Status and trends in the structure of Arctic benthic food webs

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...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polar Research
Main Authors: Kędra, M., Moritz, C., Choy, E.S., David, C., Degen, R., Duerksen, S., Ellingsen, I., Górska, B., Grebmeier, J.M., Kirievskaya, D., van Oevelen, D., Piwosz, K., Samuelsen, A., We? slawski, J.M.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2015
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Online Access:https://www.vliz.be/imisdocs/publications/38/272338.pdf
Description
Summary: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