MBA celebrates new home for plankton taxonomy recording and research

The opening of a new laboratory complex by the Marine Biological Association (MBA), is set to enhance vital planktonic research and has also become the new home of the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) Survey, one of the world’s longest running and most geographically extensive marine ecological surveys.

A transformational award of £400,000 from The Garfield Weston Foundation, with equal match funding from the MBA enabled construction of The Plankton Taxonomy Laboratory at Citadel Hill in Plymouth.

The new facility has a large open plan space with sixteen CPR Survey workstations, doubling previous capacity, seven plankton taxonomy workstations (for non-CPR samples), a larger dedicated sample processing room, silk preparation room and a taxonomy training room.

Completed by Nevada Construction, the valuable space freed up by relocation will also enable further investment at Citadel Hill, said the MBA.

David Johns, Director of Research Facilities and Head of the CPR Survey said: “The new Plankton Taxonomy Laboratory has enabled us to build on our existing record-breaking, policy-relevant and strategic plankton work. The improved facilities, collaborative spaces, and dedicated taxonomy workspace, combined with recent advances in augmented sampling is creating an exciting future of research possibilities.”

The Survey reached its milestone 90th Anniversary in 2021 and continues to shape scientific understanding about the health of our ocean, and how marine life is changing in response to pressures like climate change.

More information online