Kelps are large brown algae that form marine forests structuring ecosystems along arctic to temperate coastlines worldwide. Kelp forests provide a variety of environmental goods and services that are of high ecological and economic importance, however they are currently threatened by multiple anthropogenic factors and worldwide declines in abundance, range retractions and even local extinctions have occurred. The ability of marine kelp forests to persist is dependent on successful reproduction via microscopic gametophytes and the subsequent establishment of a new sporophyte generation. In the marine realm it is largely unknown how microscopic life stages of these important species persist and recover from environmental changes. In this seminar, I will show the impact of simulated global change scenarios, such as increasing temperature and changing nutrient conditions, on the reproductive performance of the microscopic stages of kelps from distinct niches. I will also provide some valuable insights into the process of thermal tolerance inheritance in hybrids between two kelp species with contrasting tolerances that will help to integrate and improve heat-tolerance characteristics through breeding selection and thus aquaculture industry in the face of a changing environment.

When?

Wednesday I 16 January I 13:30

Where?

Room 2.31 I Building 7 I Gambelas Campus

About our speaker:

Neusa Martins obtained her PhD in Biotechnological Sciences from the University of Algarve. Her PhD research focused on the physiological and biochemical tolerance mechanisms of plants to abiotic stress. She is presently a postdoctoral researcher in the Biogeographical Ecology and Evolution (BEE) group at CCMAR and her current work is now directed towards the ecophysiology and genetics of dominant brown algal key species, especially kelps, in a climate and environmental change context.

This seminar was kindly sponsored by: