This research project is aimed at studying the impact of global change on ocean and lake aquatic systems in Western Europe, by using plankton indicators. It is set in a global context, vital to broaching the question of how climate change affects biodiversity and the workings of aquatic ecosystems. This multidisciplinary project makes it possible to combine several different oceanographers (one physician and a number of biologists) and limnologists working on common issues, but in different systems.

The project includes 6 key actions, which shall be targeted initially at characterising the dynamics of diversity in relation with climate change, by using new multi-scale statistic tools. After having characterised the role of biodiversity in the dynamics of ecosystems at different temporal and spatial scales, the second stage of the project will involve analysing the long-term changes in the structure of the pelagic trophic network for all ecosystems.

The role of the major spatial scales will be examined in two distinct sections, which will strive to tie the changes in plankton diversity back in with hydro-climate factors in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Mediterranean. The migratory movements and plankton species invasions indicative of surface water warming will also be dealt with through analysis of historic data and the available bibliography. The penultimate section will be dedicated to analysing extreme events.

The last section will be an effort to get the modelling stage underway, by proposing conceptual flowcharts, causality models and scenario tests. The aim will be to assess the consequences of interactions between global change and biodiversity on the services provided by the ecosystems under scrutiny. This project fits perfectly within the framework of other national (PNEC ART and Workshop Zones, ACI ‘Quantitative Ecology’) and international (GLOBEC, OCEANS et DIVERSITAS) programmes.