replenishment for shallow waters, and the maintenance of biodiversity. Despite the crucial contribution of the deep sea to the larger functioning of global marine ecosystems, there is only a cursory understanding of this vast region and the connectivity among its communities and the rest of the oceans. Cold seeps, active areas of the seafloor where methane and other chemicals are released, are key features along the continental margins worldwide. To characterize how methane seep communities interact with the surrounding ecosystems and vice versa, the research team will study the sphere of influence around methane seeps off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, a region of the ocean with extremely active methane release and low oxygen levels. This project will map the structure and chemistry surrounding these habitats using a novel 3-dimensional framework, combining biological surveys and transplant experiments along the seafloor with vertical characterizations of the water column. This will include measurements of methane flux into the water column and changes in the overlying carbonate chemistry and oxygen levels that are critical to understanding the effects of warming, oxygen loss and ocean acidification on marine communities. Together, these studies will help evaluate the size of the seep sphere of influence, and also demonstrate the role of these seeps within the deep sea and the greater, global, marine ecosystem. The researchers will share this information with a group of teachers during a series of workshops in the San Diego area, at an interactive exhibit at the Birch Aquarium, and through the work of an artist, Lily Simonson, who will participate in the cruises and share her impressions of these environments in a traveling exhibit of her work. Chemosynthetic ecosystems are inextricably linked to the broader world-ocean biome and global biogeochemical cycles in ways that scientists are just beginning to understand. This research will identify the form, extent, and nature of the physical, chemical, and biological linkages between methane seeps and the surrounding deep-sea ecosystem. The research builds critical understanding of the structural and functional processes that underpin the ecosystem services provided by chemosynthetic ecosystems. This study will be conducted on the Pacific continental margin of Costa Rica where methane fates and dynamics play a significant role in the regional oceanographic setting. The researchers will use quantitative sampling and manipulative studies within a 3-dimensional oceanographic framework to address the following questions: (1) What are the shapes of the diversity and density functions for organisms of different size classes and trophic position over the transition from the seep habitat through the ecotone to the background deep sea? (2) How do depth, dissolved oxygen concentrations, pH and carbonate ion availability, relative rates of fluid flux, and substrate (biogenic, authigenic carbonate, sediments) alter these linkages and interactions with the surrounding deep sea. Evidence for distinct transitional communities and biotic patterns in density and alpha and beta diversity will be quantified and placed in a global biogeographic context. All of these investigations will occur across biological size spectra: for microorganisms (archaea, bacteria, microeukaryotes), the macrofauna, and the megafauna that form biogenic habitats. Research results will be interpreted in the context of potential effects of global ocean change in the equatorial Pacific to determine how the linkages with the surrounding deep sea will be altered as anthropogenic impacts proceed in the future. The researchers will communicate their results in three distinct ways. First, the team will collaborate with the Center for Research on Educational Equity, Assessment and Teaching Excellence (CREATE) to help middle and high school teachers develop tools and strategies for teaching the science practices of the national Next Generation Science Standards. The principal investigators will work with science communication specialists at Birch Aquarium at Scripps to showcase their research cruise in the new Expedition! exhibit. This exhibit will introduce the public to the planning, preparation, thrill of discovery, and process of sample analysis associated with deep-sea scientific cruises and research, while training graduate students in science communication. Finally, artist Lily Simonson will paint the science of methane seeps and their transition to background systems at sea (and on land), engage with K-12 students through social media and in-class presentations and exhibits.

