Decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in Antarctica
Amplified climate change in polar regions is significantly altering regional ecosystems, yet there are few long-term records documenting these responses. The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) cold desert ecosystem is the largest ice-free area of Antarctica, comprising soils, glaciers, meltwater streams and...
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ftunivgent:oai:archive.ugent.be:8556312 2023-06-11T04:04:52+02:00 Decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in Antarctica Gooseff, Michael N Barrett, John E Adams, Byron J Doran, Peter T Fountain, Andrew G Lyons, W Berry McKnight, Diane M Priscu, John C Sokol, Eric R Takacs-Vesbach, Cristina Vandegehuchte, Martijn L. Virginia, Ross A Wall, Diana H 2017 application/pdf https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8556312 http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-8556312 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0253-0 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8556312/file/8633051 eng eng https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8556312 http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-8556312 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0253-0 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8556312/file/8633051 No license (in copyright) info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess NATURE ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION ISSN: 2397-334X Earth and Environmental Sciences Biology and Life Sciences RECENT CLIMATE-CHANGE DRY VALLEY STREAMS LIFE-CYCLE THRESHOLDS MARINE ALASKA IMPACT EVENT WATER journalArticle info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 2017 ftunivgent https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0253-0 2023-05-10T22:43:51Z Amplified climate change in polar regions is significantly altering regional ecosystems, yet there are few long-term records documenting these responses. The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) cold desert ecosystem is the largest ice-free area of Antarctica, comprising soils, glaciers, meltwater streams and permanently ice-covered lakes. Multi-decadal records indicate that the MDV exhibited a distinct ecosystem response to an uncharacteristic austral summer and ensuing climatic shift. A decadal summer cooling phase ended in 2002 with intense glacial melt ('flood year')-a step-change in water availability triggering distinct changes in the ecosystem. Before 2002, the ecosystem exhibited synchronous behaviour: declining stream flow, decreasing lake levels, thickening lake ice cover, decreasing primary production in lakes and streams, and diminishing soil secondary production. Since 2002, summer air temperatures and solar flux have been relatively consistent, leading to lake level rise, lake ice thinning and elevated stream flow. Biological responses varied; one stream cyanobacterial mat type immediately increased production, but another stream mat type, soil invertebrates and lake primary productivity responded asynchronously a few years after 2002. This ecosystem response to a climatic anomaly demonstrates differential biological community responses to substantial perturbations, and the mediation of biological responses to climate change by changes in physical ecosystem properties. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctica glaciers McMurdo Dry Valleys polar desert Alaska Ghent University Academic Bibliography Austral McMurdo Dry Valleys Nature Ecology & Evolution 1 9 1334 1338 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Ghent University Academic Bibliography |
op_collection_id |
ftunivgent |
language |
English |
topic |
Earth and Environmental Sciences Biology and Life Sciences RECENT CLIMATE-CHANGE DRY VALLEY STREAMS LIFE-CYCLE THRESHOLDS MARINE ALASKA IMPACT EVENT WATER |
spellingShingle |
Earth and Environmental Sciences Biology and Life Sciences RECENT CLIMATE-CHANGE DRY VALLEY STREAMS LIFE-CYCLE THRESHOLDS MARINE ALASKA IMPACT EVENT WATER Gooseff, Michael N Barrett, John E Adams, Byron J Doran, Peter T Fountain, Andrew G Lyons, W Berry McKnight, Diane M Priscu, John C Sokol, Eric R Takacs-Vesbach, Cristina Vandegehuchte, Martijn L. Virginia, Ross A Wall, Diana H Decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in Antarctica |
topic_facet |
Earth and Environmental Sciences Biology and Life Sciences RECENT CLIMATE-CHANGE DRY VALLEY STREAMS LIFE-CYCLE THRESHOLDS MARINE ALASKA IMPACT EVENT WATER |
description |
Amplified climate change in polar regions is significantly altering regional ecosystems, yet there are few long-term records documenting these responses. The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) cold desert ecosystem is the largest ice-free area of Antarctica, comprising soils, glaciers, meltwater streams and permanently ice-covered lakes. Multi-decadal records indicate that the MDV exhibited a distinct ecosystem response to an uncharacteristic austral summer and ensuing climatic shift. A decadal summer cooling phase ended in 2002 with intense glacial melt ('flood year')-a step-change in water availability triggering distinct changes in the ecosystem. Before 2002, the ecosystem exhibited synchronous behaviour: declining stream flow, decreasing lake levels, thickening lake ice cover, decreasing primary production in lakes and streams, and diminishing soil secondary production. Since 2002, summer air temperatures and solar flux have been relatively consistent, leading to lake level rise, lake ice thinning and elevated stream flow. Biological responses varied; one stream cyanobacterial mat type immediately increased production, but another stream mat type, soil invertebrates and lake primary productivity responded asynchronously a few years after 2002. This ecosystem response to a climatic anomaly demonstrates differential biological community responses to substantial perturbations, and the mediation of biological responses to climate change by changes in physical ecosystem properties. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Gooseff, Michael N Barrett, John E Adams, Byron J Doran, Peter T Fountain, Andrew G Lyons, W Berry McKnight, Diane M Priscu, John C Sokol, Eric R Takacs-Vesbach, Cristina Vandegehuchte, Martijn L. Virginia, Ross A Wall, Diana H |
author_facet |
Gooseff, Michael N Barrett, John E Adams, Byron J Doran, Peter T Fountain, Andrew G Lyons, W Berry McKnight, Diane M Priscu, John C Sokol, Eric R Takacs-Vesbach, Cristina Vandegehuchte, Martijn L. Virginia, Ross A Wall, Diana H |
author_sort |
Gooseff, Michael N |
title |
Decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in Antarctica |
title_short |
Decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in Antarctica |
title_full |
Decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in Antarctica |
title_fullStr |
Decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in Antarctica |
title_full_unstemmed |
Decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in Antarctica |
title_sort |
decadal ecosystem response to an anomalous melt season in a polar desert in antarctica |
publishDate |
2017 |
url |
https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8556312 http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-8556312 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0253-0 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8556312/file/8633051 |
geographic |
Austral McMurdo Dry Valleys |
geographic_facet |
Austral McMurdo Dry Valleys |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctica glaciers McMurdo Dry Valleys polar desert Alaska |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctica glaciers McMurdo Dry Valleys polar desert Alaska |
op_source |
NATURE ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION ISSN: 2397-334X |
op_relation |
https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8556312 http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-8556312 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0253-0 https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8556312/file/8633051 |
op_rights |
No license (in copyright) info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-017-0253-0 |
container_title |
Nature Ecology & Evolution |
container_volume |
1 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
1334 |
op_container_end_page |
1338 |
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1768391362005172224 |