Antarctic refuge

From January 5 to February 13, Nacim Guellati was aboard theArctic Sunrise, the famous Green Peace ship, as anenvironmental DNA specialist. His mission: to identify Antarctic marine species.

Will the poles become a refuge for wildlife fleeing human activity and its consequences? " Our hypothesis is that, with global warming and the pressure of industrial fishing, new species will find refuge in Antarctica, particularly during the summer months," explains David Mouillot, researcher at the Marbec laboratory (Marine Biodiversity, Exploitation and Conservation).

To test this hypothesis, the laboratory joined forces with the environmental organization Greenpeace for a seven-week expedition to Antarctica. From January 5 to February 13, 2020, Nacim Guellati, a biology undergraduate and intern at Marbec, boarded the mythical Arctic Sunrise as anenvironmental DNA specialist. This technique, developed by Marbec's partner Spygen, makes it possible to collect DNA fragments left by organisms by filtering the water, thus revealing the presence of species previously invisible to researchers. We had to adapt to sometimes difficult conditions and improvise, but this mission was a success, " says the young biologist. We were able to sample 6 sites instead of the 4 initially planned".

Weddell Sea, Shetland Islands, Elephant Island... More than sixty samples taken in different areas of the Antarctic Peninsula have been collected and are currently being analyzed. " Our results must be used to create marine reserves in Antarctica to protect this heritage," emphasizes Nacim Guellati. Today, only 2% of Antarctica is protected, leaving almost the entire continent at the mercy of the fishing and energy industries.

photos © Abbie Tayler Smith - Greenpeace and Nacim Guellati