Mangrove forests on the coasts of Saudi Arabia act as litter traps, accumulating plastic debris from the marine environment, according to new research from KAUST. The study offers an explanation for the fate of missing marine plastic litter and highlights the threat it poses to coastal ecosystems.

CONVENOR: Prof. Carlos Duarte
CO-CONVENOR: Mr. Francis Juanes
DATE: January 30, 2019
TIME: 3 pm – 5 pm
LOCATION: Auditorium (level 0) between Buildings 2 & 3

Combining music and movement is not unusual—but translating the movements of migrating marine animals into musical notes certainly is. An international research team including KAUST scientists have created a sound symphony using data charting the movements of northern elephant seals in the Pacific Ocean. This sonification technique provides surprising insights into group dynamics and synchronicity. “Many studies have analyzed single-animal tracks, but collective movement is rarely addressed,” says Carlos Duarte from KAUST, who led the project in collaboration with colleagues including Madhu Srinivasan from KAUST’s Visualization Core Lab, and scientists in the United States.

A whale and a turtle differ in size, shape and lifestyle but their patterns of movement are surprisingly similar, reveals the largest collection of movement data for a diverse group of large marine vertebrates. A team of 58 researchers from nine countries and 45 research institutions has collated a satellite telemetry dataset for a diverse set of large marine megafauna: it includes more than 2.8 million locations from more than 2,600 tracked individual animals. And for some species it includes data from as long ago as 1985.

Carlos Duarte was named the first recipient of the Carlo Heip Award for outstanding accomplishments in marine biodiversity science. Duarte will receive the award at the Carlo Heip Award ceremony, which will take place on May 15 in Montreal, Canada.

KAUST Professor/Director of the Red Sea Research Center, Carlos Duarte, and his student Cecilia Martin were part of a team that measured the amount of plastic debris in the Red Sea during sea voyages in 2016-2017. They found that the quantity of plastic in the Red Sea was quite low, which they attribute to there being no consistent inflow from a river and to plastics collecting in corals and mangroves.

Prof. Carlos M. Duarte, Red Sea Research Center Director, has been included in the "Highly Cited 2017" list, which identified the the world's most impactful scientific researchers. Prof. Duarte has been included in all editions of the list to-date.

“Quantifying the effects of exotic species on marine ecosystems” is a Ahmed Juffali Research Chair workshop to be run at KAUST from April 30th to May 4th, with Drs Catherine Lovelock, Nuria Marba, Just Cebrian, Paulina Martinetto, Scott Bennett and Julia Santana-Garzon as guest scientists.

The European Geosciences Union (EGU) recently honored KAUST Professor of Marine Science Carlos M. Duarte with the award of the 2016 Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky Medal. The medal was established by EGU's Division on Biogeosciences in recognition of the scientific achievements of Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky, a Russian and Ukrainian scientist considered to be one of the founders of biogeochemistry, geochemistry and radiogeology. The medal is awarded to scientists in honor of their outstanding contributions to the biogeosciences.

The conference was held at Qatar University in the Research Complex on Wednesday and Thursday 24-25 February 2016, in conjunction with Qatar National Environment Day 2016 and the Annual Meeting of the SETAC-AGB (Society of Environment Toxicology and Chemistry - Arabian Gulf Branch).

“Tropical marine habitats in a high CO2 world” a Ahmed Juffali Research Chair workshop to be run March 15, 2:00-5:00 pm, with Dr. Jean Pierre Gattuso as guest scientist.

Seagrass and Mangrove Red Sea survey to take off on board R/V Thuwal in late February to explore these, largely ignored, habitats in the Red Sea.

Professional Development workshop for RSRC M.Sc. and Ph.D. students (visiting students and interns welcomed!).

Prof. Carlos M. Duarte delivered the opening keynote speech at the Qatar University Life Science Symposium on “Global changes: The Arabian Gulf Ecosystem“.

Prof. Carlos M. Duarte presented at COP21, as part of the KAUST delegation supporting the side events organized by KSA at the GCC Pavillion in COP21, on the potential of coastal vegetated habitats to support climate change mitigation and adaptation through “Blue Carbon” strategies. Prof. Duarte also described the research on impacts of climate change on Red Sea biota through an overview of research conducted at the Red Sea Research Center at KAUST, using a large touchscreen as support.

The 2015 Paris Climate Conference (COP21), is poised to lead a shift in focus in climate change research from an emphasis on the scientific test of the role of human activity, already consolidated into strong evidence, to a focus on solutions to prepare society to adapt and mitigate the consequences of a warming planet, where knowledge is urgently needed.

Exploring new technologies for a better understanding of animal movement​​​ across the ocean​​.

Welcome to Enrichment in the fall​.

Prof. Carlos Duarte is the Field Chief Editor of Frontiers in Marine Science.