Census of Marine Zooplankton (CMarZ)
P.I. Ann Bucklin, Professor
Department of Marine Sciences
University of Connecticut - Avery Point
1080 Shennecossett Road
Groton, CT 06340 USA
Tel. +1 860-405-9208; Fax +1860-405-9153; Email: ann.bucklin@uconn.edu
Co-P.I. Shuhei Nishida, Professor
Ocean Research Institute, University of Tokyo
1-15-1 Minamidai, Nakano, Tokyo 164, JAPAN
Tel. +81 (3) 5351 6475, Fax +81 (3) 5351 6481, Email: nishida@ori.u-tokyo.ac.jp
Co-P.I. Sigrid Schiel, Professor
Marine Animal Ecology
Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research
D 27568 Bremerhaven, GERMANY
Tel. +49 (471) 4831 1303, Fax +49 (471) 4831 1149, Email sschiel@awi-bremerhaven.de
CMarZ-USA Project Manager: Leocadio Blanco Bercial
Department of Marine Sciences
University of Connecticut - Avery Point
1080 Shennecossett Road
Groton, CT 06340 USA
Tel. +1 860-405-9058; Fax +1 860-405-9153; Email: leocadio@uconn.edu
CMarZ-Asia Project Manager: Ryuji Machida
Ocean Research Institute, University of Tokyo
1-15-1 Minamidai, Nakano, Tokyo 164, JAPAN
Tel. +81 (3) 5351 6537, Fax +81 (3) 5351 6481, Email: ryuji@ori.u-tokyo.ac.jp
CMarZ-Europe Project Manager: Astrid Cornils
Marine Animal Ecology
Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research
D 27568 Bremerhaven, GERMANY
Tel. +49 (471) 4831 2077, Fax +49 (471) 4831 1918, Email acornils@awi-bremerhaven.de
Education and Outreach Network Liaison: Nancy J. Copley
Department of Biology (MS-33)
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Woods Hole, MA 02453
Tel. +1 508 289-3204, Fax +1 508-457-2134, E-mail: ncopley@whoi.edu
Project website: http://www.CMarZ.org
Submitted – 15 September 2008
1. 2008 ACCOMPLISHMENTS & SCIENTIFIC HIGHLIGHTS
Field Expeditions
CMarZ carried out a number of major field expeditions for comprehensive biodiversity surveys in
ocean regions targeted for species discovery, including the deep sea, biodiversity hotspots, and
under-sampled areas. To date, CMarZ has organized or participated in 76 cruises. However, a
number of these ‘cruises’ are actually time-series collections, with weekly or monthly excursions for
zooplankton sampling. If each of these is counted, the total number of CMarZ cruises since October
2004 is 560. Completion of the 2008 cruises moved CMarZ closer to the project goal of a global
biodiversity survey of holozooplankton. Significant field efforts during 2008 include:

Northeast Atlantic: Three cruises were carried out in 2007-2008 around the Scottish west
coast, sampled several inshore sea lochs and Shetland Islands Voes with vertical Bongo net
(200micron mesh) plankton tows. [CMarZ contact: Steve Hay]

Northeast Atlantic time-series collections. Routine coastal time-series sampling is done at
Loch Ewe (NW Scotland) and Stonehaven (near Aberdeen), with weekly sampling using a
vertical Bongo net tow and samples preserved in ethanol. Annual time-series take place
during December for surveys of the Faroe-Shetland region. Samples are preserved in
ethanol, with some identified specimens frozen in liquid nitrogen. [CMarZ contact: Steve Hay]

North Atlantic Ocean marginal seas. Cruises sampled zooplankton and environmental
conditions (oxygen, salinity and temperature) from the southwestern Black Sea and the
Bosporus during February 2008; from the northwest Marmara Sea during February and AprilAugust 2008; and from the eastern Mediterranean Sea during July 2008. [CMarZ contact:
Ahmet Kideys]

South Atlantic Ocean. Zooplankton sampling was carried out in the Benguela Upwelling
region, with a cruise during February to April 2008 led by Werner Ekau (Germany). Sampling
was done along transects from coast to shelf break and beyond, including oceanic stations
deeper than 1000 m. The samples were preserved in formalin for taxonomy and alcohol for
molecular genetic studies. [CMarZ contacts: Sigrid Schiel and Hans Verheye]

Arctic Ocean. Sampling was done in association with the CoML project Arctic Ocean Diversity
(ArcOD) on the Umitaka Maru during January and February 2008. [CMarZ contact: Russell
Hopcroft]

Arctic Ocean. Zooplankton samples were collected using nets and a mid-water trawl during the
third Chinese Arctic Expedition. The survey focused on the zooplankton biodiversity in the high
latitude seas during July to September 2008. [CMarZ contact: Sun Song]

Northwest Pacific Ocean. Gelatinous zooplankton sampling has been carried out in waters
near Japan during January, February, and March 2008. Field work is led by University of
Tokyo researchers and is in association with CAML and CEAMARC [CMarZ contact: Dhugal
Lindsay]

