Integrated marine ecology
All living beings, including those underwater, maintain an intricate relationship with their environment and with the other living beings that surround them. Discovering this complex network is essential for us to move towards a sustainable society.
The Integrated Marine Ecology Group, also known as INMARE, is a multidisciplinary group focused mainly on addressing ecological studies of marine organisms using complementary approaches. The topics studied cover a wide spectrum from ecology, evolutionary biology, genomics or conservation, both basic and applied to the management of marine resources at an ecosystem level that guarantee the conservation of biodiversity. The group therefore presents a broad approach, from studies with specific species to fishing-oceanographic research campaigns, including experimentation in confinement conditions.
This approach by the INMARE group requires several basic elements for the development of the research of this group. On the one hand, the definition and description of ecosystems that involve marine resources, in terms of scale, extension, structure and functioning and, on the other, the evaluation of the state of marine ecosystems, defined in terms of environmental health or integrity and established as acceptable to society, as well as the evaluation of threats.
In addition, the conservation, protection and rehabilitation of marine ecosystems and the mitigation of impacts using adaptation strategies are required, as well as a study of biodiversity with an integrative approach.
INMARE focuses on generating the necessary knowledge to ensure the protection, conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity, including those resources that are subject to exploitation. This knowledge is aimed at developing the necessary tools for the proper implementation of a ecosystem approach in marine resource management. The group is currently working along 5 lines of work:
- Experimental studies of marine organisms in culture: biology, physiology, interactions with the microbiota and development of cultivation techniques; taxonomic characterization of harmful microalgae.
- Ecology of marine species (life history; trophic relationships; identification, delimitation and estimation of the abundance of populations and their spatiotemporal variability; distribution and use of habitat; population dynamics; microbial ecology).
- Ecology of marine ecosystems (structure, functioning, complexity, stability and biodiversity) and impacts of natural and anthropogenic stressors; ecosystem modeling.
- Conservation of marine biodiversity and the sustainable use of living marine resources.
- Study of patterns and processes that contribute to the origin of biodiversity and its distribution, from an integrative approach that ranges from ecology to genomics.
- CONECTEE -
<p>Conectividad Ecológica y el papel del Parque Nacional Islas Atlánticas de Galicia en la conservación de Elasmobranquios costeros</p>
Principal investigator:AlonsoFernándezAlexandreFunding body:Red de Parques Nacionales - MINISTERIO PARA LA TRANSICIÓN ECOLÓGICA Y EL RETO DEMOGRÁFICOFunding for IIM-CSIC:155137€Fromto - MOVE -
<p>Movescapes, connectivity hotspots and eco-evolutionary dynamics: protecting the
functional role of predatory coastal fishes</p>Principal investigator:AlonsoFernándezAlexandreFunding body:Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI - Biodiversa+). Proyectos de colaboración Internacional 2022-2. Programa Estatal para Afrontar las Prioridades de Nuestro Entorno. Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y de Innovación 2021-2023.Funding for IIM-CSIC:173700€Fromto - PCMCOR -
<p>Programa Ciencias Mariñas: Coordinación</p>
Principal investigator:SaboridoReyFranFunding body:El Programa de Ciencias Mariñas de Galicia es 1 de los 5 programas de Ciencias Marinas de los Planes Complementarios de I+D+I con las CCAA del Plan de Recuperación Transformación y Resilencia (NextGenerationEU).Funding for IIM-CSIC:206270€Fromto - TEMPLO -
<p>Programa Ciencias Mariñas: Telemetría Acústica Mariña en Plataformas de Observación de Galicia</p>
Principal investigator:AlonsoFernándezAlexandreFunding body:El Programa de Ciencias Mariñas de Galicia es 1 de los 5 programas de Ciencias Marinas de los Planes Complementarios de I+D+I con las CCAA del Plan de Recuperación Transformación y Resilencia (NextGenerationEU).Funding for IIM-CSIC:124357€Fromto - ECOGEN -
<p>Programa Ciencias Mariñas: Ferramentas xenómicas aplicadas a xestión pesqueIra</p>
Principal investigator:CasasCastañoLauraFunding body:El Programa de Ciencias Mariñas de Galicia es 1 de los 5 programas de Ciencias Marinas de los Planes Complementarios de I+D+I con las CCAA del Plan de Recuperación Transformación y Resilencia (NextGenerationEU).Funding for IIM-CSIC:277489€Fromto
