מחקר יישומי של אצות ים בישראל

With nearly 300 species of marine macroalgae reported for the westernmost region, the Israeli Mediterranean Sea provides for one of the rich seaweed assemblages within the whole Mediterranean basin. Seaweeds stand for a very important ecological component in marine ecosystems providing food and shelter for many organisms, and supplying about 10% of the marine primary production. Seaweeds have also an important role in the food and pharmaceutical industries worldwide.

Nevertheless, seaweeds and their biology and applied aspects have been poorly studied in Israel, with slim scientifically valuable output delivered in the last decades. There are only 3 phycologists actively working on various seaweed aspects in Israeli academic and research institutions. There is only one commercial company growing seaweeds and hitherto there are no plans for additional future activities in this sector.

This seminar will report what has been done in the past regarding marine macroalgae biology and what are the current perspectives while underlying the tremendous ecological and commercial roles of seaweeds, particularly viewing the ongoing global changes in the marine environment.