RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS
By bringing new approaches and novel techniques to standing ecological and evolutionary questions, and operating in the face of historically rapid environmental change in the Greater Bay Area (e.g. urbanization and climate change), the Division is well positioned to continue advances in ecological, environmental and biodiversity science. The below highlights recent studies along these lines.
- Causal analysis of the temperature impact on deep-sea biodiversity (2021)
- A functional analysis reveals extremely low redundancy in global mangrove invertebrate fauna (2021)
- Species-specific molecular responses of wild coral reef fishes during a marine heatwave (2020)
- Prevalence of critically endangered European eel (Anguilla anguilla) in Hong Kong supermarkets (2020)
- Mangroves give cause for conservation optimism, for now (2020)
- Leaf reflectance spectroscopy captures variation in carboxylation capacity (2019)
- Elephants have a nose for quantity (2019)
- Termites mitigate the effects of drought in tropical rainforest (2019)
- Land-use change interacts with climate to determine elevational species redistribution (2018)
- Out of control means off the menu: The case for ceasing consumption of luxury products from highly vulnerable species when international trade cannot be adequately controlled; shark fin as a case study (2018)
- Remoteness promotes biological invasions on islands worldwide (2018)
- Intermediate-water dynamics and ocean ventilation effects on the Indonesian Throughflow during the past 15,000 years: Ostracod evidence (2018)
- The future of hyperdiverse tropical ecosystems (2018)
- Macroecology and macroevolution of the latitudinal diversity gradient in ants (2018)
- Global rise in emerging alien species results from increased accessibility of new source pools (2018)
- Climate change promotes parasitism in a coral symbiosis (2018)
- Declining oxygen in the global ocean and coastal waters (2018)
- A new species of micro-mangrove crab of the genus HabermaNg & Schubart, 2002 (Crustacea, Brachyura, Sesarmidae) from Hong Kong (2017)
- Recent Pangolin Seizures in China Reveal Priority Areas for Intervention (2017)
KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE (KE) AND IMPACT
The section of Ecology & Biodiversity has a wide range of KE activities and various impact cases. Details of the activities and cases could be found Here.
Here are some vital projects.
(1) Given the high leverage of Hong Kong as a global hub in illegal wildlife trade (and the high volume of trade flowing through), there is considerable need to develop tools and stay in front of these illicit activities.
The conservation forensics group within DEB has developed analytical, monitoring, DNA and stable isotope tools to improve understanding of patterns and recommendations for interventions pertaining to illegal wildlife trade.
For details on Conservation forensics, please visit: Conservation Forensics@ HKU
(2) Research on the Humphead (Napoleon) Wrasse by Prof. Yvonne Sadovy has led to its protection and subsequent recovery of both the species and the diverse ecological communities and coral reefs they inhabit.
To know more on Napoleon fish, please visit Napoleon fish