Published
2022
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12. Localised climate change defines ant communities in human‐modified tropical landscapes

Author

Boyle, Michael J. W., Bishop, Tom R., Luke, Sarah H., Van Breugel, Michiel, Evans, Theodore A., Pfeifer, Marion, Fayle, Tom M., Hardwick, Stephen R., Lane‐Shaw, Rachel Isolde, Yusah, Kalsum M., Ashford, Imogen C. R., Ashford, Oliver S., Garnett, Emma, Turner, Edgar C., Wilkinson, Clare L., Chung, Arthur Y. C., Ewers, Robert M., Boyle, Michael J. W. [0000-0002-9912-5182], Bishop, Tom R. [0000-0001-7061-556X], Fayle, Tom M. [0000-0002-1667-1189], Wilkinson, Clare L. [0000-0002-0022-2522], and Apollo - University of Cambridge Repository

Subjects
RESEARCH ARTICLE, tropical forests, climate change, fragmentation, land‐use change, COMMUNITY ECOLOGY, insects, oil palm, logging, microclimate
Abstract

Funder: Sime Darby Foundation, Funder: Sir Philip Reckitt Educational Trust, Funder: Czech Science Foundation; Id: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001824, Logging and habitat conversion create hotter microclimates in tropical forest landscapes, representing a powerful form of localised anthropogenic climate change. It is widely believed that these emergent conditions are responsible for driving changes in communities of organisms found in modified tropical forests, although the empirical evidence base for this is lacking. Here we investigated how interactions between the physiological traits of genera and the environmental temperatures they experience lead to functional and compositional changes in communities of ants, a key organism in tropical forest ecosystems. We found that the abundance and activity of ant genera along a gradient of forest disturbance in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, was defined by an interaction between their thermal tolerance (CTmax) and environmental temperature. In more disturbed, warmer habitats, genera with high CTmax had increased relative abundance and functional activity, and those with low CTmax had decreased relative abundance and functional activity. This interaction determined abundance changes between primary and logged forest that differed in daily maximum temperature by a modest 1.1°C, and strengthened as the change in microclimate increased with disturbance. Between habitats that differed by 5.6°C (primary forest to oil palm) and 4.5°C (logged forest to oil palm), a 1°C difference in CTmax among genera led to a 23% and 16% change in relative abundance, and a 22% and 17% difference in functional activity. CTmax was negatively correlated with body size and trophic position, with ants becoming significantly smaller and less predatory as microclimate temperatures increased. Our results provide evidence to support the widely held, but never directly tested, assumption that physiological tolerances underpin the influence of disturbance‐induced microclimate change on the abundance and function of invertebrates in tropical landscapes. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.

Published
2021

13. Supporting methods, figures and tables from Relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning proxies strengthen when approaching chemosynthetic deep-sea methane seeps

Author

Ashford, Oliver S., Guan, Shuzhe, Capone, Dante, Rigney, Katherine, Rowley, Katelynn, Cordes, Erik E., Cortés, Jorge, Rouse, Greg W., Mendoza, Guillermo F., Sweetman, Andrew K., and Levin, Lisa A.

Abstract

Full methodological details, and three figures and six tables supporting the methodology and results of the manuscript

Published
2021
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14. Functional trait references from Relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning proxies strengthen when approaching chemosynthetic deep-sea methane seeps

Author

Ashford, Oliver S., Guan, Shuzhe, Capone, Dante, Rigney, Katherine, Rowley, Katelynn, Cordes, Erik E., Cortés, Jorge, Rouse, Greg W., Mendoza, Guillermo F., Sweetman, Andrew K., and Levin, Lisa A.

Abstract

Full citations for all literature used in scoring functional attributes of taxa investigated

Published
2021
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15. Macrofaunal diversity and abundance characteristics of sediment push cores collected by HOV Alvin during R/V Atlantis cruise AT37-13 and AT42-03 in the Pacific margin of Costa Rica in 2017 and 2018

Author

Levin, Lisa A., Rouse, Gregory, Ashford, Oliver S., Levin, Lisa A., Rouse, Gregory, and Ashford, Oliver S.

