EUROSYNG

2023-01-01 to 2025-12-31

Approx. 1,7 mil. EUR

@eurosyng

Nuno Monteiro

nuno.monteiro@cibio.up.pt

Gentle natured, with extraordinary life histories and a truly unique mode of reproduction (male pregnancy), seahorses, pipefish and seadragons have progressively transformed into powerful ambassadors for marine conservation. Syngnathids face numerous threats, including tremendous fishing pressure and habitat degradation, not least from climate change. Such global problems affect also Europe’s syngnathid species (fifteen pipefish and four seahorse species), the majority being listed by IUCN as Data Deficient with unknown current population status. These numbers showcase the knowledge gap on the health of our coastal ecosystems which severely restricts our ability to detect, reverse or avoid perturbations. Recently, a new resolution was approved by IUCN to assist the worldwide conservation of syngnathids. WCC-2020-Res-095 urges IUCN members to take very specific actions, from ensuring the status assessment of all syngnathids and their inclusion in national/regional Red Lists, to protecting and restoring their freshwater, transitional and coastal habitats. This important resolution awaits implementation by all IUCN members, including European countries.

EUROSYNG, the first ever initiative aimed at evaluating the health of syngnathid populations across Europe, has the overarching objective of acting as a global catalyst for the implementation of WCC-2020-Res-095, allowing the EU to lead the process of effectively protecting syngnathids and their habitats. EUROSYNG will 1) Implement the first transnational systematic census, producing the most comprehensive picture of European syngnathid distributions, 2) Generate up-to-date range maps for all European syngnathids, while also projecting distributions under different climate change scenarios, 3) Measure European syngnathid genetic diversity and population health, 4) Assess suitability of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) for syngnathid conservation, 5) Detect and quantify impacts of interactions and synergies between economic activities and conservation of syngnathids, 6) Quantify the result of the involvement of citizens and stakeholders in surveying, protecting, and managing syngnathids and their habitats, 7) Develop new tools for syngnathid conservation, and 8) Sensitize political actors, students and the general public towards conservation and climate change, with emphasis on syngnathids.

EUROSYNG will look into the present, past and future of syngnathids by conducting censuses on all inhabiting syngnathid species, collecting museum data and forecasting species distribution under distinct climate change scenarios. With minimally invasive tissue samples, thousands of genomes will be investigated for the demographic history of syngnathid populations and local adaptation. Community-based monitoring and citizen-science programs will be established to assess syngnathid populations, together with the first socio-economic study of syngnathids’ impact on local economy. EUROSYNG will also quantify the impacts of new ecotourism activities, and develop a remote monitoring system for MPAs. EUROSYNG is the first project to promote, throughout Europe, a comprehensive and transdisciplinary approach to improve knowledge on the conservation ecology of syngnathids, and deploying coordinated work at a continental scale (Norwegian Sea, Baltic Sea, North Sea, English Channel, Bay of Biscay, Atlantic Cantabrian coasts, West and East Mediterranean, and Adriatic Sea). By involving MPA managers, non-governmental organisations, scientists, students, politicians, and the general society, EUROSYNG will stimulate the building up of efficient management actions across Europe. While the produced data will allow EU to lead the fulfilment of requirements introduced by WCC-2020-Res-095, EUROSYNG will also be relevant for sampled countries, allowing the national red listing of their own syngnathid species while also providing a clear picture of the health of their marine habitats.