Open-access marine biodiversity records from the Colombia BIO Juradó-Cupica Expedition, Northern Colombian Pacific

Background: The Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (INVEMAR), in partnership with the Universidad del Valle (UV), Universidad tecnológica del Chocó (UTCH) and the community councils of Cupica and Los Delfines, conducted the Colombia BIO Juradó-Cupica scientific expedition. This initiative, developed under the Colombia BIO strategy of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Minciencias), intended to increase our knowledge about marine and coastal biodiversity associated with ecosystems between the township of Cupica and the municipality of Juradó, on Colombia's northern Pacific coast. During the expedition, samples were collected from 34 stations located across five key ecosystems in the area: mangroves, a rocky coastline, intertidal mudflats, rocky reefs and the pelagic environment. As a result of observing and analysing specimens, the specialists were able to identify near 500 morphospecies including invertebrates, vertebrates, chormists and plants, belonging to 17 phyla. Some of these groups found numerous species that had not previously been detected in the north of the Colombia Pacific Region or even in tropical eastern Pacific Region. Similarly, the initiative makes an invaluable contribution to marine scientific collections by ensuring that the biological material obtained and its information are properly safeguarded, available and accessible, in order to continue promoting and strengthening marine research. The expedition also encouraged collaboration between national experts and local communities, facilitating the exchange of knowledge and incorporating traditional practices into the research process. New information: This study provides evidence of the presence of 468 species obtained from 2,107 records of observations, sightings and collected specimens from a single expedition, demonstrating a considerable taxonomic richness in the area. The number of new species records is particularly noteworthy, 96 for northern Chocó and 44 for the Colombian Pacific coast, particularly for Chordata, Annelida, Arthropoda, Cnidaria, Porifera and Chlorophyta. New distribution data acquired will be crucial in deepening our comprehension of species biogeography. The results significantly improve our understanding of marine and coastal biodiversity in northern Chocó, where information is scarce and emphasise the region's biological importance and its significant contribution to the Colombia's Pacific coast biodiversity, which is a region recognised as biodiversity hotspot. More broadly, the information expands national and regional marine biodiversity catalogues, enriching scientific collections providing input for future support of resource management and conservation processes in the region. Furthermore, from a social perspective, the data enable local communities to develop a better understanding of the ecosystems in their territory, thereby promoting the empowerment of local knowledge.