August 19, 2026
Welcome Jaelyn Bos, new Biota Postdoctoral Fellow!
Jaelyn joins us as the recipient of a Walder Foundation Biota Award for her research entitle Defining Coral Diversity to Guide Marine Conservation Planning in Mozambique:
Mozambique’s coral reefs play a key role in supporting both biodiversity and human well-being, but remain critically understudied. In particular, the branching corals that form the foundation of these ecosystems are difficult to identify to the species level. Since many branching corals look very similar, genetic sequencing is the most accurate way to determine how many species exist in an area. In this project, corals within a new conservation area are being sampled and their DNA is being sequenced to determine how many species exist, how rare they are, and whether some of them might be regionally endemic to Africa or Mozambique. The project also involves working with university and NGO partners in Mozambique to prepare other students to continue this work into the future.