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Marine protected areas (MPAs) are the preferred tool for preventing marine biodiversity loss, as reflected in international protected area targets. Although the area covered by MPAs is expanding, there is a concern that opposition from resource users is driving them into already low-use locations, whereas high-pressure areas remain unprotected, which has serious implications for biodiversity conservation. We tested the spatial relationships between different human-induced pressures on marine biodiversity and global MPAs. We used global, modeled pressure data and the World Database on Protected Areas to calculate the levels of 15 different human-induced pressures inside and outside the world's MPAs. We fitted binomial generalized linear models to the data to determine whether each pressure had a positive or negative effect on the likelihood of an area being protected and whether this effect changed with different categories of protection. Pelagic and artisanal fishing, shipping, and introductions of invasive species by ships had a negative relationship with protection, and this relationship persisted under even the least restrictive categories of protection (e.g., protected areas classified as category VI under the International Union for Conservation of Nature, a category that permits sustainable use). In contrast, pressures from dispersed, diffusive sources (e.g., pollution and ocean acidification) had positive relationships with protection. Our results showed that MPAs are systematically established in areas where there is low political opposition, limiting the capacity of existing MPAs to manage key drivers of biodiversity loss. We suggest that conservation efforts focus on biodiversity outcomes and effective reduction of pressures rather than prescribing area-based targets, and that alternative approaches to conservation are needed in areas where protection is not feasible.Evaluación de la Presencia de Áreas Marinas Protegidas contra sus Capacidades de Reducir las Presiones sobre la Biodiversidad Resumen Las áreas marinas protegidas (AMPs) son la herramienta preferida para prevenir la pérdida de biodiversidad marina, como se ve reflejado en los objetivos internacionales para las áreas protegidas. Mientras que el área que ocupan las MPAs está expandiéndose, existe una preocupación de que la oposición de los usuarios de recursos los esté llevando hacia localidades que ya son de bajo uso mientras que las áreas de alta presión permanecen sin protección, lo que tiene implicaciones serias para la conservación de la biodiversidad. Analizamos las relaciones espaciales entre diferentes presiones inducidas por humanos sobre la biodiversidad marina y las áreas marinas protegidas del mundo. Utilizamos datos mundiales de presiones modeladas y la Base de Datos de Áreas Protegidas para calcular los niveles de 15 diferentes presiones inducidas por humanos dentro y fuera de las MPAs del mundo. Ajustamos los modelos lineales binomiales y generalizados a los datos para determinar si cada una de las presiones tenía un efecto positivo o negativo sobre la probabilidad de que un área estuviera protegida y si este efecto cambió con diferentes categorías de protección. La pesca pelágica y artesanal, las embarcaciones, y la introducción de especies invasoras por parte de los barcos tuvieron una relación negativa con la protección y esta relación persistió incluso bajo las categorías más restrictivas de protección (es decir, áreas protegidas clasificadas bajo la categoría VI de la Unión Internacional para la Conservación de la Naturaleza, una categoría que permite el uso sostenible). Como contraste, las presiones surgidas de fuentes dispersadas y difusivas (por ejemplo, la contaminación y la acidificación del océano) tuvieron relaciones positivas con la protección. Nuestros resultados muestran que las MPAs están establecidas sistemáticamente en áreas en donde hay una baja oposición política, lo que limita la capacidad de las MPAs existentes para manejar los causantes más importantes de la pérdida de la biodiversidad. Sugerimos que los esfuerzos de conservación se enfoquen en los resultados de biodiversidad y en la reducción efectiva de las presiones en lugar de ordenar objetivos basados en el área y que se necesitan estrategias alternativas a la conservación en áreas en donde la protección no es viable.