Northwest Pacific, Kuroshio Region: Cruise during August - September 2008 led by J.
Nishikawa to study the production and decomposition processes of faecal pellets of mesozooplankton with special reference of thaliaceans. [CMarZ contact: Shuhei Nishida]
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
Northwest Pacific, off Sanriku, Japan. Zooplankton and benthic community analysis was
carried out during a cruise led by R.J. Machida during 28 Oct.-3 Nov., 2008. [CMarZ contact:
Shuhei Nishida]

Northeast Pacific Ocean. Trawls off southern California and Washington with an ROV,
concentrating on deep sampling. Collaboration with ORI, Japan. [CMarZ contact: Eric
Thuesen]

North Pacific. HOT (Hawaii Ocean Time-Series) #203, HOT #205: short cruises provide
access to highly diverse central gyre plankton communities of the N. Pacific. The goals were
to obtain RNAlater preserved material from 20 calanoid families for phylogenomic analysis.
Routine preservation of some plankton material from HOT cruise tows in 95% ETOH (each
cruise where sufficient technical staff are present to preserve the material). All of these ETOH
samples go into -20 for long-term storage. They are for CMarZ and other research. Some of
this material is for DNA Barcoding of station ALOHA copepods (at least species that are not
represented in the current database). [CMarZ contact: Erica Goetze]

Southeast Pacific. COPAS Center research focused on upwelling dynamics and pelagic
communities in the Eastern South Pacific. Multinet tows to 1000m during March-June 2008.
[CMarZ contact: Rubén Escribano]

Southeast Pacific. High-resolution sampling of mesozooplankton was performed on a crossshelf transect from near-shore to offshore waters. Sampling used both a Tucker Trawl and a
0.25-m2 Multinet. Analysis of samples will allow comparisons among samples and evaluate the
effect of mesh-size of sample composition. [CMarZ contact: Rubén Escribano]

Southwest Pacific. A field project on the ecological roles of medusae and ctenophores was
led by S. Ohtsuka and S. Mulyadi to Indonesian waters. Field and laboratory research focused
on species diversity, distribution, life history, and molecular genetics in the coastal waters of
Indonesia. Sampling was done by small boats and SCUBA diving. [CMarZ contact: S. Nishida]

Southwest Pacific. Gelatinous zooplankton, especially jelly fish, were collected for CMarZ
work from Indonesian waters. The cruise was funded by the Japan Society for the Promotion
of Science (JSPS) during 9-14 September 2008. [CMarZ contact: Dhugal Lindsay]

Southern Ocean. Investigation on the structure and function of the zooplankton community of
the Southern Ocean ecosystem was carried in conjunction with Chinese National Antarctic
Research Expedition (CHINARE) during October 2007 - March 2008. [CMarZ contact: Sun
Song]

Southern Ocean. The Norwegian Antarctic Survey was conducted in the Atlantic region of the
Southern Ocean between 50° and 70°S during January to March 2008. The first leg started in
Montevideo, Uruguay, ending in Cape Town, South Africa, while the second leg started in
Cape Town and ended in Walvis Bay, Namibia. During the survey samples of zooplankton
were collected using nets, MOCNESS, and trawls, with depth-resolved sampling to 750 m.
Sub-samples were fixed in alcohol for later identification and genetic analysis. CMarZ Steering
Committee member Webjørn Melle (IMR, Norway) was the chief scientist; Peter Wiebe
(WHOI, USA) and PhD student Paola Batta Lona (UConn, USA) participated. [CMarZ contact:
Webjørn Melle]
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Sample and Data Analysis
CMarZ continues to make progress in the analysis of samples from both new and archived
collections. Analysis of these data, as well as data recovery efforts, keeps CMarZ on-track to meet
project goals for global biodiversity assessment. Among the CMarZ efforts reporting significant
progress are:

New species discovery: CMarZ’ integrated morphological and molecular examination of
zooplankton samples collected throughout the world’s oceans is revealing species that are
new to science. CMarZ reports species discoveries as the descriptions are published, and the
current total stands at 81 species, including one new family and four new genera. Current
estimates are that at least 100 new species have been discovered as a result of CMarZ
activities.

