Restricted regions of enhanced growth of Antarctic krill in the circumpolar Southern Ocean

Murphy, Eugene J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7369-9196; Thorpe, Sally E. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5193-6955; Tarling, Geraint A. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3753-5899; Watkins, Jonathan L.; Fielding, Sophie ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3152-4742; Underwood, Philip. 2017 Restricted regions of enhanced growth of Antarctic krill in the circumpolar Southern Ocean. Scientific Reports, 7, 6963. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-07205-9

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Official URL: http://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-07205-9

Abstract/Summary

Food webs in high-latitude oceans are dominated by relatively few species. Future ocean and sea-ice changes affecting the distribution of such species will impact the structure and functioning of whole ecosystems. Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) is a key species in Southern Ocean food webs, but there is little understanding of the factors influencing its success throughout much of the ocean. The capacity of a habitat to maintain growth will be crucial and here we use an empirical relationship of growth rate to assess seasonal spatial variability. Over much of the ocean, potential for growth is limited, with three restricted oceanic regions where seasonal conditions permit high growth rates, and only a few areas around the Scotia Sea and Antarctic Peninsula suitable for growth of the largest krill (>60 mm). Our study demonstrates that projections of impacts of future change need to account for spatial and seasonal variability of key ecological processes within ocean ecosystems.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-07205-9
Programmes:	BAS Programmes > BAS Programmes 2015 > Ecosystems
ISSN:	20452322
Additional Keywords:	ecosystem ecology, population dynamics
Date made live:	09 Aug 2017 07:21 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/517232

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-07205-9

Programmes:

BAS Programmes > BAS Programmes 2015 > Ecosystems

ISSN:

20452322

Additional Keywords:

ecosystem ecology, population dynamics

Date made live:

09 Aug 2017 07:21 +0 (UTC)