Addressing the challenge of protecting biodiversity in the global ocean requires a sound knowledge and understanding of the complex marine environment. Since 2008 the Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative (GOBI) has been established as a voluntary dedicated group of marine institutions and scientists working to support conservation and protection of marine biodiversity. A focus has been work to support the Convention on Biological Diversity's Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Area (EBSA) process. GOBI partners have provided expert interpretation of evidence-based information and sought to compile and collate available information. An effective and coherent global network of marine protected areas must include bioregional representative replicates of features; once described, EBSAs can help focus attention on where and what kind of protective measures may be needed. GOBI is currently undertaking a 5-year programme of research funded by the German International Climate Initiative, working to strengthen baselines and contribute new data to the EBSA and other processes. This involves developing detailed biogeographies for the Pacific and Indian Oceans, assessing the movement of migratory species, advancing understanding of biodiversity at vents and seeps, developing a model governance system for the Costa Rica Thermal Dome, and incorporating Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas and Important Marine Mammal Areas. GOBI has taken initiatives to build on the results of the Census of Marine Life and ensure best available marine biodiversity information is considered by states and intergovernmental organizations. GOBI support for ocean governance, including data development and expert consultation, will also contribute to the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021–2030). Future challenges include capacity building and new approaches to incorporate traditional knowledge.

The deep ocean is the largest and least-explored ecosystem on Earth, and a uniquely energy-poor environment. The distribution, drivers and origins of deep-sea biodiversity remain unknown at global scales. Here we analyse a database of more than 165,000 distribution records of Ophiuroidea (brittle stars), a dominant component of sea-floor fauna, and find patterns of biodiversity unlike known terrestrial or coastal marine realms. Both patterns and environmental predictors of deep-sea (2,000-6,500 m) species richness fundamentally differ from those found in coastal (0-20 m), continental shelf (20-200 m), and upper-slope (200-2,000 m) waters. Continental shelf to upper-slope richness consistently peaks in tropical Indo-west Pacific and Caribbean (0-30°) latitudes, and is well explained by variations in water temperature. In contrast, deep-sea species show maximum richness at higher latitudes (30-50°), concentrated in areas of high carbon export flux and regions close to continental margins. We reconcile this structuring of oceanic biodiversity using a species-energy framework, with kinetic energy predicting shallow-water richness, while chemical energy (export productivity) and proximity to slope habitats drive deep-sea diversity. Our findings provide a global baseline for conservation efforts across the sea floor, and demonstrate that deep-sea ecosystems show a biodiversity pattern consistent with ecological theory, despite being different from other planetary-scale habitats.

Aims Marine soft sediments cover much of the deep ocean and are one of the largest habitats in the world, yet much of our understanding about their diversity is based on sampling in the North Atlantic. The deep-sea benthos provides a simplified environment in which to explore the processes which maintain species richness. Here we investigate the influence of energy and habitat complexity on benthic species richness along an oligotrophic continental margin within the Indian Ocean. Location The upper continental margin of western Australia (c. 13–35° S, 100–1000 m depth). Methods We examined the species richness of selected polychaetes (Annelida) and crustaceans in sediment grab samples. We used generalized linear models and hierarchical partitioning to examine the relationship and relative importance of temperature, productivity (particulate organic carbon flux, net primary productivity and depth) and habitat complexity (sediment particle size diversity and grain size) on species richness at 51 sites. Results In contrast to benthic studies in the North Atlantic, we found that species richness was higher on the shelf than on the slope. Species richness was positively correlated with net primary productivity; this relationship was influenced by high species richness in two areas where oceanic mixing is known to enhance primary productivity. Habitat heterogeneity and temperature were less influential. Main conclusion This study represents one of the first extensive quantitative studies of deep-water benthos in the Indo-West Pacific, and provides further evidence that bathymetric gradients of species richness are variable between regions, probably due to variation in local oceanography and productivity regimes. Our findings provide support for the overriding influence of productivity on species richness, even over relatively small ranges in depth and productivity. As climate change is expected to modify biogeochemical fluxes to the deep seafloor, this is likely to affect the communities of deep-sea fauna.

Exploration of poorly known regions of the Australian continental margin has resulted in the discovery of two new species in the scale worm family Eulepethidae. Grubeulepis kurnai sp. nov. occurs in southeastern Australia while Proeulepethus payungu sp. nov. was collected at one site in the Indian Ocean on the continental margin of Western Australia. Pareulepis malayana (Horst, 1913), also collected from the continental margin of Western Australia, is newly recorded from Australia, representing a range extension of that species previously known from Madagascar, Malaysia and the South China Sea. Four species, and four of the six known genera of Eulepethidae are now known from Australian waters. The family Eulepethidae remains species-poor compared with most polychaete families, and now comprises 21 species world wide.