DNA barcoding: There are CMarZ barcoding laboratories in the USA (University of
Connecticut), Japan (University of Tokyo), and China (Institute of Oceanology, Chinese
Academy of Sciences), with new capacity for barcoding in Germany (Alfred Wegener Institute
for Polar and Marine Research) and India (Regional Centre of National Institute of
Oceanography, Kochi). Several additional CMarZ Steering Group members are engaged in
DNA barcoding collaborative projects. CMarZ uses protocols and procedures from the
Consortium for the Barcode of Life (CBOL); approximately 25% to 30% of the ~7,000
described species of zooplankton have now been sequenced for a selected barcode gene –
most usually the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (mtCOI) gene. Progress to date
includes:
 41 species (87 individuals) were barcoded for zooplankton collected from the Arctic
Ocean during ArcOD cruises during 2004 – 2008 [CMarZ contacts: Ann Bucklin and
Russ Hopcroft]
 127 species of Medusozoa (the Cnidarian subphylum comprising the Hydrozoa,
Scyphozoa, and Cubozoa) were barcoded for mtCOI using specimens collected from
North Atlantic and North Pacific regions by Brian D. Ortman, UConn PhD student.
[CMarZ contact: Ann Bucklin]
 310 species (529 individuals) were barcoded from collections of CMarZ surveys to the
Sargasso Sea (April 2006) and eastern Atlantic (October-November 2007). During the
two cruises, CMarZ Steering Group member Martin Angel, a taxonomic expert for the
ostracods, identified 109 of the 140 known Atlantic Ocean species of this important
crustacean group; DNA barcoding of the identified specimens is underway. [CMarZ
contact: Ann Bucklin]
 67 species (98 sequences for mtCOI and mt12 S rRNA) were sequenced from near
Sanriku, Japan; DNA barcodes are being determined for Oncaeidae copepods from the
Mediterranean Sea; molecular markers are being developed for species identification
of pelagic cnidarians; DNA-based protocols are being designed to distinguish the
copepod sibling species Calanus sinicus and C. jashnovi from mesopelagic depths;
molecular genetic analysis in underway for pelagic chaetognaths and scolecitrichid
copepods; quantitative real-time PCR is being used to identify species of the copepod
genus Neocalanus. [CMarZ contacts: Shuhei Nishida and Ryuiji Machida]
 103 species from China Sea have been barcoded; the results are in preparation for
publication and submission to GenBank. [CMarZ contact: Sun Song]
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
Zooplankton metagenomics: CMarZ is pioneering metagenomic analysis (i.e., the study of
genomes recovered from environmental samples) of all metazoans collected by plankton nets.
Analytical steps after collection include: extraction of messenger RNA (mRNA) from the
unsorted bulk sample; construction of a cloned DNA (cDNA) library; amplification of the
barcode gene mitochondrial COI (mtCOI), and exhaustive sequencing of the target region. An
advantage of metagenomic analysis is to rapidly acquire nearly all the mtCOI sequences from
the sample (rather than the typical one-by-one sequencing of identified specimens) and the
avoidance of contamination by mitochondrial pseudogenes (which are not transcribed and will
not appear in the mRNA). [CMarZ contact: Shuhei Nishida and Ryuji Machida]

Taxonomy, phylogeography, and phylogeny of chaetognaths: Several studies are nearing
completion on chaetognaths, or arrow worms, including DNA barcoding for species
identification, discrimination, and biogeography of Atlantic species with Rob Jennings (former
CMarZ-USA Project Manager) and another focused on Antarctic deep-sea chaetognaths.
[CMarZ contact: Annelies Pierrot-Bults]

Indian Ocean inventories digitized: Digitized inventories for 250 species of zooplankton from
the Indian Ocean have been completed. Each inventory covers complete morphological
description, biogeography and ecology of the species, including 60 species of calanoid
copepods, 31 species of chaetognaths, 32 species of ostracods, 101 species of mysids and 26
species of pleuronectiformes have been digitized. These data are now accessible on the
CMarZ data website. [CMarZ contact: Vijayalakshmi Nair]

Invasive species of the southern Caspian and Black Seas: Field studies continue, with new
expeditions during 2007 and 2008 to the Sea of Marmara for copepod species. In the Caspian
Sea, there were striking parallels between biomass of the invasive ctenophore Mnemiopsis
leidyi and satellite-derived chlorophyll-a concentrations. By consuming herbivorous
zooplankton, the predatory ctenophore may have caused levels of chlorophyll-a to rise to
unprecedented levels (9mg /m3). [CMarZ contact: Ahmed Kideys]

Species diversity of the Celebes Sea: Collections are yielding a treasure-trove of new and rare
species. ROV collections included two apparently undescribed species: a black lobate
ctenophore (probably belonging to the genus Bathocyroe) and a large pelagic polychaete
worm with prehensile cephalic tentacles. Two species of pelagic holothuroid – including one
likely undescribed – were collected. During nine blue-water SCUBA dives, salps, medusae,
siphonophores and ctenophores were all fairly abundant. Three trawl collections yielded a
variety of midwater fishes, crustaceans, coronate medusae, and smaller numbers of
pteropods, pyrosomes, other crustacea. [CMarZ contact: Larry Madin]

Chaetognaths and copepods of the Andaman Sea: Detailed study on the biodiversity of
chaetognaths of the Andaman Sea – including 20 species, of which two are new – has been
completed. Species diversity is linked to the unique physical features of the Andaman Sea.
Studies on copepods in this region are in progress, with ~250 species identified to date. In a
related study, climate-related changes in copepod community of coastal waters of India
include sharply-declining population density of a copepod species over the past 3 decades.
[CMarZ contact: Vijayalakshmi Nair]

ZIMNES web-based zooplankton identification manual: A comprehensive resource for
taxonomic analysis of zooplankton in the Northeast European Seas, ZIMNES is now hosted at
SAHFOS in Plymouth (see http://www.sahfos.ac.uk/taxonmanual/index.php). Funded by a UK
NERC Knowledge Transfer Grant, this effort will consolidate and disseminate the diminishing
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taxonomic expertise in the UK, and form a focus and platform for future developments. Many
images from the site have been donated to CMarZ for use on the project web site and
taxonomic data base. [CMarZ contact: Steve Hay]

