Population structure and evolutionary response to environmental changes in C. finmarchicus and C. helgolandicus

Marine zooplankton is strongly affected by climate change. In the North Atlantic and the Arctic, copepods of the genus Calanus are predominant in the zooplankton biomass and play a key role in marine food webs both as main primary consumers and as prey sp ecies for many commercially important species. Despite on its ecological importance and observed evidences for biogeographic changes of Calanus spp., very limited information is available on its population genetic structure. This project will allow a PhD student from UiN to stay at the University of Connecticut for 3 months to complete data analysis on the genetic structures of these two specie

There is increasing evidence of climate-induced alterations of marine ecosystems, ranging from biogeographical and phenological changes to abrupt ecosystem shifts. Marine zooplankton is strongly affected by climate change. In the North Atlantic and the Ar ctic, copepods of the genus Calanus are predominant in the zooplankton biomass and play a key role in marine food webs both as main primary consumers and as prey species for many commercially important species. Despite on its ecological importance and obs erved evidences for biogeographic changes of Calanus spp., very limited information is available on its population genetic structure. This proposal is connected to the project ?Calanus in the North Atlantic: species distribution and genetic population st ructure in space and time? financed under the HAVKYST program (216578). As part of this project, the large-scale SNP genotyping of Calanus spp. will be performed in the coming winter at University of Nordland (Norway). The current proposal request funding for the applicant (PhD in the project) to visit Ann Bucklin´s laboratory group (University of Connecticut, USA) for training on the high throughput data processing, analysis, and interpretation with focus on the population genetic structure of Calanus sp p. The group has extensive expertise in a broad area of research, ranging from zooplankton biodiversity and population genetics to genomics and bioinformatics, and will contribute to the successful fulfillment of the project.