Marine Biological Association Postgraduates sweep awards at prestigious PlyMSEF2025 Conference

The Marine Biological Association (MBA) is proud to celebrate the outstanding success of its postgraduate students, who secured an impressive seven awards at the Annual PlyMSEF2025 Postgraduate Student Conference held at Plymouth Marine Laboratory. The conference, organised by the Plymouth Marine Science and Education Foundation (PlyMSEF), brought together early-career researchers from five leading marine institutions … Read more

Invasive non-native species: Understanding the basics

Following Invasive Species Week last week, and for the start of the the Big Rock Pool Challenge: National BioBlitz, MBA Associate Fellow, Dr John Bishop, explains the basics of understanding non-native species and the threats they pose to our native coastal marine life. What are invasive (non-native) species? Non-native species are those that are living … Read more

Local fishermen and marine scientists come together to create sustainable future for pollack

DEFRA Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs, Daniel Zeichner MP, met with the team behind the Pollack Fisheries Industry Science Partnership (FISP) during a visit to Plymouth this week.  Pollack FISP is a pioneering collaboration bringing together recreational charter skippers, commercial fishers, and scientists to better understand pollack stocks and the future of the … Read more

Protecting the Irish Sea: Working together for ocean monitoring and plankton research 

The Irish Sea is one of the UK’s most economically and ecologically important marine regions. Supporting everything from biodiversity and renewable energy to fisheries and coastal communities, it is under increasing pressure from pollution, climate change, and intensive human use. At the forefront of efforts to understand and protect this vital ecosystem is the Marine … Read more

Help protect UK coasts from harmful species this Invasive Species Week

The Marine Biological Association (MBA) is calling on members of the public to get involved this UK Invasive Species Week (12–19 May 2025) in safeguarding the UK’s precious marine environments from harmful invasive species (also known as non-native species).

Join the Big Rock Pool Challenge to help monitor and protect our ocean life

Our UK coastline is under threat, and now the Marine Biological Association (MBA) is calling on ocean lovers of all ages to take part in the Big Rock Pool Challenge: National BioBlitz 2025, a nationwide citizen science effort to monitor the health of the UK’s coastline and track the spread of invasive (non-native) species.  Since the … Read more

MBA RV Sepia undergoes major IT upgrade

The MBA’s IT department has significantly upgraded the data connectivity and computing facilities on the Sepia vessel, resulting in enhanced cybersecurity, operational efficiency, and resilience. Internet connectivity To fully leverage our MBA 365 ecosystem capabilities, we needed to enhance our data connectivity on the vessel to support frequent synchronisation. Therefore, we upgraded from a small … Read more

MBA celebrates Professor Richard Thompson OBE FRS being named in TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2025

The Marine Biological Association proudly congratulates Professor Richard Thompson OBE FRS, long-standing MBA Professional Member and globally renowned marine scientist, on being named one of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2025. This prestigious accolade recognises Professor Thompson’s pioneering work in marine environmental science, particularly his world-leading research on marine litter and microplastics. Professor … Read more