Atlantic atlas for the planktonic ostracods: A complement to a Southern Ocean atlas (see
http://ocean.ioopan.gda.pl/ostracoda) was published on the Natural History Museum (London,
UK) website. The atlas has been supplemented with information from recent CMarZ cruises to
the Sargasso Sea and eastern Atlantic Ocean. [CMarZ contact: Martin Angel]

Morphological and molecular phylogenetics of calanoid copepods: The deep phylogeny of
calanoid copepods, including relationships among families, has been the source of much
speculation. CMarZ collections are making possible a new analysis based on formal cladistic
analysis of morphological characters. Parallel analysis using molecular characters is planned
through collaboration with CMarZ DNA barcoding efforts. [CMarZ contact: Janet Grieve]

Ballast water monitoring in Argentine ports: A CMarZ project is underway that involves
monitoring ballast water of transoceanic ships in four Argentine ports. Salinity is measured and
plankton samples are collected from ballast water tanks. The samples are being analyzed by
10 taxonomic experts for various planktonic groups, including both freshwater and marine
species. [CMarZ contact: Demetrio Boltovskoy]

ZooScan surveys of Southeastern Pacific: Zooplankton surveys in waters off Chile will employ
a newly-purchased ZooScan device (www.zoooscan.com). Protocols for processing samples
using ZooScan are being developed to allow estimation of size-structured zooplankton
biomass and taxa-structured biomass at major taxa levels. The use of ZooScan will be
complementary to standard taxonomic analysis of samples. [CMarZ contact: Ruben Escribano]
Publications and Presentations
During 2008, CMarZ Steering Group members published 28 papers, with an additional 11 papers in
press and 6 papers in review. CMarZ participants are working steadily to publish results of their
efforts, with 126 peer-reviewed publications to date. CMarZ has records of a total of 48 oral and 18
poster presentations at scientific conferences and meetings, but these totals may be incomplete. Of
particular importance are invited presentations and/or special sessions organized by CMarZ Steering
Group members, including:

CMarZ leadership was evident for the 2nd International Conference for the Barcode of Life
(Taipei, Taiwan). Ann Bucklin (University of Connecticut and the CMarZ lead P.I.) was a
member of the organizing committee and participated as an invited member of several panel
discussions and working groups.

CMarZ organized and hosted a Special Session entitled, Global Ocean Holozooplankton
Diversity; ASLO Ocean Sciences Meeting, Orlando, FL; March 8-13, 2008. Steering Group
members, Network members, and students and staff presenting in the session
included…CMarZ participants made many poster and oral presentations during this session
and during the conference as a whole.

Erica Goetze (University of Hawaii) and Ryuji Machida (University of Tokyo and CMarZ-Asia
Project Manager) spoke at the Copepod Genomics symposium at the tenth meeting of the
World Association of Copepodologists in Pattaya, Thailand this year. A review paper
summarizing the discussions is in preparation.
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2. PROJECT MANAGEMENT & INTERNAL COMMUNICATION
The Census of Marine Zooplankton (CMarZ) has three Project Offices to ensure effective leadership,
project coordination, and fund-raising. The primary office, which provides support for the Secretariat
and Steering Group and coordination of workshops and meetings, is overseen by P.I. Ann Bucklin at
the University of Connecticut, USA. In February 2008, CMarZ-USA Project Manager Rob Jennings left
CMarZ for another postdoctoral position, and Leocadio Blanco-Bercial moved from the University of
Oviedo (Spain) to the University of Connecticut to assume this role for CMarZ. The CMarZ-Asia
project office is overseen by co-P.I. Shuhei Nishida at the Ocean Research Institute, University of
Tokyo, Japan; Ryuji Machida is the CMarZ-Asia Project Manager. The CMarZ-Europe office is located
at the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Sciences (Bremerhaven, Germany) and is led by
co-P.I. Sigrid Schiel, with Astrid Cornils as Project Manager. All program functions, including scientific
leadership, programmatic coordination, oversight of outcomes and deliverables from CMarZ
cooperating projects, and leadership of education and outreach efforts are accomplished by the three
project offices working in coordination. The Science Plan (CMarZ 2004) serves as a guide for
programmatic priorities and goals, although CMarZ implementation is tailored to each region’s needs
and opportunities.
The CMarZ Data and Information Management Office is led by CMarZ Steering Group member Peter
Wiebe (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, USA), with Robert Groman (WHOI) as the data
manager and liaison to OBIS. In 2006, CMarZ Communications activities were assumed by Nancy
Copley, a research associate in Wiebe’s laboratory at WHOI and a member of the data management
team.
The CMarZ Steering Group includes 23 members from 14 countries, who together ensure broad
taxonomic breadth and geographic distribution. Steering Group members are responsible for
developing and leading cooperating projects; organizing taxonomic expert and special focus groups;
coordinating outreach activities; interfacing with national funding agencies and programs; and
coordinating with other CoML projects and the CoML N/RICs.
3. 2008 EDUCATION & OUTREACH EFFORTS
The CMarZ Network now has 138 members and is continuing to grow in membership numbers,
geographic distribution, and range of interests. The CMarZ Network was established to encourage
expert taxonomists and parataxonomists to participate in CMarZ, although zooplankton researchers,
students, and interested others are also welcome. The members receive email updates and notice of
project meetings, and are encouraged to provide samples for analysis and to request access to
archived samples. Network participation helps encourage and facilitate participation in CMarZ field
and laboratory activities. The CMarZ Network also helps coordinate analysis of existing and newlycollected zooplankton samples by identifying appropriate experts for particular taxonomic challenges,
and requesting their assistance.
CMarZ workshops: Each year, workshops are organized to address the need for taxonomic expertise
for the 15 phyla of animals occurring in the plankton. CMarZ prepares graduate students, providing
training in species identifications, including molecular systematic approaches to understanding
species diversity. To date, CMarZ has sponsored 33 Taxonomic Training Workshops, with an
estimated total participation by more than 350 students, staff, and researchers. Workshops held
during 2008 include:

