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Scientists review the ecological effects of sea ice loss

By Guest PostAugust 15, 2013Environmentarctic fox, arctic ocean, biological productivity, caribou, cecilia bitz, donald walker, ecological effects, eric post, ice microbes, jedediah brodie, jeffrey kerby, kristin laidre, microorganisms, mountainous tundra, pennsylvania state university, polar bears, ringed seals, sea ice decline, sea ice loss, tundra, uma bhatt, university of alaska, university of washington, west greenland

The Arctic Ocean has more open water each summer, a trend most scientists predict will continue in coming years. September 2012 set the record for the most open water since satellite observations began.

A University of Washington researcher is co-author on a review paper published (Aug. 2) in the journal Science looking at the ecological consequences of sea ice decline.

Led by corresponding author Eric Post, a biologist at Pennsylvania State University, the international team looked at effects on animals ranging from microorganisms to polar bears. As well as obvious changes for organisms that live in or on the ice, there also are trickle-down effects for food webs, animal behavior, species ranges, interbreeding and disease dynamics. (more…)

Shrinking Snow Depth on Arctic Sea Ice Threatens Ringed Seal Habitat

As sea ice in the Arctic continues to shrink during this century, more than two thirds of the area with sufficient snow cover for ringed seals to reproduce also will disappear, challenging their survival, scientists report in a new study.

The ringed seal, currently under consideration for threatened species listing, builds caves to rear its young in snow drifts on sea ice. Snow depths must be on average at least 20 centimeters, or 8 inches, to enable drifts deep enough to support the caves. (more…)

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Scientists review the ecological effects of sea ice loss

Shrinking Snow Depth on Arctic Sea Ice Threatens Ringed Seal Habitat