How can we conserve marine biodiversity at different depths in the ocean under a warming climate?

Supervisor: Professor Anthony Richardson With biodiversity globally in decline, and a strong international push to increase the area of the ocean protected to 30% by 2030, more large blue-water (far from the coast) Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are being declared. However, there is still little consideration of climate change when MPAs are declared and where they are located. We know that global warming will alter the distribution of species, but at different speeds and directions at different depths in the ocean, complicating the designation of MPAs. This PhD involves using multivariate statistical techniques applied to model global marine species distributions in 3D. The aim is to estimate the current and future distribution of marine life under a changing climate and how best to protect it. The student needs a background in statistics or quantitative ecology and an interest in the natural world. The project will support travel to an international conference during the PhD. Contact Professor Anthony J. Richardson for more information.