JSPS CMarZ-Asia Workshop on Zooplankton Biodiversity: This course is part of a series of
courses throughout Southeast Asia and included a census of jellyfishes and jellyfish fisheries
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in Viet Nam, coral reef food-web dynamics in the area, and production of an identification
manual of Asian zooplankton. The course was held at the University Putra Malaysia with
funding from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. [CMarZ contact: Shuhei
Nishida]

LIPI-JSPS Workshop on Zooplankton Biodiversity in Southeast Asia. A total of 12 project
members from Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, Vietnam, and the Philippines participated in the
workshop held at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences during November 1-3, 2007. Field
sampling during the training course covered different habitat types, including coral reefs,
mangroves, sandy shores, and estuaries. [CMarZ contact: Shuhei Nishida]

Taxonomy of copepods: A new course was designed for advanced undergraduate and
graduate students in marine biology of University of Concepción, Chile. Six students are
registered for this course in this semester. CMarZ is one of the major issues to be addressed
during the course. [CMarZ contact: Rubèn Escribano]

Calanoid identification course: A training course was held at Wellington, New Zealand, during
June 16-20, 2008. [CMarZ contact: Janet Bradford-Grieve]

Zooplankton: sampling and identification techniques. A tropical marine ecology special training
course (MEST) was held in Makassar, Indonesia, during September 2008. [CMarZ contacts:
Sigrid Schiel and Astrid Cornils]

Training course on the sex and stage determination on Southern Ocean krill: A training course
for characterization of Euphausia superba was led by Volker Siegel in Bergen, Norway, during
August 2008. [CMarZ contact: Webjørn Melle]

Training Course in Species Identification of Zooplankton: A taxonomic training course was
held at the National Marine Information and Research Centre in Swakopmund, Namibia. This
one-week training course was held during August 2008 with funding from the University of
Namibia, and was organized by Ignatius Kauvee (Masters’ student, Univ. Namibia) and
presented by Fabienne Cazassus (PhD student, Univ. Cape Town). More than ten students
from the University of Namibia were trained in the use of microscopes and identification of
zooplankton, with particular emphasis on the copepods. [CMarZ contact: Hans Verheye]

Automatic recognition of zooplankton using digitalized images and ZooImage software: An
international course to train graduate students and young researchers from Latin America in
modern techniques and new developments for automatic identification of zooplankton was
carried out at the Marine Biology Station-Dichato during November 15-30, 2007. Lectures and
practical work were provided by Dr. Phil Culverhouse from Plymouth University, UK. The
course was sponsored by the Austral Summer Institute VIII, University of Concepcion and
COPAS Center, Chile. [CMarZ contact: Rubèn Escribano]
Professional exchanges and graduate/professional training: CMarZ has created opportunities for
graduate and professional training through the activities of Steering Committee members.
International exchanges by students, post-doctoral fellows, and researchers add a particularly
compelling element to graduate training for CMarZ.

Astrid Cornils (CMarZ-Europe Project Manager and a postdoctoral fellow at the Alfred
Wegener Institute, Germany) visited the Zoology Museum Amsterdam to study the diversity
and spatial distribution of complex group of planktonic copepods, the Paracalanidae, in
Indonesian Seas. Her host was Annelies Pierrot-Bults (University of Amsterdam, The
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Netherlands). During September-October, 2008, Astrid visited the University of Connecticut to
learn DNA barcoding techniques and determine DNA barcodes for calanoid copepods from the
FS Polarstern cruise in 2007. Astrid also travelled to the Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution to participate in a CMarZ Synthesis Working Group meeting on DNA barcoding.

Two CMarZ Steering Group members, Vijayalakshmi Nair (National Institution of
Oceanography, India) and Annelies Pierrot-Bults (University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
visited Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the University of Connecticut during
October, 2008. They worked together on taxonomic identification of chaetognath species from
the CMarZ sample archives, especially the April 2006 Sargasso Sea cruise. Identified
specimens will also be used for DNA barcoding, with the molecular analysis to be done in
India, The Netherlands, or the USA at the University of Connecticut.

