Ocean temperatures set to break all-time record: what’s next? High sea surface temperatures are expected to weaken ocean carbon sinks and damage coral reefs www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Ocean temperatures set to break all-time record: what’s next?

High sea surface temperatures are expected to weaken ocean carbon sinks and damage coral reefs.

nature.com

Jan Mees is algemeen directeur van het Vlaams Instituut voor de Zee (VLIZ). Hij reageert op het opiniestuk in De Morgen op 5 augustus van marinewetenschappers Jolien Goossens en Inne Withouck, waarin zij aankaarten dat het instituut samenwerkt met partijen die de mensenrechten schenden.

Weerwoord Jan Mees: ‘Het Vlaams Instituut voor de Zee stapt niet in nieuwe projecten met Israëlische instellingen’

demorgen.be

VLIZ werft aan: Schrijf mee aan het verborgen verhaal van de Noordzee www.vliz.be/testerep/nl/...

Schrijf mee aan het verborgen verhaal van de Noordzee

VLIZ zoekt een onderzoeker die geologie, archeologie en offshore onderzoek samenbrengt in de unieke wetenschappelijke uitdaging om met geavanceerde mariene technologieën het verborgen verleden van de ...

vliz.be

Bioinspired flow sensor enables underwater robots to estimate motion and detect flow structure | Science Advances www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Bioinspired flow sensor enables underwater robots to estimate motion and detect flow structure

Bioinspired flow sensors mounted on underwater robots enabled motion estimation and detection of an upstream wake.

science.org

This week, VLIZ welcomes the international SOCAT community for a key workshop on the future of the Surface Ocean CO₂ Atlas (SOCAT)🌐 Important milestone: VLIZ is now officially the European SOCAT Hub, strengthening Europe's contribution to the global ocean carbon observing system🔗 shorturl.at/5rMSp

‘Severe’ stress on oceans as rate of sea level rise doubles in 10 years, UN warns

‘Severe’ stress on oceans as rate of sea level rise doubles in 10 years, UN warns 👉 www.theguardian.com/environment/...

‘Severe’ stress on oceans as rate of sea level rise doubles in 10 years, UN warns

Global effort needed to limit effects of pollution, industrial fishing and climate crisis, World Ocean Assessment says

theguardian.com

Yesterday @ec.europa.eu launched #OceanEye, a major initiative to strengthen ocean observation and deepen our understanding of the seas that shape our climate, environment and economy. 🎥 Watch the OceanEye video and spot some familiar VLIZ faces. www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHY2...

Can We Predict the Next Big Storm? | The Digital Twin Ocean

YouTube video by European Commission

youtube.com

Fishing in the Deep Ocean’s Data-Blind Spot - sentientmedia.org/fishing-in-t...

Fishing in the Deep Ocean’s Data-Blind Spot

Twilight zone fish help regulate carbon and are critical to the food web. Yet they are being caught in massive amounts, and scientists say the impact is unknown.

sentientmedia.org

📚🌊 Nieuw boek van Jan Mees (directeur VLIZ) en Colin Janssen (professor UGent)! Het vreemde leven in de oceaan neemt je mee naar een verborgen wereld van diepzeemonsters, microben en andere fascinerende zeebewoners. Te koop via de uitgever of in de boekhandel. www.vliz.be/testerep/nl/...

Het vreemde leven in de oceaan: Van diepzeemonsters tot microben

In hun nieuwste boek 'Het vreemde leven in de oceaan: Van diepzeemonsters tot microben' nemen Jan Mees en Colin Janssen je mee op een reis in de oceaan. Voor iedereen die de zee beter wil begrijpen en beschermen.

vliz.be

Mocht net op #OostendeVoorAnker een heel boeiende lezing bijwonen van @janmees.bsky.social over het belang vd oceanen, hun invloed op ons en hun wisselwerking met het klimaat,… Ondanks de uitdagingen (klimaatverandering, overbevissing, vervuiling) is zijn lezing hoopvol: de oplossingen zijn gekend!!

🤝 𝗖𝗠𝗠𝗜 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗩𝗟𝗜𝗭 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 Through a MoU, signed during #EMD2026 in Limassol, the Cyprus Marine and Maritime Institute (CMMI) and VLIZ join forces to strengthen innovation, knowledge exchange, & international collaboration in marine research. 🔗 shorturl.at/beHSZ

Do octopus brains work like humans’ — or is there another way to be smart? www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Do octopus brains work like humans’ — or is there another way to be smart?

Just like vertebrates, cephalopods — such as octopuses and squid — have elaborate brains. Neuroscientists are flocking to them for insights into how intelligence evolved.

nature.com

2.5 ton lood verzameld van 2 wrakken (en dat is een onderschatting). Verloren vislood rond scheepswrakken in kaart gebracht www.vliz.be/testerep/nl/...

