Biogeography of the Plumose anemone Metridium senile: potential marine invasive in the Falklands? and Inventory of Sea Anemones of the Falkland Islands

In November 2019, PhD candidate Heather Glon (Ohio State University, USA) partnered with SMSG through the Shackleton Scholarship fund to collect and document sea anemones in the Falkland Islands.

Heather was particularly interested in a certain species native to the northern hemisphere, Metridium senile, which has been introduced to several locations in the southern hemisphere including the Falkland Islands. To sample outside of Stanley, she joined the Fine Scaling of the Marine Management Areas of the Falkland Islands expedition on the Golden Fleece. She collected individuals of Metridium senile from two locations during her time here, one of which was a new location off Bird Island. She’ll compare these two populations to northern hemisphere and Chilean populations using genetics to gain insight into where they may have been introduced from. Along with Metridium senile, she also collected over 60 individuals of other species, which will be used to confirm species identifications using physical characteristics and genetics in the hopes of providing a more thorough list of the sea anemones in the Falkland Islands.  

For more information contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.or SMSG.  Heather's full Shackleton Repot can be downloaded here. Thanks to the Shackleton Scholarship Fund, and the Darwin Plus project "Fine scaling the design of Falkland Islands Marine Management Areas" at SAERI.