Benthic organisms are important ecological receptors, playing fundamental roles across seafloor ecosystems, delivering some of the most important functions in the marine environment. Some of these key benthic functions include nutrient cycling, food provision for higher trophic levels, and carbon storage. Over the past 6 years, benthic monitoring has faced growing complexity, driven by diminishing funding and the constraints imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. These challenges underscore the pressing need to recognize the enduring value of benthic time series in supporting monitoring, management, and modelling efforts. These long-term data sets have been critical to advance our current understanding into the areas of cumulative effects, conservation, management of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), development of indicators, and assessment of climate-driven changes in marine ecosystems. Ongoing expert group discussions consistently affirm both the relevance and necessity of continuing to collect these vital data sets. However, the focus on emerging technologies and so-called ‘cutting-edge’ approaches sometimes leads to the undervaluation and compromising some of these long-term series. We contend that a comprehensive understanding of benthic ecology, essential for robust marine management, reliable numerical analysis, and taxonomic consistency, cannot be achieved without the continuity provided by long-term data. Such time series are indispensable for tracking patterns of change and assessing responses across diverse human activities and seafloor ecosystems. While our research has concentrated on soft sediment environments, many of the key principles and recommendations outlined here are broadly applicable to other ecosystem types.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2026
This study investigates the influence of limnological parameters that are known to influence rotifer species richness and composition in temperate areas on two families of monogonont rotifers in a tropical area. We analysed species richness and diversity of the two families from 133 samples taken from several habitat types in Thailand. Coordinates, elevation, pH, temperature, conductivity, salinity and dissolved oxygen were measured and their effect on rotifers assessed. A total of 60 species in 5 genera was recorded from the two families. Latitude and temperature had an effect on species richness of Brachionidae. None of the variables affected species richness of Lecanidae, except habitat type, albeit not significantly. Habitat type and conductivity had an effect on species composition of the two families, whereas latitude had an effect only on species composition of Lecanidae. Species richness and composition of the two rotifer families are well documented in Thailand and no or only few additional species are expected. The limnological correlates of rotifer diversity seem to be in part comparable to and in part different from those known from temperate areas, suggesting that there may be general trends in rotifer species richness and composition across different latitudes.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2017
