Sea ice meiofauna distribution on local to pan-Arctic scales.

ABSTRACT: Arctic sea ice provides microhabitats for biota that inhabit the liquid-filled network of brine channels and the ice-water interface. We used meta-analysis of 23 published and unpublished datasets comprising 721 ice cores to synthesize the variability in composition and abundance of sea ice meiofauna at spatial scales ranging from within a single ice core to pan-Arctic and seasonal scales. Two-thirds of meiofauna individuals occurred in the bottom 10 cm of the ice. Locally, replicate cores taken within meters of each other were broadly similar in meiofauna composition and abundance, while those a few km apart varied more; 75% of variation was explained by station. At the regional scale (Bering Sea first-year ice), meiofauna abundance varied over two orders of magnitude. At the pan-Arctic s

SUBMITTER: Bluhm BA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5817141 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature