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Marine functional connectivity
Marine functional connectivity (MFC) refers to the exchange of biomass, individuals, genes, and species through the collective movements of all marine organisms during their lifetime. Despite advances in techniques that measure or infer the distributions and spatial dynamics of marine species, further research in this emerging field is urgently required to meet global sustainable development goals by 2030. Extensive and comprehensive knowledge on MFC is needed to (1) fully understand the relationships between marine communities and their heterogeneous habitats, (2) accurately quantify the fluxes of matter and energy at sea and at the land–sea interface, and (3) forecast how environmental drivers may change the services provided by marine habitats and species. Thus, advancing MFC research is pivotal for improving management and conservation strategies, at sea and in littoral areas.
This Theme Section aims to highlight the range of approaches and scales for studying MFC, and to illustrate the diversity of ecosystems and taxa investigated worldwide. We encourage contributions that advance knowledge of MFC, provide an understanding of how MFC underpins ecosystem functioning, and illustrate how MFC results can be applied to better manage marine and coastal habitats or species. As examples, applied techniques may include recent developments in biologging, genetics, biomarkers, and biophysical modelling, applied either independently or in combination.
If you wish to contribute your work to this Theme Section, please select the “MFC” Section when you submit your manuscript online and mention in your cover letter that you are interested to have your work included in this Theme Section.
For questions, contact Christine Paetzold (Managing Editor) .
Organizers: Audrey Darnaude, Federica Costantini, Ewan Hunter, Yael Teff-Seker, Myron Peck
Editors: Audrey Darnaude, Susanne E. Tanner, Maria Beger, Oscar Gaggiotti, Alejandro Gallego, Ewan Hunter, Pei-Yuan Qian, Myron Peck
Status: Submissions are closed.
Important notice: Submissions to this Theme Section after 1 November 2022 are not affected by the changes in MEPS Open Access pricing. Pre-November prices will apply along with a 20% discount.
Individual Theme Section articles are published 'Advance View' as soon as they are ready. Once the Theme Section is completed, they will be fully published in a regular volume of MEPS and given a volume number and page range. Theme Section literature cites within the articles will also be updated at that time.
Fleming BFM, Beaulieu SE, Mills SW, Gaggiotti OE, Mullineaux LS
Ecological connectivity in Pacific deep-sea hydrothermal vent metacommunitiesa
MEPS MFC: AV1 | Full text in pdf format
Ryan D, Wogerbauer C, Roche WK
Otolith microchemistry to investigate nursery site fidelity and connectivity of juvenile European sea bass in Ireland
MEPS MFC: AV2 | Full text in pdf format
Schwanck TN, Vizer LF, Thorburn J, Dodd J, Wright PJ, Donnan DW, Noble LR, Jones CS
Mitochondrial haplotypes reveal low diversity and restricted connectivity of the critically endangered batoid population in a Marine Protected Area
MEPS MFC: AV3 | Full text in pdf format
Muller C, Lett C, Porri F, Pattrick P, Bailey D, Denis H, Barrier N, Potts W, Kaplan DM
Coastal connectivity of an abundant inshore fish species: model-data comparison along the southern coast of South Africa
MEPS MFC: AV4 | Full text in pdf format
Bassi L, Tremblay R, Morissette O, Sirois P
Otolith elemental fingerprints reveal source-sink dynamics between two Greenland halibut nurseries in the St. Lawrence Estuary and Gulf
MEPS MFC: AV5 | Full text in pdf format
Lett C, Malauene BS, Hoareau TB, Kaplan DM, Porri F
Corridors and barriers to marine connectivity around southern Africa
MEPS MFC: AV6 | Full text in pdf format
Stuart CE, Wedding LM, Pittman SJ, Serafy JE, Moura A, Bruckner AW, Green SJ
Seascape connectivity modeling predicts hotspots of fish-derived nutrient provisioning to restored coral reefs
MEPS MFC: AV7 | Full text in pdf format
Hansen FT, Erichsen AC, Saurel C, Freitas PS
Assessing the demographic connectivity of common cockles in a shallow estuary as a basis for fisheries management and stock protection efforts
MEPS MFC: AV8 | Full text in pdf format
García Alonso VA, Franco BC, Palma ED, Pájaro M, Capitanio FL
Integration of empirical and modelled data unravels spatiotemporal distribution and connectivity patterns of Fuegian sprat early life stages
MEPS MFC: AV9 | Full text in pdf format
Gonzalez JG, Frédou T, Duarte-Neto PJ, Labonne M, Lira AS, Soares APC, Darnaude AM
Importance of estuaries for the horse-eye jack Caranx latus in northeastern Brazil: a case study of underestimated connectivity at the land-sea interface
MEPS MFC: AV10 | Full text in pdf format
Hendrick GC, Nicholson MD, Narvaez P, Sun D, Packard A, Grutter AS, Sikkel PC
Diel fish migration facilitates functional connectivity of coral reef and seagrass habitats via transport of ectoparasites
MEPS MFC: AV11 | Full text in pdf format
Allgayer RL, Fernandes PG, Travis JMJ, Wright PJ
Spatial patterns of within-stock connectivity provide novel insights for fisheries management
MEPS MFC: AV12 | Full text in pdf format