BIODIVERSITY

Although it is widely known that global warming has a direct impact on our ecosystems, there is little information about its effects on oceans’ top predators, such as pelagic sharks and tunas. How does ocean deoxygenation brought about by climate change influence their habitat? And how do they adapt their behaviour to this changing environment? David Sims and his team at the Marine Biological Association Laboratory in the United Kingdom aim to reveal how climate change, oceans’ predators and fishing fleets interact.

Have you ever wondered why our world is green? For decades, the most accepted answer has been that predators control herbivores, allowing plants to flourish. But is that really so? ERC grantee Katerina Sam at the Biology Centre of the Academy of Sciences in the Czech Republic is testing novel aspects of this ‘green world hypothesis’ to get a more realistic answer. Her work has important implications for protecting our planet’s biodiversity.