Marine megafauna experts from The University of Western Australia have been recognised in the 4th edition of the Frontiers Planet Prize, the world's largest prize in scientific solutions for planetary health.
Adjunct Associate Professor Ana Sequeira from UWA's Oceans Institute was named national champion for Australia by the Frontiers Planet Prize National Nominating Body as lead author of the winning paper, published in Science.
The Frontiers Planet Prize is a global science competition recognising transformational research that shows the greatest potential to address the world's most urgent environmental challenges.
Professor Sequeira said the prize highlighted the urgent need to safeguard the important areas of the ocean essential for migratory marine species, and the health of the planet.
"Oceans connect us all, and so does the responsibility to protect them," she said.
The research paper was co-authored by Dr Mark Meekan, Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at UWA's Oceans Institute, with input from more than 370 researchers.
The paper compiles an unprecedented global dataset of marine megafauna movements, tracking over 15,000 individuals across 121 species to map how these highly mobile animals use ocean spaces, and to assess how well current conservation targets protect them.
Researchers identified important marine megafauna areas, showing that a large proportion of the ocean is repeatedly used for key behaviours such as migration and residency, yet only a small fraction of these areas falls within existing marine protected areas.
Dr Meekan said the study had brought together a large number of researchers, showcasing the power of collaboration.
"It highlights how shared knowledge and experience can achieve far more than any individual alone," he said.
From the cohort of national champions, three international champions will be awarded $US 1 million to activate, accelerate and scale up transformational research for healthy lives on a healthy planet.
Launched by the Frontiers Research Foundation on Earth Day 2022, the prize's mission is to accelerate the pathway to scientific consensus to address the pressing challenges of the Anthropocene for healthy lives on a healthy planet.