Ryuji Machida (Ocean Research Institute, University of Tokyo and CMarZ-Asia Project
Manager) received CMarZ support for travel to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution,
USA to participate in a CMarZ Synthesis Working Group meeting on DNA barcoding during
October 2008.
Public education: CMarZ has sponsored numerous public education events targeted on diverse
audiences, ranging from the general public to programs for school teachers and children led by
Steering Group members. Public events during 2008 included:

Let's Study the Ocean: Shuhei Nishida led an outreach activity for high-school students
involving a research cruise on Suruga Bay, Japan during August 3-8, 2008. Activities for the
students included both ship-board and land-based lectures and laboratory sessions. The
event was co-sponsored by the Japan Science Society, Tokai University, the Oceanographic
Society of Japan, and CMarZ. Lecturers included R.J. Machida, N. Iwasaki, and S. Sawamoto.

Virtual Stowaway on an Oceanographic Cruise: A new website using linked QuickTime
panoramas will offer a broad public a virtual first-hand look at scientific research and
exploration aboard a dedicated research vessel on the open ocean. The site will be a segment
of the WHOI web series Dive and Discover, with underwater shots showing "jelly animals" that
are targets of study. We hope to illustrate how the ship's spaces, functions, and people fit
together to help researchers learn about the ocean around them. [CMarZ contact: Larry Madin]

Zooplankton exhibit in Qingdao: A popular science exhibition hall, including contents of
zooplankton, was established at the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
(IOCAS) in Qingdao, China. The exhibit is designed for a broad range of students; more than
300 students attended the exhibition opening. [CMarZ contact: Sun Song]

New technologies for deep sea exploration: In Japan, lectures were given at various public
functions, including the Oceanographic Wildlife Society, Tama Community College, Asahi
Culture Center on the application of new technology to investigations of deep-sea midwater
ecosystems. Appearances were also made on radio and television, including “NHK Hi-Vision
Special”, NHK Cable TV; “Sekai Ichi Uketai Jugyou”, Nihon Television; “24-jikan Terebi”, and
Nihon Television. [CMarZ contact: Dhugal Lindsay]
Media relations: CMarZ welcomes press coverage, and has been fortunate to receive considerable
media attention for major events and research findings.

CMarZ cruise on FS Polarstern: Outstanding media coverage of the CMarZ FS Polarstern
survey was made possible by the participation of a writer and photographer during the entire
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cruise. The results were stunning photography and articles in the popular German magazine,
GEO. An online story by K. Milhahn and S. Schiel, entitled Tiefsee-Special: Jagd auf die
Finsterlinge appeared in 2007; a hardcopy publication followed in 2008. An article was
published in New Zealand’s NIWA Newsletter authored by Janet Grieve entitled Sampling the
Atlantic Depths (Water & Atmosphere, 2008, 16: 14-15).

Inner Space expedition to the Celebes Sea: Media attention was broadly distributed and highprofile, with more than 22 stories on radio, television, and print media.

Marine biodiversity in China: An interview with Song Sun (Institute of Oceanology, Chinese
Academy of Sciences and a CMarZ Steering Group member) about marine biodiversity and
the expansion of ocean “deserts” was reported in the Chinese popular newspaper on science,
Sciences Times (April 1st, 2008). Song Sun was also interviewed about the giant jellyfish
blooming in the NW Pacific Ocean by NHK (July 2nd, 2008).
Web presence: The CMarZ website (www.cmarz.org), redesigned this year, provides background
information on zooplankton for the general reader, and vivid imagery of zooplankton helps build and
maintain public interest. CMarZ continues to draw media interest, perhaps largely because of the
compelling images of living zooplankton.
4. SOCIETAL BENEFITS
CMarZ results have practical real-world applications for diverse issues:

Indicators of ecosystem health: Knowledge of prior and existing patterns of zooplankton
distribution and diversity is useful for management of coastal marine ecosystems. Zooplankton
diversity can be used as a measure of the status, functioning, and health of marine
ecosystems.

Baseline biodiversity assessment for analysis of climate effects: A global assessment of
marine zooplankton biodiversity will provide a benchmark against which future changes
resulting from climate change or other anthropogenic or natural variation can be measured.
The baseline will include exploration of ocean regions and taxa that have historically been
ignored or understudied, and are thus likely to yield new species discovery. Climate-related
alterations in the zooplankton assemblage can be recognized through trends in diversity,
distribution, and abundance. CMarZ is helping provide tools for accurate assessment of
species diversity, including web-based and interactive zooplankton identification manuals and
DNA barcode libraries.

Ocean observing systems: The CMarZ effort to determine DNA barcodes for zooplankton
species is yielding data needed to produce DNA microarrays (“chips”), which can be used for
automated and/or remote identification and quantification of zooplankton. In the not-too-distant
future, ocean observing stations may include moored instruments with DNA-based detection
systems for in situ identification of species.