Abstract

Dataset: Push Core Faunal & Environmental Characteristics, Macrofaunal diversity and abundance characteristics of sediment push cores collected by HOV Alvin during R/V Atlantis cruise AT37-13 and AT42-03 in the Pacific margin of Costa Rica from May to June 2017, and October to November 2018 respectively. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the full dataset description in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: https://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/842061, NSF Division of Ocean Sciences (NSF OCE) OCE-1634172

Published
2021

16. A chemosynthetic ecotone—“chemotone”—in the sediments surrounding deep‐sea methane seeps

Author

Ashford, Oliver S., primary, Guan, Shuzhe, additional, Capone, Dante, additional, Rigney, Katherine, additional, Rowley, Katelynn, additional, Orphan, Victoria, additional, Mullin, Sean W., additional, Dawson, Kat S., additional, Cortés, Jorge, additional, Rouse, Greg W., additional, Mendoza, Guillermo F., additional, Lee, Raymond W., additional, Cordes, Erik E., additional, and Levin, Lisa A., additional

Published
2021
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17. Climate change considerations are fundamental to management of deep‐sea resource extraction

Author

Levin, Lisa A., Wei, Chih‐Lin, Dunn, Daniel C., Amon, Diva J., Ashford, Oliver S., Cheung, William W. L., Colaço, Ana, Dominguez‐Carrió, Carlos, Escobar, Elva G., Harden‐Davies, Harriet R., Drazen, Jeffrey C., Ismail, Khaira, Jones, Daniel O. B., Johnson, David E., Le, Jennifer T., Lejzerowicz, Franck, Mitarai, Satoshi, Morato, Telmo, Mulsow, Sandor, Snelgrove, Paul V. R., Sweetman, Andrew K., Yasuhara, Moriaki, Levin, Lisa A., Wei, Chih‐Lin, Dunn, Daniel C., Amon, Diva J., Ashford, Oliver S., Cheung, William W. L., Colaço, Ana, Dominguez‐Carrió, Carlos, Escobar, Elva G., Harden‐Davies, Harriet R., Drazen, Jeffrey C., Ismail, Khaira, Jones, Daniel O. B., Johnson, David E., Le, Jennifer T., Lejzerowicz, Franck, Mitarai, Satoshi, Morato, Telmo, Mulsow, Sandor, Snelgrove, Paul V. R., Sweetman, Andrew K., and Yasuhara, Moriaki

Abstract

Climate change manifestation in the ocean, through warming, oxygen loss, increasing acidification, and changing particulate organic carbon flux (one metric of altered food supply), is projected to affect most deep‐ocean ecosystems concomitantly with increasing direct human disturbance. Climate drivers will alter deep‐sea biodiversity and associated ecosystem services, and may interact with disturbance from resource extraction activities or even climate geoengineering. We suggest that to ensure the effective management of increasing use of the deep ocean (e.g., for bottom fishing, oil and gas extraction, and deep‐seabed mining), environmental management and developing regulations must consider climate change. Strategic planning, impact assessment and monitoring, spatial management, application of the precautionary approach, and full‐cost accounting of extraction activities should embrace climate consciousness. Coupled climate and biological modeling approaches applied in the water and on the seafloor can help accomplish this goal. For example, Earth‐System Model projections of climate‐change parameters at the seafloor reveal heterogeneity in projected climate hazard and time of emergence (beyond natural variability) in regions targeted for deep‐seabed mining. Models that combine climate‐induced changes in ocean circulation with particle tracking predict altered transport of early life stages (larvae) under climate change. Habitat suitability models can help assess the consequences of altered larval dispersal, predict climate refugia, and identify vulnerable regions for multiple species under climate change. Engaging the deep observing community can support the necessary data provisioning to mainstream climate into the development of environmental management plans. To illustrate this approach, we focus on deep‐seabed mining and the International Seabed Authority, whose mandates include regulation of all mineral‐related activities in international waters and protecting

Published
2020

18. A new Southern Ocean species in the remarkable and rare amphipod family Podosiridae (Crustacea: Amphipoda) questions existing systematic hypotheses.

