The International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean Version 2 (IBCSO v2)

The Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica is a region that is key to a range of climatic and oceanographic processes with worldwide effects, and is characterised by high biological productivity and biodiversity. Since 2013, the International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean (IBCSO) has represented the most comprehensive compilation of bathymetry for the Southern Ocean south of 60°S. Recently, the IBCSO Project has combined its efforts with the Nippon Foundation – GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project supporting the goal of mapping the world’s oceans by 2030. New datasets initiated a second version of IBCSO (IBCSO v2). This version extends to 50°S (covering approximately 2.4 times the area of seafloor of the previous version) including the gateways of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and the Antarctic circumpolar frontal systems. Due to increased (multibeam) data coverage, IBCSO v2 significantly improves the overall representation of the Southern Ocean seafloor and resolves many submarine landforms in more detail. This makes IBCSO v2 the most authoritative seafloor map of the area south of 50°S

Connectivity and Genetic Structure in Coral Reef Ecosystems: Modeling and Analysis

This dissertation examines aspects of the relationship between connectivity and the development of genetic structure in subdivided coral reef populations using both simulation and algebraic methods. The first chapter develops an object-oriented, individual based method of simulating the dynamics of genes in subdivided populations. The model is then used to investigate how changes to different components of population structure (e.g., connectivity, birth rate, population size) influence genetic structure through the use of autocorrelation analysis. The autocorrelograms also demonstrate how relationships between populations change at different spatial and temporal scales. The second chapter uses discrete multivariate distributions to model the relationship between connectivity, selection and resource use in subdivided populations. The equations provide a stochastic basis for multiple-niche polymorphism through differential resource use, and the role of scale in changing selective weightings is also considered. The third chapter uses matrix equations to study the expected development of genetic structure among Caribbean coral reefs. The results show an expected break between eastern and western portions of the Caribbean, as well as additional nested structure within the Bahamas, the central Caribbean (Jamaica and the reefs of the Nicaraguan Rise) and the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef. The matrix equations provide an efficient means of modeling the development of genetic structure in subdivided populations through time. The fourth chapter uses matrix equations to examine the expected development of genetic structure among Southeast Asian coral reefs. Projecting genetic structure reveals an expected unidirectional connection from the South China Sea into the Coral Triangle region via the Sulu Sea. Larvae appear to be restricted from moving back into the South China Sea by a cyclonic gyre in the Sulu Sea. Additional structure is also evident, including distinct clusters within the Philippines, in the vicinity of the Makassar Strait, in the Flores Sea, and near Halmahera and the Banda Sea. The ability to evaluate the expected development of genetic structure over time in subdivided populations offers a number of potential benefits, including the ability to ascertain the expected direction of gene flow, to delineate natural regions of exchange through clustering, or to identify critical areas for conservation or for managing the spread of invasive material via elasticity analysis

An object-oriented, individual-based approach for simulating the dynamics of genes in subdivided populations

An object-oriented, individual-based simulation framework was developed for modeling the diffusion of genetic material in subdivided populations. Objects representing individual organisms were defined, each with a unique genotype composed of gene objects. The organisms mate and reproduce, and progeny disperse or recruit back to their native population through the use of a Movement interface. The object-oriented approach is also linked to analytical theory through the development of matrix-based equations. An\ud implementation of the model demonstrates how changes to basic population parameters affect spatial and temporal genetic structure. Scalar changes to the system affect the duration over which processes occur as well as the degree of variance, but appear to leave overall structural patterns unchanged. Object-oriented programming provides some unique advantages for modeling population genetic processes, including the use of abstraction and implementation, as well as the ability to accommodate complex, heterogeneous behavior

Conserving biodiversity and Indigenous bush tucker: practical application of the strategic foresight framework to invasive alien species management planning

Invasive alien species are a major driver of global biodiversity loss. Constrained conservation budgets demand that threat abatement strategies take into account the heterogeneity of areas in need of protection, such as significant ecological and cultural sites, as well as the competing values, preferences, and objectives of stakeholders. We used strategic foresight to assess the threat that invasive alien grasses pose to environmental and Indigenous cultural values on the floodplains of a comanaged, World Heritage-inscribed national park. We found strategic foresight to be a useful framework to set management priorities that simultaneously conserve biological and cultural diversity. However, it required the development and application of novel ecological and participatory tools and significant time, financial, and human resources. This was the first study to apply strategic foresight to weed management planning in a realistic, culturally complex setting and our work provides an exemplar for the application of the strategic foresight framework and our tools to other contexts

