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Meiolab in the News

Researchers outline best practices for understanding life on the ocean’s vast seafloor


Resource managers and policymakers need robust data about marine ecosystems for decision-making and setting sound policies. However, data about marine life can be challenging to collect, integrate, and analyze. Invertebrate animals are a key component of life on the seafloor, but their wide range of body sizes and diversity make it especially difficult to understand their abundance and distribution.

Aaron Ridall, Ph.D. student, Publishes Research on the Influence of Wastewater Treatment Plants on Microplastics in Florida


Current graduate student Aaron Ridall, FSU Dept of Biology undergraduate Emily Farrar, former FSU Dept of Biology undergraduate Morgan Dansby, and FSUCML faculty member Dr. Jeroen Ingels, recently published their work on the influence of wastewater treatment plants and water input sources on size, shape, and polymer distributions of microplastics in St. Andrew Bay, Florida, USA.

Katherine Henning awarded IDEA Grant


Katherine Henning, a research assistant in Dr. Jeroen Ingels’ Meiolab at the FSUCML, was awarded an IDEA grant by Florida State University to take sediment samples from the Fenholloway and the Econfina rivers this summer. These samples are necessary to continue monitoring the health of the Fenholloway after the Cellulose Mill in Perry, FL relocated its wastewater pipeline to a location closer to the coast.

Suitability of Free-Living Marine Nematodes as Bioindicators: Status and Future Considerations


Ph.D. student Aaron Ridall has published his first paper in Frontiers in Marine Science journal!! Co-authored by advisor, Dr. Jeroen Ingels, they focused on the role of nematodes as bioindicators across the globe and identified the patchiness regarding their use. They also highlighted future directions they’d like to see addressed in the field of marine nematology with a special emphasis on understanding nematodes' responses to microplastics pollution.

Epibionts Reflect Spatial and Foraging Ecology of Gulf of Mexico Loggerhead Turtles


FSU Ph.D. Candidate Ian Silver-Gorges and faculty member Dr. Jeroen Ingles have published a new study following their interest on the small animals that live on turtle carapaces. After examining what they are and how they get there, the authors were interested in discovering if these organisms can tell them anything about the turtle they are travelling with. Insights surrounding this new question are reflected in their latest paper: Epibionts Reflect Spatial and Foraging Ecology of Gulf of Mexico Loggerhead Turtles (Caretta caretta).

Dr. Ingels on the Importance of Monitoring Deep-Sea Meiofauna


Dr. Ingels has spearheaded a new article in Nature Ecology and Evolution on the importance of including meiofauna and microbiota in deep-sea monitoring for effective conservation. "Undervaluing the contribution of microscopic organisms to biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, and their efficacy in early detection of change, would hamper effective management of deep-sea ecosystems." - Jeroen Ingels

Media coverage of meiofauna epibionts on loggerhead sea turtles

Coverage of MDPI Diversity article Ingels, J. O. G., Valdes, Y., Pontes, L., Silva, A., Neres, P., Correa, G., Silver-Gorges, I., Fuentes, M., Gillis, A., Hooper, L., Ware, M., O'Reilly, C., Bergman, Q., Danyuk, J., Sanchez Zarate, S., Acevedo Natale, L., & dos Santos, G. (2020). Meiofauna Life on Loggerhead Sea Turtles-Diversely Structured Abundance and Biodiversity Hotspots That Challenge the Meiofauna Paradox. Diversity MDPI, 12(5), 20

Visiting student Gabriella Panto at the @Meiolab


NEWS AROUND THE LAB
Check out our short interview with visiting graduate student, Gabriella Pantò

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Miniature organisms in the sand play big role in our oceans (2-28-2017)


The small organisms that slip unnoticed through sand play an important role in keeping our oceans healthy and productive, according to a Florida State University researcher. 

In the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, Jeroen Ingels, a researcher at the FSU Coastal and Marine Laboratory, explains that small organisms called meiofauna that live in the sediment provide essential services to human life such as food production and nutrient cycling.

Read the full article here

Coverage by Science Daily

Researchers find seaweed helps trap carbon dioxide in sediment


Seaweeds help capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and transport it off shore where it gets buried or enters the sedimentary foodweb. The meiofauna research in this new study conducted by Jeroen Ingels and several team members at Plymouth Marine Laboratory showed that meiofauna consumes macroalgae and zooplankton further away from shore and help process the seaweed remains. Read the news articles here (FSU) and here (EurekAlert). The original study is open access and available here.

Giant iceberg’s split exposes hidden ecosystem - Biologists rush to study creatures living beneath Larsen C ice shelf before they disappear (9-26-2017)


"Biologists will discuss research priorities for Larsen C and future exposed regions at a swiftly organized meeting at Florida State University’s Coastal and Marine Laboratory in St Teresa on 18–19 November", organized by Drs. Ingels (FSU CML), Rich Aronson (Florida Institute of Technology) and Craig Smith (University of Hawaii, Manoa)

Read Nature article here

Scientists investigate how oil affects smallest organisms in Antarctic waters (9-20-2017)


New research led by Dr. Jonny Stark (Australian Antarctic Division) in collaboration with a Florida State University scientist (Dr. Jeroen Ingels) has examined how oil and other hydrocarbons in Antarctica affect miniature organisms called meiofauna that slip through the sediment widely unnoticed to the casual observer.

Read article here

The JEMBE article is available here