Flanders Marine Institute

Biodiversity data linkage is a prerequisite for addressing pressing societal and research questions. Digitisation of resources has progressed rapidly, but this has led to a number of parallel approaches for datasets and services, making it difficult for users to identify the appropriate tool for their requirements. While scientific names are a key element for data linkage, they are not fully suited to this role. Many of them are not unique identifiers for taxa (such as the species that form the basic building block of a large part of biodiversity information) because taxonomic research has resulted in name changes. Likewise, usage is prone to errors like misspellings or misapplication of nomenclatural rules. This complexity and unreliability may demotivate data providers from readying their valuable datasets for integration into an interlinked landscape of biodiversity information. Correct linking of scientific names is an important element in this process of linking data from various sources. Aggregated taxonomic datasets and name-matching services are an essential infrastructure to build tools for this purpose and are increasingly using unique, resolvable and persistent name identifiers. Accessing the aggregated dataset via these identifiers can also display connections between the names within the dataset, linking, orthographic variants to correct spelling, synonyms to accepted taxon name etc. External datasets that hold valuable research and usage information as taxon-associated data can also be linked directly via these identifiers. This helps them to meet the FAIR data criteria (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable). Name matching finds the aggregator's name identifier, adding this identifier to the local data record may help to further interconnect biodiversity information, if data providers are motivated to partake in this process of enabling data linkage. We posit that this motivation can be increased by simplifying the process of choosing the right method for their specific needs, which may vary widely. We thus propose a framework that helps users to select the optimal workflow to address these needs. This involves: (i) identifying and categorising the specific criteria that characterise different user needs; (ii) based on these criteria, defining the necessary metadata both for taxonomic datasets accessed by name-matching services and the name-matching services themselves; (iii) providing tools based on these metadata that will allow users to interactively and confidently choose the best-fit target dataset and name matching service for their specific purpose.

Digital Twins (DTs) are virtual representations of real-world physical objects, products, systems, or processes, and can be used for simulations and monitoring for decision support or research. DTs are rapidly gaining momentum by offering a powerful framework to assess the state of natural systems in the past, present, and future. In the marine domain, Digital Twins of the Ocean (DTOs) can be used to monitor changes in marine ecosystems, evaluate the impacts of climate change, and support sustainable use and long-term management. However, most existing DTOs remain heavily focused on oceanographic and physical components and have not yet fully integrated animal-movement data. Within the European Digital Twin Ocean (EDITO), launched by the European Commission, ocean knowledge is made readily available to everyone. EDITO integrates data from satellites, sensors, computer models, and personal device, including all EMODnet (European Marine Observations and Data Network) and Copernicus Marine data, among other sources. Since November 2025, aquatic animal tracking data from the European Tracking Network (ETN) is incorporated. The ETN database host tracking data of a wide variety of aquatic animals - such as teleost fish, elasmobranchs and molluscs - with a focus on acoustic telemetry and data storage tags. These data contribute to studies on movement ecology, species distribution modelling, wildlife management and conservation. By contributing its tracking data to EDITO, ETN strengthens its commitment to open, interoperable, and accessible data. Securing the continuous update of data to the EDITO requires the establishment of reliable pipelines between data sources and the EDITO Data Lakes. To achieve this, ETN has developed pipelines that deliver down-sampled data in Darwin Core format via EMODnet, and full-resolution data in Parquet format via SpatioTemporal Asset Catalog (STAC) standard. The harmonized ETN data streams ensure that researchers, managers, and developers can readily access animal-movement information for modelling, forecasting, and visualization within the EDITO platform.In this presentation, we outline our best practices for integrating bio-logging and tracking data into Digital Twin initiatives, highlighting lessons learned and presenting how these data streams can enhance evidence-based decision-making in marine management and policy.

Sodium sulfate is an inexpensive, earth-abundant salt with great potential for heat storage applications due to its high energy density. Phase transitions involving crystallization of sodium sulfate decahydrate (Na2SO4•10H2O, mirabilite) are accompanied by a large latent heat. Using laser-transmittance, confocal Raman microspectroscopy, and freezing experiments, we accurately define the dissolution and metastability lines of the heptahydrate (Na2SO4•7H2O) and decahydrate phases, and subsequently present the complete phase diagram of the binary system Na2SO4–water. The metastable zone width (MSZW) is found to be independent of concentration, in the range of ΔT ∼ 17 °C for the heptahydrate, and ΔT ∼ 40–46 °C for the decahydrate form. The latter phase can directly precipitate only from an undersaturated solution below 1.4 mol/kg at a temperature below 0 °C, as in this range of concentrations the metastability line of the heptahydrate phase passes behind that of mirabilite at lower temperatures. Its precipitation is however found not to be ice-assisted, as the decahydrate phase precipitates before ice following the experimentally defined MSZW. Lastly, at high salt concentrations (>1.4 mol/kg), we show that the addition of various types of impurities into salt solutions has no significant impact on the reduction of the activation energy barrier of mirabilite to bypass the formation of the heptahydrate with a lower energy density.