Marine bioinvasions: Species invasions are occurring with ever-increasing frequency,
particularly in coastal waters. CMarZ taxonomic analysis – with DNA barcoding – can help
monitor ballast water of transoceanic ships in ports around the globe. Monitoring can involve
determining the salinity and taking plankton samples of the ballast water tanks, in order to
identify pathways and patterns of invasion and environmental damage.
Census of Marine Zooplankton (CMarZ) Annual Report 2008
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
Fundamental science issues: Zooplankton are significant mediators of global elemental cycles,
including fluxes of carbon, nitrogen, and other critical elements in ocean biogeochemical
cycles. Patterns of endemism are fundamental to understanding how geographic ranges may
change over time, how new species may arise, and what may cause extinction of species in
the ocean. Since the majority of pelagic species are rare, zooplankton can be used to evaluate
the significance of rare species for ocean food web stability.
5. PARTNERSHIPS & COLLABORATION
Please identify any organizations, government agencies, science programs, and non-CoML projects
with which your CoML project has an affiliation and briefly describe the nature of each relationship.
Organization Name
NOAA National Marine
Fisheries Service (US
government)
Point-of-Contact
David Mountain, NMFS Northeast
Fisheries Science Center, Woods
Hole, MA
Nature of Relationship
Zooplankton sampling from
NMFS Ecosystem Surveys
Hokkaido University
Naonobu SHIGA, Plankton
Laboratory, Graduate School of
Fisheries, Hokkaido University
Shozo SAWAMOTO, Institute of
Oceanic Research & Development,
Tokai University
Hiroya SUGISAKI, Tohoku
Regional Fisheries Research
Institute
Nozomu IWASAKI, Committee for
Educational Issues,
Oceanographical Society of Japan
Dhugal J. Lindsay,
Extremobiosphere Research
Center
Hans Verheye, Ocean Environment
(Biological Oceanography), Cape
Town, S. Africa
Zooplankton collection and
database from Subarctic Pacific
Anja Kreiner, Environmental
Section (Biological Oceanography),
Swakopmund, Namibia
Zooplankton sampling during
annual fisheries surveys and
monthly environmental
monitoring programs
Antonio da Silva, Luanda, Angola
(now Swakopmund, Namibia)
Zooplankton sampling during
monthly environmental
monitoring programs
Coastal copepods were
prepared for analysis by Erica
Goetze; working at Kiorboe's lab
on genetics of marine planktonic
copepods.
Tokai University
Fisheries Research Agency
(Japanese government)
Oceanographical Society of
Japan
Japan Agency for MarineEarth Science and
Technology
Marine and Coastal
Management, Dept of
Environmental Affairs and
Tourism (South African
government)
National Marine Information
and Research Centre,
Ministry of Fisheries and
Marine Resources (Namibian
government)
National Marine Research
Institute (Angolan
government)
Technical Univ. of Denmark
Natl. Inst. Aquatic Resources
Thomas Kiorboe
Technical University of Denmark
Charlottenlund, Denmark
Census of Marine Zooplankton (CMarZ) Annual Report 2008
Zooplankton collection and
database from CSK
Zooplankton collection and
database from Odate Project
Education and outreach for
children and students
Deep-Sea zooplankton study,
collection, and database from
DSRVs and ROVs
Zooplankton sampling during
annual fish stock assessments
and monthly environmental
monitoring programs
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Japan Society for the
Promotion of Science (JSPS)
W. L. Campos
Zoology Museum
Amsterdam
A. Cornils, AWI
A. Pierrot-Bults, ZMA
National Institute of Water &
Atmospheric Research, New
Zealand (NIWA) and
Universidad de Concepcion
Ocean Research Institute,
University of Tokyo
R. Escribano and J. Grieve
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Research Institute (MBARI)
and Japan Agency for
Marine-Earth Science and
Technology (JAMSTEC)
Japan Society for the
Promotion of Science (JSPS)
Dhugal Lindsay/ JAMSTEC
Japan Society for the
Promotion of Science
(JSPS); Research Center for
Biology, Indonesian Institute
of Science (LIPI)
Japan Society for the
Promotion of Science (JSPS)
Mulyadi, Sr. Scientist and S.
Nishida
Japan Society for the
Promotion of Science (JSPS)
S. Ohtsuka, Mulyadi, (co-PIs) and
S. Nishida
Japan Society for the
Promotion of Science (JSPS)
B. H. R. Othman, (PI) and S.
Nishida
T. Koike and S. Nishida
Bruce Robison/ MBARI Midwater
Biology
M. Miyazaki, (PI) and S. Nishida
T. T. Nguyen, (PI) and S. Nishida
Census of Marine Zooplankton (CMarZ) Annual Report 2008
Post-oil spill monitoring of
zooplankton in central
Philippines
The diversity and spatial
distribution of the Paracalanidae
(Copepoda: Crustacea) in
Indonesian Seas.
Clarification of the identification
status for some abundant
copepods of the Chilean coast.
Data Integration and
Assimilation System (DIAS)
integrates and assimilates data
on global environment, including
plankton biodiversity
Development of a softwarehardware system to recognize
