Climate change cumulative impacts on deep-sea ecosystems

2020 ◽  
pp. 161-182
Author(s):  
Nadine Le Bris ◽  
Lisa A. Levin
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Temporal Dynamics ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Cumulative Impacts ◽  
Physiological Limits ◽  
Resource Decline

Climate models report that the environmental changes resulting from excess CO2 and heat absorption by the ocean already reach many deep-ocean margins, basins, and seas. Decadal monitoring programmes have confirmed significant warming and deoxygenation trends down to the abyss, which combine with CO2-enriched, more corrosive conditions. Although the resolution of current models does not account for the typical mesoscale seafloor heterogeneity, cumulative impacts on biodiversity and productivity hotpots are anticipated. The growing interest in deep-sea resource exploitation has shed light on the lack of knowledge about current climate-driven disturbance and potential cumulative threats at great depth. Assessing the sensitivity of deep-sea ecosystems to temperature increase combined with oxygen and resource decline is emerging as a growing challenge. The natural patchiness of deep-seafloor habitats and associated deep-sea diversity patterns inform about environmental constraints over space, but the temporal dynamics of these systems is not well known. Experimental studies are required to assess the physiological limits and explore the adaptation and acclimation potential of foundation species exposed to various forms of abiotic stress. The case of cold-water corals is particularly illustrative of the potential synergistic effects of climate stressors, including warming, acidification, deoxygation, and reduced food availability. Addressing ecosystem vulnerability also requires dedicated monitoring efforts to identify the current and future drivers of climate-change impacts on deep-sea habitats. United Nations policy objectives for protected high-sea biodiversity and healthy oceans and seas drive the momentum towards better climate-change forecasting over the ocean-depth range and related integrated observing strategies.

scholarly journals The Value of a Deep-Sea Collection of the Azores (NE Atlantic Ocean): Marine invertebrate biodiversity in an era of global environmental change

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Íris Sampaio ◽  
Telmo Morato ◽  
Filipe Porteiro ◽  
Cristina Gutiérrez-Zárate ◽  
Gerald Taranto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Marine Invertebrate ◽  
Global Environmental Change ◽  
Geographic Location ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Marine Research ◽  
The Impact

The deep ocean is the largest and least explored biome with the highest richness of species and phylogenetic biodiversity on Earth. The high costs of using sophisticated technological means to access deep-sea ecosystems gives an inestimable value to specimens collected in these environments. Azorean scientists have long started collaborating with fishermen to collect deep-sea marine invertebrate fauna accidentally captured during fishing activities, thus obtaining deep-sea organisms opportunistically. Specimens have been stored and catalogued at the Department of Oceanography and Fisheries – University of the Azores’ Marine Biological Reference Collection (COLETA) since 2006. The collection has been continuously growing through oceanographic cruises and fisheries observer programs in the framework of several national and international collaborations. Currently, COLETA has 14367 specimens and samples corresponding to 10827 databased entries representing mostly corals (3415) and sponges (1941) of the deep sea (Fig. 1), for which data are available until 2012 (Institute of Marine Research (IMAR - Azores), Portugal and Department of Oceanography and Fisheries (DOP) - UAC, Portugal 2015). Specimens and associated metadata have contributed for the the taxonomy, population genetics and life history (age, growth, reproduction) of corals and other organisms. The homonym COLETA database, besides the taxonomic identification and photography of the specimen, has metadata including geographic location, depth, and the method of collection (e.g. survey, fishing). Thus, COLETA has also been instrumental in the mapping of distribution of biodiversity and vulnerable marine ecosystems such as coral gardens, sponge grounds, hidrarian gardens and sea pen fields in the Azores Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Efforts have been made to make COLETA compatible with other databases, such as the database of historical records of cold-water coral occurrences in the Azores (e.g. Prince Albert of Monaco Campaigns in the 19th century) and other fisheries databases, in order to maximize its potential to study trends in biodiversity loss related to climate change and fisheries impacts. Underwater images of live specimens from video surveys have also been cross-referenced with specimens stored at COLETA in an effort to join taxonomists and ecologists in the characterization of new habitats. Curated collections and datasets based on vouchered records, which can be continuously consulted, are essential to study deep-sea biodiversity. A continuously growing collection has also the potential of adding a time frame to the study of the impact of climate change, fishing and pollution on the deep-sea. In an era of biodiversity loss, COLETA represents a good example of where physical specimens and associated metadata databases can be combined to research and discover species, to achieve ecosystem conservation and guide marine spatial planning.

