Coastal marine invertebrates in a climate change world

Marine invertebrates on the move in a climate change world – opportunities and management challenges

Abstract
Climate driven ocean warming and altered ocean circulation are driving poleward species range shifts as well as potential equatorward range decreases. For species with tiny dispersive planktonic larvae these shifts are difficult to predict or detect and can result in the sudden unexpected appearance of species where they previously did not occur. In parallel, shallow water species are at risk to the emergence of extreme climatic events such as marine and atmospheric heatwaves and flood-driven hyposalinity with some species more sensitive to climate stress than others. Climate driven changes to marine animal communities are thus resulting in novel species interactions and altered food webs with flow on effect to ecosystem function. When economically and ecologically influential species are involved, these changes can generate new challenges for management.

Influential species on the move are seen for the boom-and-bust marine phylum, the Echinodermata, sea urchins, sea stars and their kin. Southeast Australia and northern New Zealand are ocean warming hotspots where climate-driven range extensions of tropical and subtropical echinoderms into temperate regions are an emerging phenomenon. The first mixed species outbreak of the coral-eating crown-of-thorns sea star, Acanthaster cf.solaris and its rarely seen relative Acanthaster brevispinus was detected in the subtropical zone of eastern Australia in December 2024 compounding the detrimental impacts of ocean warming and bleaching on significant conservation value high latitude coral reefs.

In parallel, the sub-tropical – warm temperate sea urchin Tripneustes australiae, typically a rare species in southeast Australia and islands in the Tasman Sea, is currently undergoing a population boom with a poleward invasion front in far south New South Wales. This species is an aggressive grazer impacting macroalgae habitats already at risk from ocean warming and grazing by other sea urchin taxa but is also providing significant opportunities for an emerging fishery.

In the cross Tasman dynamic climate change region species range shifts are a key concern whether they be a pest or a commercially beneficial species.

About the speaker

Professor Maria Byrne FAA. Professor of Marine Biology, The University of Sydney.

Professor Maria Byrne is an internationally recognized leader in marine ecology, global change biology, and evolutionary development. Based at the University of Sydney, her pioneering research investigates how climate change stressors—specifically ocean warming, acidification, and marine heatwaves—impact marine invertebrates from the tropics to the poles. For over two decades, her laboratory has quantified how these compounding stressors alter fundamental biological processes like calcification, physiology, and larval development.

A world authority on echinoderm biology, Professor Byrne uses organisms like sea urchins and the crown-of-thorns starfish as vital indicators of ocean health and ecosystem resilience. Her work maps species’ vulnerabilities across life-history stages to provide critical data for marine conservation and fisheries management.Her distinguished career includes 12 years as Director of the One Tree Island Research Station on the Great Barrier Reef and key contributions to the National Coral Bleaching Taskforce.

In recognition of her transformative impact on marine biodiversity research, she was elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science (FAA) in 2019 and awarded an honorary Doctor of Science by the University of Galway in 2023.

Brought to you by Waipapa Taumata Rau University of Auckland's School of Biological Sciences and the Patricia & Peter Bergquist Visiting Fellowship.

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