Accelerating rates of ocean warming are a global threat to coastal marine ecosystems. More frequent heat extremes, also known as marine heatwaves, are likely to cause severe impacts on marine ecosystems as species may be unable to tolerate, adapt to, or recover from these events. In this study, we examined the association between the occurrence of marine heatwaves and benthic cover at intertidal reefs in the SW Atlantic. To investigate these effects, we monitored in situ temperatures. We obtained remote-sensing satellite measurements of essential ocean and biodiversity variables at a long-term marine observatory (LTER) on the SE coast of Brazil. The dataset resulted in monthly (December 2017 to May 2022) monitoring of intertidal macroalgal beds and coastal meteo-oceanographic conditions. Our results revealed that temporal changes in macroalgal cover during the study period were highly correlated (>80% association) with marine heatwaves, which were the dominant extreme weather conditions in this region. Stronger (intensity effect) and prolonged (weeks) events result in a significant decrease (38% loss) in macroalgal cover with impacts on benthic richness and diversity both locally and regionally. The impacts were more pronounced and drove succession on dominant macroalgal taxa (brown and red algae), which were the least resilient to high temperatures. Although there were indications of macroalgal recovery after 2020, the community did not return to the pre-heatwave composition, revealing that assemblage succession over these macroalgal beds may occur at multi-year time scales. Our study supports previous research indicating that marine heatwaves are becoming more frequent along the Brazilian coast. Given the prolonged period for assemblages' recovery, we can expect marked decreases in coastal biodiversity in the SW Atlantic.

We demonstrate a continuous spectroscopy technique with frequency sensitivity well below the natural transition linewidth, while maintaining a locking range hundreds of times larger. The method exploits the position dependence of a continuous, broadband magneto-optical trap (MOT) operating on the 7.5-kHz-wide intercombination line of strontium. We show that the frequency sensitivity is fundamentally insensitive to the effective MOT laser linewidth. By applying active feedback on the MOT position to a dispersion-optimized frequency comb, which serves as the reference for stabilizing the MOT laser (Boughdachi , arXiv:2507.23617), we achieve a frequency instability below <a:math xmlns:a="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <a:mn>4.4</a:mn> <a:mo>×</a:mo> <a:msup> <a:mn>10</a:mn> <a:mrow> <a:mo>−</a:mo> <a:mn>13</a:mn> </a:mrow> </a:msup> </a:math> after 400 s of averaging in both the optical and radio-frequency domains, surpassing the performance of conventional hot-vapor modulation transfer spectroscopy. Our method is a broadly applicable alternative route to frequency references in the high <c:math xmlns:c="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <c:msup> <c:mn>10</c:mn> <c:mrow> <c:mo>−</c:mo> <c:mn>14</c:mn> </c:mrow> </c:msup> </c:math> range around 100 s.

Humans emitted millions of tons of the toxic element lead (Pb) into the atmosphere. The North Atlantic Ocean has been strongly affected by atmospheric Pb deposition, however the role of ocean currents in dispersing the Atlantic dissolved Pb (dPb) burden remains unclear. Here, we show that the Arctic Ocean received a dPb flux of 611 ± 74 Mg·a-1 from the North Atlantic Ocean in 2015/2016, making the Arctic Ocean a previously unrecognized net sink of Atlantic dPb (378 ± 85 Mg·a-1). This input is comparable to Arctic riverine dPb discharge (344 ± 222 Mg·a-1). Lead isotope measurements trace the origin of dPb in the Arctic Ocean back to anthropogenic emissions from North America and Eurasia. Elevated dPb concentrations in the North Atlantic Ocean prior to the global-phase out of leaded gasoline (1986-2021) suggests ~5-fold higher fluxes from the North Atlantic in the late 1980s relative to 2015/2016, explaining the widespread contamination of Arctic abyssal sediments with Pb.

Based on a thorough literature review and expert consultation, this study provides an inventory of all introduced non-indigenous species (iNIS) reported for Belgian marine and brackish waters. The data indicate a strong increase in iNIS in the study area from the 1990s onward, averaging 2.2 newly detected species per year, with a cumulative total of 108 iNIS between 1800 and 2024. The majority of these iNIS have the Northwestern Pacific or Northwestern Atlantic as their native region and are primarily introduced in Western Europe via shipping or aquaculture. In addition to compiling the inventory, the context in which the iNIS are detected is examined, distinguishing between official monitoring programs, project-based data collection efforts, and citizen science initiatives. Our findings indicate that while the EU aims to promote coordination between its Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) and Water Framework Directive (WFD), a misalignment occurs in the practical implementation of iNIS monitoring at the Belgian level. For example, a coherent and integrated monitoring framework across marine, brackish, and freshwater systems is still lacking. Furthermore, despite the EU’s ambition to ensure comprehensive iNIS monitoring, no legal framework currently mandates targeted monitoring in coastal ports, despite their well-documented role as hotspots for new marine introductions. After all, iNIS monitoring is only mandatory under the MSFD, which in essence applies only seaward from the coastal baseline and therefore does not cover waters within these ports. In addition, while the EU’s IAS Regulation has recently incorporated a few marine species on the Union list, its monitoring requirements remain primarily focused on terrestrial and freshwater species. As a result, observations published by citizens with significant expertise in the field represent the primary source of marine iNIS data in coastal port areas in recent decades in Belgium. The fragmentary nature of iNIS data complicates the efficient flow of information to international or European iNIS reference databases that support policy and decision-making. Yet, even species officially reported by Member States under MSFD Descriptor 2 are not always included in these reference databases. Nonetheless, accurate data on iNIS presence and distribution are essential for effectively targeting and managing iNIS.