and classify zooplankton in
video transects.
Multilateral Program in Coastal
Marine Science; biodiversity of
zooplankton in SE Asia; also
with NaGISA and TOPP.
Cooperating with JSPS and
CMarZ on zooplankton
biodiversity in SE Asia
Vietnam Academy of Science
and Technology (VAST) ProjectEcology and Fisheries of Giant
Jellyfishes in Vietnam;
cooperating with JSPS and
CMarZ on the ecology and
fisheries of giant jellyfishes in
Vietnam.
Bilateral Project- Biodiversity
and Ecological roles of
medusae and ctenophores in
Indonesian waters; cooperating
with CMarZ on jellyfish diversity
in SE Asia
Research Project in MalaysiaIntegrated Research of Priority
Area (IPRA), funded by the
government of Malaysia; JSPS
and CMarZ are studying
plankton biodiversity in Malaysia
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11
Chinese Academy of
Sciences and KLMEES,
Institute of Oceanology,
Qingdao, China
Observatoire Oceanologique,
Villefranche sur mer, France.
Song SUN
Institute of Oceanology
Zooplankton sampling from
Open Science Cruise organized
annually by the IOCAS
Song SUN
Gabriel Gorsky, OO-V
Marine and Coastal
Management, Dept of
Environmental Affairs and
Tourism (South African
government)
National Marine Information
and Research Centre,
Ministry of Fisheries and
Marine Resources (Namibian
government)
National Marine Research
Institute (Angolan
government)
International Council for the
Exploration of the Sea
(ICES)
Hans Verheye, Ocean Environment
(Biological Oceanography), Cape
Town, S. Africa
zooplankton biodiversity
research during visit to
laboratory at Villefranche sur
mer
Zooplankton sampling during
annual fish stock assessments
and monthly environmental
monitoring programs
Agulhas-Somali Currents
Large Marine Ecosystem ASCLME
Jenny Huggett, Ocean
Environment Research (Biological
Oceanography), Cape Town, S.
Africa
Anja Kreiner, Environmental
Section (Biological Oceanography),
Swakopmund, Namibia
Zooplankton sampling during
annual fisheries surveys and
monthly environmental
monitoring programs
Antonio da Silva, Luanda, Angola
(now Swakopmund, Namibia)
Zooplankton sampling during
monthly environmental
monitoring programs
Working Group on Zooplankton
Ecology (WGZE) co-sponsoring
Special Session for ICES 2008
Annual Science Conference,
Berlin Germany
Zooplankton sampling during
dedicated research cruises
Steve Hay, Peter Wiebe, Webjorn
Melle
6. LIAISONS
CoML Group
Synthesis
Mapping & Visualization
Barcoding
Liaison / Primary Point of Contact
Ann Bucklin, Shuhei Nishida, Sigrid
Schiel, Peter Wiebe, Nancy Copley
Robert Groman (WHOI)
Vijayalakshmi Nair (NIO)
Peter Wiebe (WHOI)
Ann Bucklin (UConn)
Education & Outreach
ArcOD
Nancy Copley (WHOI)
Russ Hopcroft, Ann Bucklin
ICOMM
Demetrio Boltovskoy,
Colomban de Vargas
Ann Bucklin, Annelies Pierrot-Bults,
Nancy Copley, Tone Falkenhaug,
Tracey Sutton
Ann Bucklin, Russ Hopcroft, Victoria
Ann Wadley
OBIS
MAR-ECO
CAML
Census of Marine Zooplankton (CMarZ) Annual Report 2008
Comments
Leadership Team for coordination
with CoML and cross-project
Data and information
management
Coordination of CMarZ barcoding
with MARBOL and CBOL
DNA barcoding of Arctic
zooplankton
Joint CMarZ – ICOMM Task
Force
Collaboration on zooplankton
projects and goals
Coordination of DNA barcoding
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.CoML National or
Regional
Implementation
Committee (NRIC)
Australia
Canada
Caribbean
China
Europe
Indian Ocean
Indonesia
Japan
South America
Sub-Saharan Africa
USA
Arabian Sea
(Oman workshop)
Liaison or Cross-over
personnel
Nature of Relationship
Song Sun
Member of China National Committee
Vijayalakshmi Nair
Member of Indian National Committee
Dhugal Lindsay
Rubèn Escribano
Member of Japan National Committee
Member South America Regional Committee
7. APPENDICES
Appendix A. CMarZ Synthesis Plan
 Appendix B. CMarZ Milestones
 Appendix C. OBIS Report
 Appendix D. Current Funding Report
 Appendix E. Future Funding Needs Report
 Appendix F. Ship-time Report
 Appendix G. Images
 Appendix H. Methodologies (Optional, only if updated)
No update needed at this time.
8. INPUT TO THE ONLINE DATABASES
 A) Bibliography Database (Publications)
References for Submitted, In Press, or Published; books, chapters, or significant peer
reviewed papers, as well as for papers in preparation or development with an estimated date
of submission or publication (http://db.coml.org/comlrefbase/)
 B) Community Database (Project Participants / Personnel Report)
Lists all of your project’s participants, including addresses, roles, expertise, languages spoken,
etc. (http://db.coml.org/community/)
Census of Marine Zooplankton (CMarZ) Annual Report 2008
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 C) Schedule Database
Lists all upcoming events, including project meetings, conferences, cruises and field work, etc.
(http://db.coml.org/schedule/ – note login information is the same as for the Community
Database)
Census of Marine Zooplankton (CMarZ) Annual Report 2008
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