Polar Biology最新文献

Dispersal influences many key aspects of plant ecology at both fine- and broad scales. However, dispersal events are challenging to quantify as they are difficult to observe and measure accurately, despite the importance of understanding species’ dispersal capacity. In this study, we quantified dispersal estimates for the dominant vascular flora of sub-Antarctic Marion Island, using a mechanistic model to estimate dispersal potential via anemochory and standardized experiments that simulate dispersal events via zoochory, human activity, and thalassochory, to test if dispersal capacity correlates to contemporary range expansion of the island’s native and alien species. Our results demonstrate the broad range of dispersal potential in the island’s flora and represent the first quantification of the dispersal potential (via multiple vectors) of the dominant vascular flora in the sub-Antarctic. Dispersal potential was not related to range expansion rates of native or alien species, suggesting that other mechanisms are responsible for the variation observed in species range expansion rates. Although this finding contradicts expectations and evidence from some other studies, it is consistent with research conducted in alpine regions (which may be climatically and physiognomically similar to this sub-Antarctic study site) where factors such as demography and competition are more important predictors of species range expansion than their dispersal ability, dispersal syndromes, or dispersal-related traits.

The Pacific sleeper shark Somniosus pacificus is a large-bodied and broad-ranging squaliform shark that occupies diverse habitats throughout the Pacific Ocean. Despite its large size and occurrence as bycatch in various commercial fisheries, little is known about even the most basic aspects of its biology and ecology. Observed declines in certain parts of its range, coupled with life history characteristics associated with low productivity, have led to conservation concerns for this cryptic but charismatic species. Here, we provide a comprehensive review of the current state of knowledge regarding the distribution, diet, life history, and other aspects of the Pacific sleeper shark and present updated fisheries and survey data for the eastern North Pacific Ocean. The most pressing research gaps identified during the course of this review concern habitat use at different life stages and basic life history information. While work is currently in progress to expand our base of knowledge for this species, we recommend a precautionary approach to management until sufficient information becomes available to ensure its conservation.

As the Arctic becomes increasingly accessible to the resource extraction industry, an understanding of the impacts of infrastructure and anthropogenic disturbance on tundra-nesting avian populations is critical. We conducted breeding bird surveys using point counts and Program for Regional and International Shorebird Monitoring (PRISM) rapid surveys at the Hope Bay Project, an underground gold mine in Nunavut, Canada, from 2007 to 2015. We examined the relationship between abundance of total birds, songbirds, and shorebirds with distance from infrastructure, anthropogenic disturbance (i.e., activity at the mine site), and environmental covariates. Contrary to our predictions, anthropogenic disturbance showed no significant effect on bird abundance for either survey type or bird grouping. However, total bird abundance was associated with distance from infrastructure for both survey methods. A relationship with distance to infrastructure, with variability in influence, was also present for songbird point count data and shorebird PRISM data, but was not significant for songbirds recorded during PRISM surveys. Habitat type played a vital role in determining avian abundance, with PRISM surveys showing that wet lowland ecotypes supported higher bird numbers, whereas point count data revealed a more nuanced habitat association, likely reflecting the specific habitat preferences of different songbirds. Our study highlights the need for strategic planning of industrial development, incorporating comprehensive monitoring and ensuring the protection of preferred Arctic-breeding bird habitats. By aligning development projects with environmental objectives, we can ensure the coexistence of industrial interests and the future of avian populations in the Arctic.