Author

Ashford, Oliver S., Horton, Tammy, Roterman, Christopher N., Thurston, Michael, Griffiths, Huw, Brandt, Angelika, Ashford, Oliver S., Horton, Tammy, Roterman, Christopher N., Thurston, Michael, Griffiths, Huw, and Brandt, Angelika

Abstract

The amphipod family Podosiridae is unusual in that it combines morphological elements of the disparate families Podoceridae and Eusiridae. Here, we describe a new species in the family from specimens collected from the Southern Ocean in the vicinity of the South Orkney Islands and South Shetland Islands. We present mitochondrial (COI and 16S) and nuclear (18S) nucleic acid sequences for this and a congeneric species and use these to investigate the phylogenetic placement of Podosiridae within the Amphipoda. Our results do not provide evidence for a close relationship between Podosiridae and Podoceridae or Eusiridae, suggesting that the superficial similarity between these families is the result of morphological convergence. Instead, it is likely that Podosiridae are more closely related to families within Amphilochidira, such as Stenothoidae. Definitive placement of Podosiridae in the Amphipoda awaits further specimen collection, additional nucleotide data (including sequences from the Hyperiopsidae and the Vitjazianidae) and a more directed analysis of relationships within this portion of the amphipod phylogeny.

Published
2020

19. Climate change considerations are fundamental to management of deep‐sea resource extraction

Author

Levin, Lisa, WEI, CHIH-LIN, Dunn, Daniel, Amon, Diva, Ashford, Oliver, Cheung, William, Colaco, Ana, Dominguez-Carrió, Carlos, Escobar Briones, Elva, Harden‐Davies, HR, Drazen, Jeffrey, Ismail, Khaira, Jones, Daniel, Johnson, DE, Le, Jennifer, Lejzerowicz, Franck, Mitarai, Satoshi, Morato, Telmo, Mulsow, S, Snelgrove, Paul, Sweetman, AK, Yasuhara, M, Levin, Lisa, WEI, CHIH-LIN, Dunn, Daniel, Amon, Diva, Ashford, Oliver, Cheung, William, Colaco, Ana, Dominguez-Carrió, Carlos, Escobar Briones, Elva, Harden‐Davies, HR, Drazen, Jeffrey, Ismail, Khaira, Jones, Daniel, Johnson, DE, Le, Jennifer, Lejzerowicz, Franck, Mitarai, Satoshi, Morato, Telmo, Mulsow, S, Snelgrove, Paul, Sweetman, AK, and Yasuhara, M

Abstract

Climate change manifestation in the ocean, through warming, oxygen loss, increasing acidification, and changing particulate organic carbon flux (one metric of altered food supply), is projected to affect most deep‐ocean ecosystems concomitantly with increasing direct human disturbance. Climate drivers will alter deep‐sea biodiversity and associated ecosystem services, and may interact with disturbance from resource extraction activities or even climate geoengineering. We suggest that to ensure the effective management of increasing use of the deep ocean (e.g., for bottom fishing, oil and gas extraction, and deep‐seabed mining), environmental management and developing regulations must consider climate change. Strategic planning, impact assessment and monitoring, spatial management, application of the precautionary approach, and full‐cost accounting of extraction activities should embrace climate consciousness. Coupled climate and biological modeling approaches applied in the water and on the seafloor can help accomplish this goal. For example, Earth‐System Model projections of climate‐change parameters at the seafloor reveal heterogeneity in projected climate hazard and time of emergence (beyond natural variability) in regions targeted for deep‐seabed mining. Models that combine climate‐induced changes in ocean circulation with particle tracking predict altered transport of early life stages (larvae) under climate change. Habitat suitability models can help assess the consequences of altered larval dispersal, predict climate refugia, and identify vulnerable regions for multiple species under climate change. Engaging the deep observing community can support the necessary data provisioning to mainstream climate into the development of environmental management plans. To illustrate this approach, we focus on deep‐seabed mining and the International Seabed Authority, whose mandates include regulation of all mineral‐related activities in international waters and protecting

