WoRMS starring in season 3 of the LifeWatch ERIC podcast

The first of a new LifeWatch ERIC podcast series launched today, 20 July 2022, focuses on the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) and the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) database.

Taxonomy and beyond: ecological trait information in Aphia and WoRMS

In recent years, the WoRMS editors and Data Management Team have made collective efforts towards documenting the following species traits information in Aphia and WoRMS: environment (99,5% complete), functional group (76% complete), qualitative (45% complete) and quantitative body size (9% complete) (percentages are for accepted species in Aphia). The availability of these traits greatly enhances the usability and utility of WoRMS towards ecologists and the public at large.

Artificial reefs in the spotlight in the podcast series “A Window on Science”

LifeWatch ERIC developed the podcast series 'A Window on Science'. In this series, scientists are given extensive time to explain what their research entails in an understandable way. In season 2, they clarify how they use artificial reefs to study hidden species on hard-bottom communities.

Official launch of the World List of Actiniaria

Actiniaria – or sea anemones – are now accessible through their very own portal, linked to the World Register of Marine Species and containing a treasure of information rescued from the Hexacorallians of the World Database of the late Daphne Fautin.

ENVRI Community International Summer School is back in person!

LifeWatch ERIC is delighted to announce the 2022 edition of the ENVRI Community International Summer School. And this summer, they are back in person!

Scientists meet industry at the COST-ETN Annual meeting

The European Tracking Network (ETN) meets the manufacturers supplying acoustic telemetry equipment to discuss the way forward for compatibility in acoustic telemetry.

ZEEKERWETEN, the first citizen science festival at the coast

How to involve citizens in biodiversity research? And how can we show citizens the beauty and the importance of the diverse fauna and flora in the Belgian part of the North Sea and the coastal area? ZEEKERWETEN, the first science festival at the Belgian coast, lifts the participation of citizens in science to a higher level.

LifeWatch-WoRMS Nematoda Editor Workshop

In the week of 21-25 February 2022, ten Nematoda experts met online with the WoRMS Data Management team (DMT), to set priorities and clear goals for the extension on the integration of ecological and biogeographical information within Nemys.

The Southern Ocean Action Plan is launched

In 2017, the United Nations proclaimed a Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (hereafter referred to as the UN Ocean Decade) from 2021 until 2030 to support efforts to reverse the cycle of decline in ocean health. To achieve this ambitious goal, this initiative aims to gather ocean stakeholders worldwide behind a common framework that will ensure ocean science can fully support countries in creating improved conditions for sustainable development of the world’s oceans. The initiative strives to strengthen the international cooperation needed to develop the scientific research and innovative technologies that can connect ocean science with the needs of society at the global scale.

User tutorial videos available on WoRMS

Last year, the WoRMS Data Management Team (DMT) created instruction videos for the WoRMS editors, to assist them in their online editing activities. Now, the DMT is releasing a series of short tutorial videos specifically aimed at our users.