Unexpected Levels of Biological Activity during the Polar Night Offer New Perspectives on a Warming Arctic

• Published in: Current Biology
• Main Authors: Berge, Jørgen, Daase, Malin, Renaud, Paul E., Ambrose Jr., William G., Darnis, Gerald, Last, Kim S., Leu, Eva, Cohen, Jonathan H., Johnsen, Geir, Moline, Mark A., Cottier, Finlo, Varpe, Øystein, Shunatova, Natalia, Bałazy, Piotr, Morata, Nathalie, Massabuau, Jean-Charles, Falk-Petersen, Stig, Kosobokova, Ksenia, Hoppe, Clara J. M., Węsławski, Jan Marcin, Kukliński, Piotr, Legeżyńska, Joanna, Nikishina, Daria, Cusa, Marine, Kędra, Monika, Włodarska-Kowalczuk, Maria, Vogedes, Daniel, Camus, Lionel, Tran, Damien, Michaud, Emma, Gabrielsen, Tove M., Granovitch, Andrei, Gonchar, Anya, Krapp, Rupert, Callesen, Trine A.
• Other Authors: The Arctic University of Norway (UiT), The University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS), Akvaplan-Niva Tromsø, Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), Bates College, Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS), School of Marine Science and Policy, College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment Newark (CEOE), University of Delaware Newark -University of Delaware Newark, Norwegian University of Science and Technology Trondheim (NTNU), Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU), Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement Marin (LEMAR) (LEMAR), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer (IFREMER)-Université de Brest (UBO)-Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer (IUEM), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université de Brest (UBO)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université de Brest (UBO)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Environnements et Paléoenvironnements OCéaniques (EPOC), Observatoire aquitain des sciences de l'univers (OASU), Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI), ANR-10-LABX-0019,LabexMER,LabexMER Marine Excellence Research: a changing ocean(2010), ANR-11-PDOC-0018,ECOTAB,Effet des changements climatiques sur le benthos en Arctique(2011), European Project: 308392,EC:FP7:ENV,FP7-ENV-2012-two-stage,DEVOTES(2012)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2015
• Subjects: ZOOPLANKTON; KONGSFJORDEN; ACL; SEA-ICE COVER; CALANUS-FINMARCHICUS; VERTICAL MIGRATION; BEAUFORT SEA; WAX ESTERS; FOOD WEBS; FJORD; BIOLUMINESCENCE; [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology; Arctic; Beaufort Sea; Calanus finmarchicus; Kongsfjord*; Kongsfjorden; polar night; Sea ice; Zooplankton
• Online Access: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02554386; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2015.08.024

International audience Summary The current understanding of Arctic ecosystems is deeply rooted in the classical view of a bottom-up controlled system with strong physical forcing and seasonality in primary-production regimes. Consequently, the Arctic polar night is commonly disregarded as a time of year when biological activities are reduced to a minimum due to a reduced food supply. Here, based upon a multidisciplinary ecosystem-scale study from the polar night at 79°N, we present an entirely different view. Instead of an ecosystem that has entered a resting state, we document a system with high activity levels and biological interactions across most trophic levels. In some habitats, biological diversity and presence of juvenile stages were elevated in winter months compared to the more productive and sunlit periods. Ultimately, our results suggest a different perspective regarding ecosystem function that will be of importance for future environmental management and decision making, especially at a time when Arctic regions are experiencing accelerated environmental change.