Human activities and climate change threaten seabirds globally, and many species are declining from already small breeding populations. Monitoring of breeding colonies can identify population trends and important conservation concerns, but it is a persistent challenge to achieve adequate coverage of remote and sensitive breeding sites. Southern giant petrels (Macronectes giganteus) exemplify this challenge: as polar, pelagic marine predators they are subject to a variety of anthropogenic threats, but they often breed in remote colonies that are highly sensitive to disturbance. Aerial remote sensing can overcome some of these difficulties to census breeding sites and explore how local environmental factors influence important characteristics such as nest-site selection and chick survival. To this end, we used drone photography to map giant petrel nests, repeatedly evaluate chick survival and quantify-associated physical and biological characteristics of the landscape at two neighboring breeding sites on Humble Island and Elephant Rocks, along the western Antarctic Peninsula in January–March 2020. Nest sites occurred in areas with relatively high elevations, gentle slopes, and high wind exposure, and statistical models predicted suitable nest-site locations based on local spatial characteristics, explaining 72.8% of deviance at these sites. These findings demonstrate the efficacy of drones as a tool to identify, map, and monitor seabird nests, and to quantify important habitat associations that may constitute species preferences or sensitivities. These may, in turn, contextualize some of the diverse population trajectories observed for this species throughout the changing Antarctic environment.

Abstract

Organic N (oN, e.g., amino acids) is an important N-resource for plants in soils replete with oN but not inorganic N (iN; i.e., NH₄⁺ and NO₃⁻), such as cold ecosystems with temperature-limited soil decomposition rates. However, sub-Antarctic literature assumes that plants only acquire iN, potentially underestimating plant-available N. We hypothesised that Marion Island (− 46.90°, 37.75°) grasses (Polypogon magellanicus, Poa cookii, Agrostis stolonifera and Poa annua) acquire oN and that oN relative to iN provision affects plant growth. We investigated oN and iN uptake and growth responses in two hydroponics experiments. In situ N (¹⁵N-glycine, ¹⁵NO₃⁻ and ¹⁵NH₄⁺) acquisition was investigated at three field sites with decreasing faunal influence, thus iN input and microbial activity. When plants grown in mire water were supplied with ¹⁵N-glycine or ¹⁵NO₃⁻, root δ¹⁵N enrichment was highest for glycine-supplied plants. In the second hydroponics experiment, plant N-uptake rates (nmol g biomass⁻¹ s⁻¹) were significantly higher for glycine than NO₃⁻, but relative growth rates (g g⁻¹ d⁻¹) lower on glycine. There were species-specific biomass allocation responses to N concentration (4 mM and 0.4 mM) and N-form (glycine and NO₃⁻). Glycine-supplied grasses at the low iN concentration field sites had significantly higher δ¹⁵N enrichment relative to those at sites with high iN, suggesting higher oN uptake when iN is limiting. We demonstrate the importance of accounting for oN acquisition in the sub-Antarctic. As a system with high soil oN relative to iN, plants may predominantly meet N-demands through oN rather than iN acquisition.

Ship voyage to Antarctica under stressful conditions impacts the health of expedition members. Measures can be taken to prevent adverse physical and psychological effects. Compared with minimally stressed control subjects in Delhi (India), these effects were investigated in a placebo-controlled study with multi-species probiotics intervention on selected anthropometric, body physiological and biochemical parameters. Total 39 participants volunteered for the study, of which 19 participated in the Antarctic expedition by ship voyage and 20 were the control subjects at Delhi. Participants were randomly divided into two groups and received daily either a probiotic or placebo for 24 days. The results suggest that probiotic intervention during the Antarctic ship voyage reduced sea sickness in probiotic group (10% cases) compared to the placebo group (44% cases). After completion of the ship voyage and intervention, body anthropometric parameters were maintained in the probiotic group. In contrast, significant alterations were observed in the placebo group with respect to their body composition and biochemical parameters as compared to the control group in Delhi. This allows the conclusion that multi-species probiotic intervention may benefit anthropometric and biochemical parameters and reduce the negative influence of stress during the ship voyage. These findings may be useful in improving expedition members’ physiological health and body homeostasis during stressful conditions.

