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Status and trends in the structure of Arctic benthic food webs

Abstract

Ongoing climate warming is causing a dramatic loss of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean, and it is projected that the Arctic Ocean will become seasonally ice-free by 2040. Many studies of local Arctic food webs now exist, and with this review paper we aim to synthesize these into a large-scale assessment of the current status of knowledge on the structure of various Arctic marine food webs and their response to climate change, and to sea-ice retreat in particular. Key drivers of ecosystem change and potential consequences for ecosystem functioning and Arctic marine food webs are identified along the sea-ice gradient, with special emphasis on the following regions: seasonally ice-free Barents and Chukchi seas, loose ice pack zone of the Polar Front and Marginal Ice Zone, and permanently sea-ice covered High Arctic. Finally, we identify knowledge gaps in different Arctic marine food webs and provide recommendations for future studies.
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Category

Academic literature review

Language

English

Author(s)

  • Monika Kędra
  • Charlotte Moritz
  • Emily S. Choy
  • Carmen David
  • Renate Degen
  • Steven Duerksen
  • Ingrid Ellingsen
  • Barbara Górska
  • Jacqueline M. Grebmeier
  • Dubrava Kirievskaya
  • Dick Van Oevelen
  • Kasia Piwosz
  • Annette Samuelsen
  • Jan Marcin Weslawski

Affiliation

  • SINTEF Ocean / Fisheries and New Biomarine Industry
  • Netherlands
  • Polish Academy of Sciences
  • National Marine Fisheries Research Institute
  • Novgorod State University named after Yaroslav the Wise
  • Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research
  • The University of Manitoba
  • Dalhousie University
  • University of Quebec at Rimouski
  • University of Maryland
  • Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center
  • University of French Polynesia

Year

2015

Published in

Polar Research

ISSN

0800-0395

Volume

34

Issue

2015

View this publication at Norwegian Research Information Repository