Since the beginning of the ATLAS project on 1 May 2016, only limited research has taken place on animals, but these activities will increase over the next 2 years. The nature of the research on animals undertaken by ATLAS will include sampling of invertebrate animals from the wild, preserving specimens for collections, transporting live animals to laboratories for aquarium experiments, and taking specimens for Marine Genetic Resources (MGR). Research on animals in ATLAS is being undertaken by WP2, WP3 and WP4, which will make use of both new samples collected and existing samples available in beneficiary labs. ATLAS partners providing or working with biological samples will ensure that their work complies with their national legislation and ethical principles and will ensure relevant ethical approvals and permits are in place prior to starting their work.