Verloren vislood rond scheepswrakken in kaart gebracht

Meer dan 8000 door hengelaars verloren loden visgewichten werde'opgevist' van twee schapswraksites in de Belgische Noordzee. Samen goed voor 2.5 ton lood. Een inventaris legt niet alleen de omvang van...

vliz.be

The agreement was signed by Dr. Camila Fernández @cafernan2025.bsky.social (COPAS Coastal) and Jan Mees (VLIZ), aiming to strengthen research, training, and community engagement. We share a common vision: generating scientific knowledge to tackle the ocean’s major challenges. 🌎💙

Philippe Bouchet, one of the Chief Taxonomic Editors of #MolluscaBase and @marinespecies.bsky.social has been selected as the Carlo Heip Awardee for 2023-2025 www.marinespecies.org/news.php?p=s...

Philippe Bouchet selected as the Carlo Heip Awardee for 2023-2025

The International Carlo Heip Award (cycle 2023-2025) granted to Prof. Philippe Bouchet: passionate taxonomist, explorer, researcher, taxonomic Mollusca editor, founding father of MolluscaBase and over...

marinespecies.org

The only thing inevitable in the deep sea is discovery. Deep-sea wildernesses are more important than the promise of seafloor mining. news.mongabay.com/2026/04/deep...

Deep-sea wildernesses are more important than the promise of seafloor mining (analysis)

When I set sail on the MV NorSky in the summer of 2008 to probe the depths of Manus Basin off the coast of Papua New Guinea, I believed in the promise of deep-sea mining. As an early-career deep-sea e...

news.mongabay.com

Nice! "The species name, vermiculatus, is from the Latin, meaning 'like worms' or 'of worms'. It was chosen to honour both the vermiform morphology ... and in recognition of the World Register of Marine Species, a wonderful resource for all marine taxonomists." www.marinespecies.org/news.php?p=s...

The world just lived through the 11 hottest years on record — what now? www.nature.com/articles/d41...

The world just lived through the 11 hottest years on record — what now?

Earth is increasingly ‘out of balance’, as more heat is trapped in the atmosphere, driving global warming.

nature.com

So, there they are, the @marinespecies.bsky.social top-10 marine species of 2025! Do you have a favorite? www.marinespecies.org/worms-top-te... #toptenmarinespecies #taxonomistappreciationday #OceanDecade #GenOcean

We are proud to announce the formal signing of a MoU between @vliz.be and Fundación San Ignacio del Huinay fjord field station (University of Valparaiso), in the presence of HE Christian de Lannoy, ambassador of Belgium in Chile. @unoceandecade.bsky.social @janmees.bsky.social

Zaterdag in VLIZ Oostende. Met FAAR en De Klimaatdichters. Interview en opname podcast ‘Redden wat je raakt’ met mezelf en een echte schrijver, dichter Lies Van Gasse. Welkom! www.faar-oostende.be/activiteiten...

We were pleased to welcome rector UGent @petradesutter.bsky.social to @vliz.be in Ostend. A valuable exchange on strengthening our long-standing partnership with UGent & MarineAtUGent in marine sciences. #Collaboration #MarineResearch #OceanScience #BlueScience @janmees.bsky.social

A VLIZ delegation is visiting Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) in Mombasa, Kenya to meet director Dr Paul Swage Orina & team. The visit highlights a strong Kenya-Belgium marine science legacy and explores renewed VLIZ-KMFRI collaboration ahead of #OurOceanConference2026. #SDG14

✨A warm start to the new year at #VLIZ ✨ Team moments, an inspiring New Year’s address by Director Jan Mees, and a potluck with local specialties – connecting colleagues, sharing ideas, and looking ahead together. 🤝✨ 🌊

VLIZ recruits: Fish Behavioral Ecology Researcher | Vlaams Instituut voor de Zee www.vliz.be/en/jobs/vliz...

VLIZ-onderzoeker Gert Everaert bekroond met prestigieuze KVAB-prijs als Laureaat van de Academie www.vliz.be/nl/news/vliz...

Proud to have contributed to this paper!

Biodiversity Data Journal@bdj.pensoft.net · 9mo ago

A first comprehensive overview of all known hibernating Darwin wasp species in the Western Palaearctic: doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.... #wasps #ecology #faunistics @ikaosterblad.bsky.social @janmees.bsky.social @naturalsciences-be.bsky.social

Today, H.E. Ambassador Bitange Ndemo & a delegation of the Kenya Embassy 🇰🇪 in Brussels visited VLIZ in the presence of Carl Decaluwé, Jan Mees, Colin Janssen and Ann-Katrien Lescrauwaut. They discussed the marine science cooperation between Kenya and Flanders/Belgium.

Via @janmees.bsky.social - The Indian Ocean disaster is a climate tragedy — and needs more attention - @rochmyaningsih.bsky.social @nature.com www.nature.com/articles/d41...

The Indian Ocean disaster is a climate tragedy — and needs more attention

A region unused to tropical cyclones has had three in a week. The world needs to ask why this happened, not look away.

nature.com