- Planas, M. (2022) Ecological Traits and Trophic Plasticity in The Greater Pipefish Syngnathus acus in the NW Iberian Peninsula Biology DOI:10.3390/biology11050712
- Knutsen, J.A.; Kleiven, A.R.; Olsen, E.M.; Knutsen, H.; Espeland, S.H.; Sørdalen, T.K.; Thorbjørnsen, S.H.; Hutchings, J.A.; Fernández-Chacón, A.; Huserbråten, M.; Villegas-Ríos, D.; Halvorsen, K.T.; Nillos Kleiven, P.J.; Langeland, T.K.; Moland, E. (2022) Lobster reserves as a management tool in coastal waters: Two decades of experience in Norway Marine Policy DOI:10.1016/j.marpol.2021.104908
- Villegas-Ríos, D.; Jacoby, D.M.P.; Mourier, J. (2022) Social networks and the conservation of fish Communications Biology DOI:10.1038/s42003-022-03138-w
- Hernández-Urcera, J.; Carneiro, M.D.D.; Planas, M. (2022) Turnover Rates and Diet–Tissue Discrimination Factors of Nitrogen and Carbon Stable Isotopes in Seahorse Hippocampus reidi Juveniles Following a Laboratory Diet Shift Animals DOI:10.3390/ani12101232
- Bañón, R.; Roura, Á.; García-Fernández, C.; Alonso-Fernández, A.; de Carlos, A. (2022) Coastal habitat evidences and biological data of Alepisaurus ferox (Aulopiform; Alepisauridae) from northwestern Iberian Peninsula Marine Biodiversity DOI:10.1007/s12526-022-01261-9
- PhD - Mario Davi Dias Carneiro (11/02/2022) Influência do pH na produção do peixe-palhaço (Amphiprion percula) e do cavalo-marinho (Hippocampus reidi) em sistemas de recirculação com baixa salinidade Universidade Federal de Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN)
- PhD - Cristina García Fernández (21/12/2021) Ecology of recruitment in European hake: interaction between maternal effects, environment and fisheries Universidad de Vigo (UVigo)
- TFM - Abdelhakim Belaidi (30/09/2021) Análisis de la interacción entre los parámetros de la historia vital de S. mentella, medio ambiente y pesquerías en el área de Flemish Cap. UNIVERSIDAD DE ALICANTE
- PhD - Carlos Mesquita (03/08/2020) Development of methods to inform fisheries assessment and managementof a data-limited species, brown crab (Cancer pagurus) in Scotland University of Aberdeen
- TFM - Miguel Álvarez González (09/07/2020) Análisis de ADN ambiental (eDNA) y su aplicación para la monitorización de cetáceos en el Atlántico norte Universidade de Vigo (UVIGO)
- FishGenome -
<p>Improving Cost-Efficiency of Fisheries Research Surveys and Fish Stocks Assessments using Next-Generation Genetic Sequencing Methods</p>
Principal investigator:SaboridoReyFranFunding body:European CommisionFunding for IIM-CSIC:800000€Fromto
- Capabilities | Assessment of the survival of fisheries by-catch and fish spatial ecology using biotelemetry techniques
Use of acoustic tags and biotelemetry techniques to monitor fish behavior and assess the survival of fisheries by-catch.
- Capabilities | Pathogen incidence and risk assessment
Pathogen detection and identification in wild and farmed animals, as well as in seafood products. Evaluation of the relationship between pathogen incidence and various environmental and physiological aspects to provide risk assessments for target pathogens.
- Capabilities | Definition and description of marine ecosystemsFisheries Aquaculture Ecosystem Services & Governance Coastal & Environmental Protection Maritime Spatial Planning
The definition and description of ecosystems involving marine resources, in terms of scale, extent, structure, and functioning. This includes characterizing the spatial, structural, and functional aspects of marine-coastal ecosystems as basic units for environmental land-use planning.
- Capabilities | Assessment of marine ecosystems status
The evaluation of marine ecosystem status, defined in terms of environmental health or integrity and established as what is acceptable to society, as well as the assessment of threats. This involves using indicators of ecosystem extent and condition.
- Capabilities | Conservation, protection and rehabilitation of marine ecosystems
The conservation, protection, and rehabilitation of marine ecosystems and the mitigation of impacts using adaptation strategies. This includes identifying key considerations for the potential design and planning of biodiversity compensation measures and their scope in environmental impact assessments.
- Software | GOVOCITOS
Govocitos is a free image analysis software that allows for easy and accurate determination of reproductive parameters in fish based on histological images. Although designed to estimate fish fertility, its applications are expandable to other counting, measurement and classification problems (i.e. pollen count, oncology and cytology, etc.).
More information here.
- Industrial Secret | Industrial production protocol for seahorses (Hippocampus reidi)
Authors: Miquel Planas Oliver; Alexandre Chamorro Valverde
Description: Development of integrated culture procedures for the industrial production of seahorses of the species Hippocampus reidi.