“These islands, because of their inaccessibility, have been overlooked in many studies,” Araújo notes. “But they are unique places, essential for understanding how speciation and dispersal occur in marine environments”.
Identifying new species and studying animals in remote regions serve as conservation strategies. For Isadora, revealing ecosystem complexity and highlighting species richness – including undocumented species – is crucial: “It helps convince people to protect them, you know?”.
Endemic species, Araújo adds, “are nature’s gifts.” Because they are unique and found only in remote areas, they have small and vulnerable populations. Even though endemic fish may have evolved over millions of years, they remain at risk. “If any event disturbs the environment or the species, they’re very likely to go extinct, because the population is so small”.
The article Biogeography and evolution of reef fishes on tropical Mid-Atlantic Ridge islands can be accessed at this link.
More information: cord.isadora@gmail.com (Isadora Cord) and gabrielsoaraujo@gmail.com (Gabriel Araújo).
*Intern under the supervision of Fabiana Mariz
**Intern under the supervision of Moisés Dorado
English version: Nexus Traduções, edited by Denis Pacheco