Data from: Connectivity of Caribbean coral populations: complementary insights from empirical and modelled gene flow

Understanding patterns of connectivity among populations of marine organisms is essential for the development of realistic, spatially explicit models of population dynamics. Two approaches, theoretical and empirical population genetic models, have been used to estimate levels of evolutionary connectivity among marine populations but rarely have their potentially-complementary insights been combined. Here, a spatially-realistic Lagrangian model of larval dispersal and a theoretical genetic model are integrated with the most extensive study of gene flow in a Caribbean marine organism. The 871 genets collected from 26 sites spread over the wider Caribbean sub-sampled 45.8% of the 1900 potential unique genets in the model. At a coarse scale, significant consensus between modelled estimates of genetic structure and empirical genetic data for populations of the reef-building coral Montastraea annularis is observed. However, modelled and empirical data differ in their estimates of connectivity among northern Mesoamerican reefs indicating that processes other than dispersal may dominate here. Further, the geographic location and porosity of the previously described east-west barrier to gene flow in the Caribbean is refined. A multi-prong approach, integrating genetic data and spatially-realistic models of larval dispersal and genetic projection, provides complementary insights into the processes underpinning population connectivity in marine invertebrates on evolutionary timescales

Montastraea annularis microsatellite data

Genotype data for 6 microsatellite loci for 871 samples of Montastraea annularis collected from 26 sites across the wider Caribbean are provided. Montastraea samples were collected in the field between 2004 and 2008. Sample ID, region and site name are supplied for each individual. Column headings are detailed in the ReadMe file

Montastraea annularis microsatellite data

Genotype data for 6 microsatellite loci for 871 samples of Montastraea annularis collected from 26 sites across the wider Caribbean are provided. Montastraea samples were collected in the field between 2004 and 2008. Sample ID, region and site name are supplied for each individual. Column headings are detailed in the ReadMe file

Population connectivity: recent advances and new perspectives

Connectivity is a vital component of metapopulation and landscape ecology, influencing fundamental processes such as population dynamics, evolution, and community responses to climate change. Here, we review ongoing developments in connectivity science, providing perspectives on recent advances in identifying, quantifying, modelling and analysing connectivity, and highlight new applications for conservation. We also address ongoing challenges for connectivity research, explore opportunities for addressing them and highlight potential linkages with other fields of research. Continued development of connectivity science will provide insights into key aspects of ecology and the evolution of species, and will also contribute significantly towards achieving more effective conservation outcomes

The International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean Version 2.

The Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica is a region that is key to a range of climatic and oceanographic processes with worldwide effects, and is characterised by high biological productivity and biodiversity. Since 2013, the International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean (IBCSO) has represented the most comprehensive compilation of bathymetry for the Southern Ocean south of 60°S. Recently, the IBCSO Project has combined its efforts with the Nippon Foundation - GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project supporting the goal of mapping the world's oceans by 2030. New datasets initiated a second version of IBCSO (IBCSO v2). This version extends to 50°S (covering approximately 2.4 times the area of seafloor of the previous version) including the gateways of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and the Antarctic circumpolar frontal systems. Due to increased (multibeam) data coverage, IBCSO v2 significantly improves the overall representation of the Southern Ocean seafloor and resolves many submarine landforms in more detail. This makes IBCSO v2 the most authoritative seafloor map of the area south of 50°S

The International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean Version 2 (IBCSO v2)

The International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean Version 2 (IBCSO v2) is a digital bathymetric model (DBM) for the area south of 50° S with special emphasis on the bathymetry of the Southern Ocean. IBCSO v2 has a resolution of 500 m × 500 m in a Polar Stereographic projection (EPSG: 9354). The total data coverage of the seafloor is 23.79% with a multibeam-only data coverage of 22.32%. The remaining 1.47% include singlebeam and other data. IBCSO v2 is the most authoritative seafloor map of the area south of 50°S. IBCSO is a regional mapping project of the General Bathymetric Chart of the Ocean (GEBCO) supported by the Nippon Foundation – GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project. GEBCO is a project under the auspices of the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) with the goal to produce the authoritative map of the world's oceans. The IBCSO Project is also an integral part of the Antarctic research community and an expert group of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). For further information about the IBCSO Project, please visit http://www.ibcso.org