Marine biological diversity is changing, dramatically in some cases, and most recent changes are due to broad-scale human activities. Knowledge of ``biodiversity''---the variety of genomes (the genetic material specifying all characteristics and functions within an organism), species and ecosystems---is the foundation for understanding and predicting how human and natural effects can change the ocean's ecosystems. Evaluating the scale and ultimate consequences to life in the sea of a plethora of anthropogenic effects is difficult, however, because there is inadequate knowledge of both the patterns of and the processes that control marine biodiversity.
Recognizing change and evaluating its consequences require sufficient knowledge of present and historical natural patterns of biodiversity, and sufficient understanding of how and why these patterns vary in space and time. Data on biodiversity patterns and their causes are sorely lacking for most marine ecosystems. Adequate understanding of what creates and maintains diversity must be the scientific underpinning for policy decisions regarding pollutant and waste disposal, habitat alteration, fisheries management and the preservation of threatened or endangered species. The inability, at this time, to provide such information to policy makers may have important implications for the conservation of marine life [ Norse, 1993].
This paper was inspired by discussions at a recent workshop, ``Marine Biological Diversity and Systematics,'' sponsored by the National Science Foundation [ Butman and Carlton, 1993]. The objectives of this paper are first, to convey the sense of excitement and opportunity concerning future research possibilities in marine biodiversity that pervaded the workshop atmosphere in particular, and that is infusing the marine biological community in general, and, second, to identify major gaps in the description of marine biodiversity and in the understanding of processes responsible for its creation and maintenance.