Published
2020

20. Climate change considerations are fundamental to management of deep-sea resource extraction.

Author

Wei, Chih-Lin, Wei, Chih-Lin, Dunn, Daniel, Amon, Diva, Ashford, Oliver, Cheung, William, Colaço, Ana, Dominguez-Carrió, Carlos, Escobar, Elva, Harden-Davies, Harriet, Drazen, Jeffrey, Ismail, Khaira, Jones, Daniel, Johnson, David, Le, Jennifer, Lejzerowicz, Franck, Mitarai, Satoshi, Morato, Telmo, Mulsow, Sandor, Snelgrove, Paul, Sweetman, Andrew, Yasuhara, Moriaki, Levin, Lisa, Wei, Chih-Lin, Wei, Chih-Lin, Dunn, Daniel, Amon, Diva, Ashford, Oliver, Cheung, William, Colaço, Ana, Dominguez-Carrió, Carlos, Escobar, Elva, Harden-Davies, Harriet, Drazen, Jeffrey, Ismail, Khaira, Jones, Daniel, Johnson, David, Le, Jennifer, Lejzerowicz, Franck, Mitarai, Satoshi, Morato, Telmo, Mulsow, Sandor, Snelgrove, Paul, Sweetman, Andrew, Yasuhara, Moriaki, and Levin, Lisa

Abstract

Climate change manifestation in the ocean, through warming, oxygen loss, increasing acidification, and changing particulate organic carbon flux (one metric of altered food supply), is projected to affect most deep-ocean ecosystems concomitantly with increasing direct human disturbance. Climate drivers will alter deep-sea biodiversity and associated ecosystem services, and may interact with disturbance from resource extraction activities or even climate geoengineering. We suggest that to ensure the effective management of increasing use of the deep ocean (e.g., for bottom fishing, oil and gas extraction, and deep-seabed mining), environmental management and developing regulations must consider climate change. Strategic planning, impact assessment and monitoring, spatial management, application of the precautionary approach, and full-cost accounting of extraction activities should embrace climate consciousness. Coupled climate and biological modeling approaches applied in the water and on the seafloor can help accomplish this goal. For example, Earth-System Model projections of climate-change parameters at the seafloor reveal heterogeneity in projected climate hazard and time of emergence (beyond natural variability) in regions targeted for deep-seabed mining. Models that combine climate-induced changes in ocean circulation with particle tracking predict altered transport of early life stages (larvae) under climate change. Habitat suitability models can help assess the consequences of altered larval dispersal, predict climate refugia, and identify vulnerable regions for multiple species under climate change. Engaging the deep observing community can support the necessary data provisioning to mainstream climate into the development of environmental management plans. To illustrate this approach, we focus on deep-seabed mining and the International Seabed Authority, whose mandates include regulation of all mineral-related activities in international waters and protecting

Published
2020

21. Localised climate change defines ant communities in human‐modified tropical landscapes

Author

Boyle, Michael J. W., primary, Bishop, Tom R., additional, Luke, Sarah H., additional, Breugel, Michiel, additional, Evans, Theodore A., additional, Pfeifer, Marion, additional, Fayle, Tom M., additional, Hardwick, Stephen R., additional, Lane‐Shaw, Rachel Isolde, additional, Yusah, Kalsum M., additional, Ashford, Imogen C. R., additional, Ashford, Oliver S., additional, Garnett, Emma, additional, Turner, Edgar C., additional, Wilkinson, Clare L., additional, Chung, Arthur Y. C., additional, and Ewers, Robert M., additional

Published
2021
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23. Investigating the environmental drivers of deep‐seafloor biodiversity: A case study of peracarid crustacean assemblages in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean

Author

Ashford, Oliver S., Kenny, Andrew J., Barrio Froján, Christopher R. S., Horton, Tammy, Rogers, Alex D., Ashford, Oliver S., Kenny, Andrew J., Barrio Froján, Christopher R. S., Horton, Tammy, and Rogers, Alex D.

