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Aquatic Conservation Lab
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A lab exploring the diversity and conservation of aquatic life, from coral reefs to river fish.
AboutAbout the lab
Understanding freshwater and marine diversity for coexistence and symbiosis.
The Aquatic Conservation Lab aims for harmony between people and aquatic ecosystems, studying how their rich diversity arises and how it should be protected.
In addition to coral reef ecosystems, the lab studies a wide range of aquatic organisms, including corals living in deeper continental shelf waters and river fish.
While emphasizing fieldwork, the lab combines it with genetic analysis, rearing experiments, and collaboration with researchers from very different fields.
Prospective graduate students are welcome, and lab visits are accepted at any time.
Key terms
- Olfactory receptor
- A protein that receives odor molecules and triggers the sense of smell
- Larval dispersal
- The phenomenon in which the young (larvae) of marine organisms are carried by water currents and spread to waters far from where they were born
- Microbiome
- The entire community of microorganisms, such as bacteria, living on the surface or inside an organism
NewsLab news
View More ↗ResearchResearch themes
The lab studies how the diversity of marine and river organisms, centered on coral reefs, arises and how it should be conserved. Centered on genomics, it combines a wide range of methods, including behavioral and morphological observation.
*Illustrative imageOlfaction and Predatory Behavior of the Crown-of-Thorns Starfish
This research examines the olfactory receptors of the crown-of-thorns starfish, which feeds on corals, and the behavioral patterns it shows when preying on corals, in order to uncover basic knowledge that was previously unknown.
*Illustrative imageSpeciation of Corals and Crown-of-Thorns Starfish
The lab studies how corals and their predator, the crown-of-thorns starfish, have diverged into species across the wide expanse of ocean from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific, and how they spread through larval dispersal.
*Illustrative imageEnvironmental Differences and Coral Microbes
Using metagenomic methods, the lab examines the communities of microbes living in corals (microbiomes) at sites along gradually changing environments.
*Illustrative imageCryptic Coral Species
The lab clarifies the boundaries between coral species that cannot be distinguished by morphology alone, and develops methods for identifying coral species.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Aquatic Conservation Lab consist of faculty, postdocs, joint research fellows in agriculture, administrative staff, doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students, and research students.As of 2026
- ProfessorNina YasudaPublications ↗
- Associate ProfessorShotaro HirasePublications ↗
- Affiliated Associate ProfessorTakehisa Yamakita
- Affiliated Associate ProfessorShinichiro Matsuzaki
- Project Assistant ProfessorGaurav Shimpi
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “NOAA divers coral reef north coast Pagan 2022” NOAA Fisheries / Public domain (cropped)
- Olfaction and Predatory Behavior of the Crown-of-Thorns Starfish: “Crown of thorns starfish eating coral, Fiji” Derek Keats / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Speciation of Corals and Crown-of-Thorns Starfish: “Coral Spawning ( )” National Marine Sanctuaries / Public domain (cropped)
- Environmental Differences and Coral Microbes: “Coral (Galaxea fascicularis), mar Rojo, Egipto, , DD 128” Diego Delso / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Cryptic Coral Species: “Diving Maldives, 2009 Acropora cytherea” Christian Jensen / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Forest Biosphere Management Lab): “UonumaPhoto Oshirakawa Buna Forest 201705” 魚沼市 / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Biodiversity Science Lab): “Satoyama landscape near Hida, Gifu” Seth Vidal / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (International Fisheries Development Lab): “DFC 2234 Colorful fishing boats bob in a calm harbor under a cloudy sky their flags and tarps fluttering in the breeze” PattayaPatrol / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Makino Lab): “Fishing boats in the port of Shiraoi, Hokkaido, April 2023” Calistemon / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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