Assessing the state of the oceans
WOA II

Assessing the state of the oceans

The second World Ocean Assessment – WOA II – is a global exercise by hundreds of marine scientists to evaluate trends and identify knowledge gaps in the world ocean. Two chapters of WOA II have made use of several components of the LifeWatch Species Information Backbone.

Observing plankton to understand ocean health
RV Stevin mesh

Observing plankton to understand ocean health

Increasing human activities are putting the ocean under stress, threatening the ecological health of marine ecosystems and the services they provide to society. Since plankton are sensitive to changes in environmental conditions and are short-lived, they can be used as early warning systems for the...

PETROBRAS: where industry and science touch
sea turtle

PETROBRAS: where industry and science touch

Environmental responsibility is a hot topic these days! For the Brazilian oil and gas magnate Petrobras, this means caring for the safety of their operations and undertaking actions to balance their activities and the welfare of their workforce and of the communities. By improving products and...

Clarion-Clipperton Zone Species Checklist launched!
Clarion-Clipperton Zone  Species Checklist launched!

Clarion-Clipperton Zone Species Checklist launched!

ISA and WoRMS release a species checklist for the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in celebration of the one-year anniversary of the Sustainable Seabed Knowledge Initiative.
The LifeWatch ERIC BEeS: abstract book, video recordings and more!
The LifeWatch ERIC BEeS: abstract book, video recordings and more!

The LifeWatch ERIC BEeS: abstract book, video recordings and more!

The LifeWatch ERIC family met again, for the first time in four years, at the "BEeS" Biodiversity & Ecosystem eScience Conference. It took place in Seville from 22 - 24 May, on the occasion of the International Day for Biological Diversity. Explore the abstract book, watch the video of the live-streamed round table, and download the presentations!
WoRMS Philanthropy grants 2022
WoRMS Philanthropy grants 2022

WoRMS Philanthropy grants 2022

During 2022, the VLIZ Philanthropy program was able to issue three grants to support WoRMS editors in making WoRMS more complete. This resulted in about 18.000 edits and additions to WoRMS and its sub-registers.
WoRMS press release: Ten remarkable new marine species from 2022
WoRMS press release: Ten remarkable new marine species from 2022

WoRMS press release: Ten remarkable new marine species from 2022

As for previous years, the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) has again released its annual list of the top-ten marine species described by researchers during the past year to coincide with World Taxonomist Appreciation Day on March 19th!
Call for Abstracts: The LifeWatch ERIC BEeS Biodiversity & Ecosystem eScience Conference
Call for Abstracts: The LifeWatch ERIC BEeS Biodiversity & Ecosystem eScience Conference

Call for Abstracts: The LifeWatch ERIC BEeS Biodiversity & Ecosystem eScience Conference

Roll up, roll up! Abstracts are now open for the LifeWatch ERIC "BEeS” Biodiversity & Ecosystem eScience Conference “Threats and challenges to biodiversity and ecosystem conservation from an eScience perspective”, which is scheduled to coincide with Biodiversity Day 2023.
Explore the traits in WoRMS and Aphia with a brand-new R Shiny application
Explore the traits in WoRMS and Aphia with a brand-new R Shiny application

Explore the traits in WoRMS and Aphia with a brand-new R Shiny application

With this new R Shiny application, you can explore all trait information in the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) and its underlying Aphia database in a more advanced way, for instance by combining different traits and combining traits with standardized distributions.