Abstract

The deep‐sea benthos covers over 90% of seafloor area and hosts a great diversity of species which contribute toward essential ecosystem services. Evidence suggests that deep‐seafloor assemblages are structured predominantly by their physical environment, yet knowledge of assemblage/environment relationships is limited. Here, we utilized a very large dataset of Northwest Atlantic Ocean continental slope peracarid crustacean assemblages as a case study to investigate the environmental drivers of deep‐seafloor macrofaunal biodiversity. We investigated biodiversity from a phylogenetic, functional, and taxonomic perspective, and found that a wide variety of environmental drivers, including food availability, physical disturbance (bottom trawling), current speed, sediment characteristics, topographic heterogeneity, and temperature (in order of relative importance), significantly influenced peracarid biodiversity. We also found deep‐water peracarid assemblages to vary seasonally and interannually. Contrary to prevailing theory on the drivers of deep‐seafloor diversity, we found high topographic heterogeneity (at the hundreds to thousands of meter scale) to negatively influence assemblage diversity, while broadscale sediment characteristics (i.e., percent sand content) were found to influence assemblages more than sediment particle‐size diversity. However, our results support other paradigms of deep‐seafloor biodiversity, including that assemblages may vary inter‐ and intra‐annually, and how assemblages respond to changes in current speed. We found that bottom trawling negatively affects the evenness and diversity of deep‐sea soft‐sediment peracarid assemblages, but that predicted changes in ocean temperature as a result of climate change may not strongly influence continental slope biodiversity over human timescales, although it may alter deep‐sea community biomass. Finally, we emphasize the value of analyzing multiple metrics of biodiversity and call for researchers to c

Published
2019

24. On the influence of vulnerable marine ecosystem habitats on Peracarid Crustacean Assemblages in the Northwest Atlantic fisheries organisation regulatory area

Author

Ashford, Oliver S., Kenny, Andrew J., Barrio Froján, Christopher R. S., Downie, Anna-Leena, Horton, Tammy, Rogers, Alex D., Ashford, Oliver S., Kenny, Andrew J., Barrio Froján, Christopher R. S., Downie, Anna-Leena, Horton, Tammy, and Rogers, Alex D.

Abstract

Vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) are considered hotspots of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in the deep sea, but are also characterised by a high vulnerability to disturbance and a low recovery potential. Since 2006, a series of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolutions have been developed, attempting to ensure the protection of VMEs in international waters. In the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (NAFO) Regulatory Area, large areas of seabed have been closed to bottom-contact fishing to protect VMEs. However, knowledge of the influence of VME-indicator taxa on macrofaunal assemblages, and the appropriateness of current fishery closures for protecting macrofaunal biodiversity in this area is limited. Here we investigate relationships between the prevalence of VME-indicator taxa [poriferans (sponges), gorgonian corals, and pennatulaceans (sea pens)] and an extensive suite of peracarid crustacean biodiversity metrics in the NAFO Regulatory Area. We also examine whether the current NAFO VME closures protect areas of significantly elevated peracarid diversity. Of the VME-indicator taxa analysed, poriferans were found to have by far the greatest influence over peracarid assemblages. Assemblage structure was altered, and peracarid abundance, biomass, richness, diversity, and variability were enhanced in areas of elevated poriferan biomass, whilst assemblage evenness was slightly depressed in these areas. These findings reaffirm the perception of poriferans as crucial components of VMEs. In contrast, gorgonian coral density had little influence over the faunal assemblages investigated, perhaps reflecting their relatively low prevalence in the study area. Similarly, pennatulaceans were found to influence peracarid assemblages only weakly. This too may reflect a moderately low density of Pennatulacea in the study area. Our results highlight that the application of taxon distribution model outputs to ecological investigations and management decisio

Published
2019

28. A new Southern Ocean species in the remarkable and rare amphipod family Podosiridae (Crustacea: Amphipoda) questions existing systematic hypotheses.

