Aim To quantify temporal (Middle Holocene, historical and future) and spatial changes in habitat suitability for marine species in two South American Large Marine Ecosystems, and to evaluate the ecological consistency of long‐term Species Distribution Model projections using archaeological records as independent evidence of past species occurrences. Location Humboldt Current and Patagonian Shelf Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs)....

Aim This scoping review (ScR) synthesises the current literature on the application of Species Distribution Models (SDM) to past marine environments. We assess how these models have been used to reconstruct past environmental suitability, track biogeographical shifts and investigate long‐term ecological dynamics, while identifying key knowledge gaps and methodological uncertainties related to data availability, biases and mode...

Usutu virus (USUV) is a zoonotic arbovirus causing systemic and neuroinvasive diseases in birds and flu-like or sporadic neuroinvasive disease in humans. USUV-associated encephalitis is morphologically well-characterized in birds, while the mechanisms of cell-damage in spontaneously infected birds remain poorly understood. For the closely related West Nile virus, apoptosis significantly contributes to the pathogenesis of othof...

Sea urchin gonads (called uni) are highly valued in seafood markets, creating demand for sustainable production. In Seychelles, small-scale farming of Tripneustes gratilla is promising, but costly pelleted feeds for gonad enhancement limit feasibility. This study evaluated alternative fresh feeds, Sargassum spp., carrots (Daucus carota), moringa (Moringa oleifera), and a mixed diet, over 10 weeks using 200 T. gratilla (average...

The inherent nature of coastal ponds and their small size make them highly dynamic ecosystems, with great variations in their environmental conditions, such as changes in conductivity (due to sea storms or freshwater inputs), water level, or dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration. Because of these frequent fluctuations, aquatic communities are generally adapted to them, which often hinders the detection of the effects of disturba...

Stable tropical conditions and a near-pristine marine environment in the Seychelles suggest a high potential for seaweed aquaculture to supply growing global markets for sustainable marine products. The aims of this study were to assess the mercury content in five seaweed species that are candidates for aquaculture in Seychelles: Gracilaria cortica, Gracilaria salicornia, Caulerpa racemosa, Sargassum spp., and Asparagopsis tax...

Microalgae play a critical role in aquaculture hatcheries as a primary feed source, supplying lipids, proteins, and vitamins to nearly all aquaculture species. Traditionally cultivated indoors under controlled conditions, microalgae production is resource intensive. This study examines the potential for outdoor microalgae farming in equatorial regions like Seychelles, utilizing abundant sunlight and stable high temperatures fo...

Climate change is predicted to drive geographical range shifts that will result in changes in species diversity and functional composition and have potential repercussions for ecosystem functioning. However, the effect of these changes on species composition and functional diversity (FD) remains unclear, especially for mammals, specifically bats. We used species distribution models and a comprehensive ecological and morphometr...

Asparagopsis taxiformis macroalgae can potentially reduce methane emissions when fed to ruminants, thus reducing the emission of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. Literature indicates water temperatures above 24 °C limit A. taxiformes growth rates during culture, however, it grows wild in Seychelles where water temperatures range from 25 to 31.5 °C. The feasibility of cultivating the local strain of A. taxiformis in Seych...

Global change is rapidly reshaping species' habitat suitability ranges, hence leading to significant shifts in the distribution of marine life. Contrasting distributional responses among species can alter the spatial overlap between predators and prey, potentially disrupting trophic interactions and affecting food web dynamics. Here, we evaluate long‐term changes in the spatial overlap of habitat suitability ranges for trophic...

The sea urchin species Tripneustes gratilla has high aquaculture potential. It is known for using debris to cover itself, likely to avoid light, which suggests that high light levels may impact its production. This study aimed to validate these concerns through four experiments. The first experiment assessed if T. gratilla preferred opaque or transparent covering materials, finding no evidence that shading ability of the mater...

Early juvenile loggerhead turtles ( Caretta caretta ) rely on gelatinous zooplankton, whereas individuals larger than 40 cm curved carapace length are adapted to crush hard-shelled invertebrates. Nevertheless, fish were reported to be the staple food of loggerhead turtles in the western Mediterranean 30 years ago. Here, the temporal consistency of such a fish-based diet of loggerhead turtles is assessed through gut content ana...

Estimations of ecosystem metabolism have rarely been used to quantify productivity in structural reductionist approaches for the description of phytoplankton composition. However, estimations of ecosystem metabolism could contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between phytoplankton composition and ecosystem functioning. To examine this, we investigated the community structure of phytoplankton in a set of Medi...

Background: Dysregulation of skin metabolism is associated with a plethora of diseases such as psoriasis and dermatitis. Until now, reconstructed human skin (RhS) models lack the metabolic potential of native human skin, thereby limiting their relevance to study human healthy and diseased skin. We aimed to determine whether incorporation of an adipocyte-containing hypodermis into RhS improves its metabolic potential and to ide...