Habitat destruction, pollution, non-indigenous invasive species, over-fishing, and climate change have threatened marine biological communities in East Asia. Scientists from China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Russia, and a few Southeast Asian countries gathered in a workshop titled "Key Indicator Species and Habitats for Marine Biodiversity Change in East Asia" on 28-30 November 2022 and shared their findings on key indicator species, ecosystems types and major pathways resulting in marine biodiversity changes, and provided recommendations for policymakers on biodiversity conservation.
The Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN) sponsored the three-day hybrid workshop organized by the Jeju National University with the support of the Northwest Pacific Action Plan (NOWPAP) in Jeju, Republic of Korea. Near 30 participants attended the meeting in person, and around ten speakers and participants attended it virtually.
In his opening remarks, Professor Eel-Hwan Kim, President of Jeju National University, "appreciated the project team for choosing a timely topic that suits the current situation, where marine biodiversity is affected by intensive urbanization combined with climate change impacts resulting in substantial changes." Dr. Kwang-Sik Choi, Chair of the Project Organizing Committee and Professor at Jeju National University, delivered welcome remarks. Dr. Yegor Volovik, NOWPAP Coordinator, assured the participants that “NOWPAP is committed and looks forward to working closely with scientists and practitioners in the Northwest Pacific region and APN Secretariat to advance our joint action to strengthen the efforts on marine biodiversity conservation and management.” Further, Dr. Ning Liu, NOWPAP Programme Officer, presented an overview of biodiversity conservation in the Northwest Pacific region.
The workshop included two main sessions: Marine biodiversity indicators and Marine biodiversity changes. In the marine biodiversity indicator session, Professor Kwang-Sik Choi, Jeju National University, presented the biodiversity and ecology of high-latitude Scleractinia Corals on Jeju Island. He stated that studying A. japonica and algal populations is important to understand climate change-related changes in benthic communities in Jeju and elsewhere.
Dr. Ronald G. Noseworthy of Jeju National University presented the biogeography of marine mollusks on Jeju Island. He pointed out that climate change, coastal development, over-collecting of edible species, and tourist pressure caused habitat loss and biodiversity decline.
Dr. Hye-Won Moon from the National Marine Biodiversity Institute of Korea introduced the distribution and diversity of corals in Korea. She suggested that one of the zooxanthellate Scleractinia Montipora efflorescens Bernard, 1897 could be an indicator species for monitoring the environmental consequences of climate change.
Professor Sukgeun Jung of Jeju National University introduced models predicting the effects of the warming ocean on the range shift of biomass of chub mackerel.
Dr. Donggu Jeon of Chung-Ang University, Republic of Korea, presented a study about monstrilloid evolution by integrating the known morphological and ecological traits of four monstrilloid genera.
Dr. Christophe Vieira from Jeju National University presented seaweed biodiversity and its role in the globally changing environment. He pointed out that seaweeds’ critical ecological roles, combined with their sensitivity to environmental changes, make some of them potentially valuable bioindicators.
In Session 2, Marine Biodiversity Changes, Dr. Xiaoxia Sun from the Chinese Academy of Sciences introduced the changes in the plankton functional groups in Jiao Zhou Bay, the Yellow Sea. She stated that the abundance of diatoms has declined, leading to the increased dominance of dinoflagellates.
Dr. Hongjun Li from the National Marine Environmental Monitoring Center of China introduced the overview of the marine environment and ecology monitoring and assessment in China and stated that the overall quality of marine water was improving.
Dr. Shingo Udagawa, University of the Ryukyus, Japan, presented the relationship between moonlight and coral reef organisms in Okinawa. He pointed out that the impact of ecological light pollution on marine organisms should be further assessed.
Dr. Tatsuya Kawakami from Hokkaido University, Japan, highlighted that eDNA is a powerful tool for detecting fish biodiversity in the open ocean and describing the geographical distribution of target species.
Dr. Hyun-Sung Yang from the Korea Institute of Ocean Science & Technology (KIOST) introduced an inventory report of marine biodiversity from Jeju waters in Korea and stated that the baseline data would help to detect newly extended species due to climate change.
Dr. Hee Yoon Kang from Chonnam National University, Republic of Korea, introduced a spatial difference in the patterns of community compositions between the estuarine and deep-bay channels and a seasonal difference in the plankton pattern but less in the macrobenthos and nekton communities.
Professor Benjamin Jr. Vallejo from the University of the Philippines presented his research results on eDNA in ballast water which will help the implementation of the Ballast Water Management Convention of 2004 (BWMC) and the Antifouling Systems Convention of 2001 (AFS).
Dr. Jinho Chae, Marine Environmental Research and Information Laboratory, introduced that the increase in coastal development and construction is the primary cause of the rise of Aurelia coerulea, the most frequent and large-scale blooming species.
Dr. Konstantin A. Lutaenko, National Scientific Center of Marine Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, presented marine biodiversity changes and monitoring in the Northwest Pacific. He suggested a few biodiversity conservation measures: environmental and biodiversity monitoring of coastal areas, fishery limitations and aquaculture control, control and regulation of tourism, and developing and expanding marine protected areas.
At the end of the workshop, the participants brainstormed how to strengthen regional cooperation on biodiversity conservation and enhance dialogues between scientists and policymakers.