Author

Ashford, Oliver S, Horton, Tammy, Roterman, Christopher N, Thurston, Michael H, Griffiths, Huw J, and Brandt, Angelika

Subjects
*AMPHIPODA, *CRUSTACEA, *ENDANGERED species, *OCEAN, *NUCLEIC acids
Abstract

The amphipod family Podosiridae is unusual in that it combines morphological elements of the disparate families Podoceridae and Eusiridae. Here, we describe a new species in the family from specimens collected from the Southern Ocean in the vicinity of the South Orkney Islands and South Shetland Islands. We present mitochondrial (COI and 16S) and nuclear (18S) nucleic acid sequences for this and a congeneric species and use these to investigate the phylogenetic placement of Podosiridae within the Amphipoda. Our results do not provide evidence for a close relationship between Podosiridae and Podoceridae or Eusiridae, suggesting that the superficial similarity between these families is the result of morphological convergence. Instead, it is likely that Podosiridae are more closely related to families within Amphilochidira, such as Stenothoidae. Definitive placement of Podosiridae in the Amphipoda awaits further specimen collection, additional nucleotide data (including sequences from the Hyperiopsidae and the Vitjazianidae) and a more directed analysis of relationships within this portion of the amphipod phylogeny. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Published
2020
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29. Deep-Sea Mining Needs Robust Regulations.

Author

Ashford, Oliver S. and Barbanell, Melissa

Subjects
OCEAN mining, BACK-arc basins, MINERAL collecting, ENVIRONMENTAL risk, RENEWABLE energy sources
Abstract

The article discusses the increasing interest in deep-sea mining due to the global demand for minerals for renewable energy technologies and other industries. However, there are concerns about the environmental risks associated with deep-sea mining, and many are calling for a pause to gather more scientific data. The extraction of mineral resources in national waters falls under the authority of individual governments, and there is a diversity of opinions on deep-sea mining among nation-states. Deep-sea mining could have socioeconomic impacts and pose risks to workers and local communities. The article emphasizes the need for robust regulations and a precautionary approach to ensure the protection of the deep sea and its ecosystems. [Extracted from the article]

Published
2024

31. Phylogenetic and functional evidence suggests that deep-ocean ecosystems are highly sensitive to environmental change and direct human disturbance.

Author

Bonsall, Michael B., Rogers, Alex D., Ashford, Oliver S., Kenny, Andrew J., Barrio Froján, Christopher R. S., Horton, Tammy, Brandt, Angelika, Bird, Graham J., and Gerken, Sarah

Subjects
COMPETITION (Biology), PHYLOGENETIC models, BIODIVERSITY, CLIMATE change, ENVIRONMENTAL sciences
Abstract

An understanding of the balance of interspecific competition and the physical environment in structuring organismal communities is crucial because those communities structured primarily by their physical environment typically exhibit greater sensitivity to environmental change than those structured predominantly by competitive interactions. Here, using detailed phylogenetic and functional information, we investigate this question in macrofaunal assemblages from Northwest Atlantic Ocean continental slopes, a high seas region projected to experience substantial environmental change through the current century. We demonstrate assemblages to be both phylogenetically and functionally under-dispersed, and thus conclude that the physical environment, not competition, may dominate in structuring deep-ocean communities. Further, we find temperature and bottom trawling intensity to be among the environmental factors significantly related to assemblage diversity. These results hint that deep-ocean communities are highly sensitive to their physical environment and vulnerable to environmental perturbation, including by direct disturbance through fishing, and indirectly through the changes brought about by climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Published
2018
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32. Litter manipulation and the soil arthropod community in a lowland tropical rainforest

Author

Ashford, Oliver S., Foster, William A., Turner, Benjamin L., Sayer, Emma, Sutcliffe, Laura, Tanner, Edmund V.J., Ashford, Oliver S., Foster, William A., Turner, Benjamin L., Sayer, Emma, Sutcliffe, Laura, and Tanner, Edmund V.J.