Since the Antarctic continent is not exempt from human disturbances, it is necessary to generate information on the residues of anthropogenic origin in these environments. The main aim of our study was to determine the presence and abundance of anthropogenic residues found around the pygoscelid penguin colony of the Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 132 "Potter Peninsula" (25 de Mayo/King George Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica), in order to contribute with information on the distribution of anthropogenic residues that have been recorded in different regions of the Antarctic Peninsula and the Scotia Arc. A total of 37 anthropogenic elements (821.73 g) were collected between September 2021 and March 2022. According to the type of material, the most abundant were 'various plastic residue' (54.05%) and 'consumer plastic residue' (35.14%). Regarding size, most of the elements had a length between 15 and 30 cm, followed by those with a length < 5 cm, while regarding color, white residues were the most common (n = 9), followed by transparent ones (n = 7). The origin of these residues could be found in fishing, tourism, logistics and scientific activities. It is important to continue monitoring residues to assess potential impacts on biota and the environment.

The Western Antarctic Peninsula supports a diverse assemblage of > 100 described macroalgal species that contribute to the base of coastal food webs, but their contribution to local nearshore food webs is still uncertain across larger spatial scales. The analysis of biomarkers, specifically fatty acids and stable isotopes, offers a tool to clarify the trophic role of Antarctic macroalgae. The aim of this study was to describe the fatty acid profiles and stable isotope values of 31 algal species from three divisions (Chlorophyta—1, Ochrophyta—8, Rhodophyta—22) collected at the same sites for both biomarkers. Of these, 13 species had no previously published fatty acid profiles. Most species were rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), suggesting they are highly nutritious and could be a resource of essential fatty acids for consumers. This was specifically noticeable in the overall low PUFA ratio (∑ω6/∑ω3 ratio), with low ratios being an indicator of high nutritional quality for consumers. Fatty acid profiles of macroalgae grouped strongly by phylogeny (at the levels of division, order, and family), while stable isotope groupings were more driven by the physiological properties of the species. Specifically, some closely related red algal species exhibited very different stable isotope values based on their carbon concentrating mechanisms, with highly ¹³C-depleted values in several Rhodophyta species. The fact that the two biomarker approaches created different groupings of Antarctic macroalgae collected at the same locations emphasizes that their combined application can be a powerful tool in Antarctic coastal food web studies.

Copepod Boeckella poppei was first recorded in a freshwater body of the Wilhelm Archipelago (Kyiv Peninsula, Maritime Antarctica) in 2008. This crustacean is one of the main consumers of filamentous algae in freshwater Antarctic bodies and is used as an indicator species in freshwater ecosystems. This work aimed to research the current distribution of B. poppei within the Argentine Islands of this archipelago. The second population of this crustacean species was discovered on the Nob Island at the beginning of this research in 2010. Boeckella poppei was also recorded in 33 freshwater bodies of eight other islands in 2020. During the final stage was analyzed the adaptation of B. poppei to the extreme conditions of existence in the freshwater reservoirs of Antarctica and the main ways of the spread of this species over short and long distances in this region of the planet.

Although knowledge of Arctic benthic biodiversity has increased considerably in recent decades, some regions, such as Northeast Greenland, remain poorly studied. The aim of this study was to complement a previous macrofaunal inventory carried out in Young Sound, a High-Arctic fjord in this region (74°N). We sampled shallow benthic assemblages along a small inner/outer fjord gradient, including one station previously prospected two decades ago and three new stations. This sampling strategy revealed highly diversified benthic assemblages (166 species identified on a total sampling area of 1.32 m²), which considerably increases the number of species recorded for the fjord (i.e. 225 species vs 100 previously recorded). The outermost station was dominated in abundance by various assemblages of bivalves, while the middle stations showed greater species evenness, including numerous species of polychaetes, bivalves and crustaceans. The innermost station was dominated by ostracods, gammarid amphipods and tube-dwelling polychaetes. Overall, benthic assemblages varied little between the four stations and the transect as a whole exhibited characteristics typical of outer fjord habitats, reflecting the rather moderate impact of meltwater inputs in this part of the fjord. Finally, trophic plasticity and omnivory were observed in most of the recorded macrobenthic species, highlighting the adaptability of these species to low trophic availability in the ecosystem. Future biodiversity studies will need to explore the innermost and deepest areas to provide a more comprehensive inventory and understanding of the influence of environmental conditions on the structure and functioning of Young Sound benthic habitats.