Abstract

Tropical soil arthropod communities are highly diverse and provide a number of important ecosystem services, including the maintenance of soil structure, regulation of hydrological processes, nutrient cycling and decomposition. Experiments in temperate regions suggest that litter dynamics are important in determining the abundance, richness and community composition of soil fauna, but there is little information for lowland tropical forests. We used a long-term litter manipulation experiment (removing, doubling and control) in a neotropical forest to investigate the consequences of changing litter dynamics on the soil arthropod community. The abundance and biomass of arthropods were reduced significantly by the removal of litter, but not affected by litter addition. Litter manipulation had no effect on simple measures of taxonomic richness or diversity, but multivariate ordination techniques revealed a significant shift in arthropod community composition with the removal, but not addition, of litter. This suggests the overall importance of top-down controls on the arthropod community in this ecosystem, with bottom-up influences only important following the removal of large quantities of litter. Of the parameters measured, the faunal composition of experimental plots was best predicted by litter depth and the concentrations of total carbon and readily-exchangeable phosphorus (in order of importance), highlighting the influential role of soil chemical properties, in addition to the physical properties of litter, in shaping soil arthropod communities. Comparison with the results of a previous study of litter-dwelling fauna in the same litter manipulation experiment suggested that the soil and litter arthropod communities are influenced by different parameters: total carbon and litter depth for the soil community, but sodium and calcium for the litter community, although phosphorus was important in both environments. We conclude that arthropod community composition is c

Published
2013

39. Lineage-specific molecular probing reveals novel diversity and ecological partitioning of haplosporidians.

Author

Hartikainen, Hanna, Ashford, Oliver S, Berney, Cédric, Okamura, Beth, Feist, Stephen W, Baker-Austin, Craig, Stentiford, Grant D, and Bass, David

Subjects
*PROTISTA, *MARINE animal physiology, *MOLLUSK diseases, *ANIMAL diversity, *ANIMAL variation, *MOLECULAR probes, *POLYMERASE chain reaction
Abstract

Haplosporidians are rhizarian parasites of mostly marine invertebrates. They include the causative agents of diseases of commercially important molluscs, including MSX disease in oysters. Despite their importance for food security, their diversity and distributions are poorly known. We used a combination of group-specific PCR primers to probe environmental DNA samples from planktonic and benthic environments in Europe, South Africa and Panama. This revealed several highly distinct novel clades, novel lineages within known clades and seasonal (spring vs autumn) and habitat-related (brackish vs littoral) variation in assemblage composition. High frequencies of haplosporidian lineages in the water column provide the first evidence for life cycles involving planktonic hosts, host-free stages or both. The general absence of haplosporidian lineages from all large online sequence data sets emphasises the importance of lineage-specific approaches for studying these highly divergent and diverse lineages. Combined with host-based field surveys, environmental sampling for pathogens will enhance future detection of known and novel pathogens and the assessment of disease risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Published
2014
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42. Bird Life of Mountain and Upland

Author

Ashford, Oliver M.

Subjects
Bird Life of Mountain and Upland (Book) -- Book reviews, Books -- Book reviews, Literature/writing
Published
1992

44. Guide to the Birds of Madagascar

Author

Ashford, Oliver M.

Subjects
Guide to the Birds of Madagascar (Book) -- Book reviews, Books -- Book reviews, Literature/writing
Published
1991

49. Supplementary Materials: Additional files from Phylogenetic and functional evidence suggests that deep-ocean ecosystems are highly sensitive to environmental change and direct human disturbance

Author

Ashford, Oliver S., Kenny, Andrew J., Froján, Christopher R. S. Barrio, Bonsall, Michael B., Horton, Tammy, Brandt, Angelika, Bird, Graham J., Gerken, Sarah, and Rogers, Alex D.

Subjects
13. Climate action, 14. Life underwater, 15. Life on land
Abstract

An understanding of the balance of interspecific competition and the physical environment in structuring organismal communities is crucial because those communities structured primarily by their physical environment typically exhibit greater sensitivity to environmental change than those structured predominantly by competitive interactions. Here, using detailed phylogenetic and functional information, we investigate this question in macrofaunal assemblages from Northwest Atlantic Ocean continental slopes, a high seas region projected to experience substantial environmental change through the current century. We demonstrate assemblages to be both phylogenetically and functionally under-dispersed and thus conclude that the physical environment, not competition, may dominate in structuring deep-ocean communities. Further, we find temperature and bottom trawling intensity to be amongst the environmental factors significantly related to assemblage diversity. These results hint that deep-ocean communities are highly sensitive to their physical environment and vulnerable to environmental perturbation, including by direct disturbance through fishing, and indirectly through the changes brought about by climate change.

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