Variable response of North Atlantic deep-sea benthic ecosystems to industrial-era climate change

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte O'Brien ◽  
Peter Spooner ◽  
David Thornalley ◽  
Jack Wharton ◽  
Eirini Papachristopoulou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Variable Response ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Surface Ocean ◽  
Benthic Ecosystems

<p><strong>Traditionally, deep-sea ecosystems have been considered to be insulated from the effects of modern climate change. Yet, with the recognition of the importance of food supply from the surface ocean and deep-sea currents to sustaining these systems, the potential for rapid response of benthic systems to climate change is gaining increasing attention. North Atlantic benthic responses to past climate change have been well-documented using marine sediment cores on glacial-interglacial timescales, and ocean sediments have also begun to reveal that planktic species assemblages are already being influenced by global warming. However, very few ecological time-series exist for the deep ocean covering the Holocene-through-industrial era. Here, we use benthic and planktic foraminifera found in Northeast Atlantic (EN539-MC16-A/B and RAPID-17-5P), Northwest Atlantic (KNR158-4-10MC and KNR158-4-9GGC) and Labrador Sea (RAPID-35-25B and RAPID-35-14P) sediments to show that, in locations beneath areas of major North Atlantic surface water change, benthic ecosystems have also changed significantly over the industrial era relative to the Holocene. We find that the response of the benthos is dependent on changes in the surface ocean near to the study sites. Our work highlights the spatial heterogeneity of these benthic ecosystem changes and therefore the need for local-regional scale modelling and observations to better understand responses to deep-sea circulation changes and modern surface climate change. </strong></p>

Climate-mediated changes in predator–prey interactions in the fossil record: a case study using shell-drilling gastropods from the Pleistocene Japan Sea

Paleobiology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomoki Chiba ◽  
Shin’ichi Sato
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Japan Sea ◽  
Warm Water ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Water Shell ◽  
Long Timescales ◽  
Molluscan Species

AbstractPaleoecological studies enhance our understanding of biotic responses to climate change because they consider long timescales not accessible through observational and experimental studies. Using predatory drillholes produced on fossil bivalve shells by carnivorous gastropods, we provide an example of how climate change affected predator–prey interactions. We quantitatively examine temporal changes in fossil molluscan assemblages and predation patterns from the Pleistocene Japan Sea, which experienced drastic environmental changes in relation to glacial–interglacial climate cycles. We found significant changes in predation patterns associated with a decline in the abundance of warm-water molluscan species. Climate-mediated fluctuations in the eustatic sea level and resultant weakening of the Tsushima Warm Current caused a decline in a warm-water shell-drilling predator, which moderated the predation pressure and size relationship between the predators and the bivalve prey. Our results indicate that climate-mediated range shifts of species in present-day and future marine ecosystems can likewise increase altered predator–prey interactions.

Long term changes in the deep sea: examples from two Mediterranean Channels

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrin Schroeder ◽  
Sana Ben Ismail ◽  
Jacopo Chiggiato ◽  
Mireno Borghini ◽  
Stefania Sparnocchia
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Global Ocean ◽  
Marginal Sea ◽  
The Mediterranean

<p>Climate change is one of the key topics of our century. The study of processes related to climate change in the atmosphere, the open ocean, the deep sea or even in shallow coastal waters require sustained long-term observations, often deploying sophisticated and expensive equipment. According to the Deep-Ocean Observing Strategy (DOOS, http://deepoceanobserving.org/), the deep ocean (below 200 m water depth) is the least observed, but largest habitat on our planet by volume and area. With more than 90% of anthropogenic heat imbalance absorbed by the oceans, monitoring long-term changes of its heat content, and over its full depth, is essential to quantify the planetary heat budget.</p><p>The Mediterranean Sea is a mid-latitude marginal sea, particularly responsive to climate change as reported by recent studies. Straits and channels divide it into several sub-basins and the continuous monitoring of these choke points allows to intercept different water masses, and thus to document how they changed over time. This monitoring, in many cases, is done under the umbrella of the CIESM Hydrochanges program (http://www.ciesm.org/marine/programs/hydrochanges.htm). Here we report the long-term time series of physical data collected in two of these choke points: the Sardinia Channel (1900 m) and the Sicily Channel (400 m).</p><p>The Sardinia Channel allows the Western Mediterranean Deep Water (WMDW) to enter the Tyrrhenian Sea (depths > 3000 m), connecting it with the Algerian Sea (depths > 2500 m). This water mass has experienced a significant increase of heat and salt content over the past decades, due both to a gradual process and to and abrupt event, called Western Mediterranean Transition (WMT). The monitoring at the sill (1900 m) of the Sardinia Channel since 2003 shows this very clearly, and the interannual trends are significantly stronger than the global average trends.</p><p>The Sicily Channel (sill at 400 m) separates the Mediterranean in two main basins, the Eastern Mediterranean Sea and the Western Mediterranean Sea. Here the thermohaline properties of the Intermediate Water (IW) are monitored since 1993, showing increasing temperature and salinity trends at least one order of magnitude stronger than those observed at intermediate depths in the global ocean.</p><p>We investigate the causes of the observed trends and in particular discuss the role of a changing climate over the Mediterranean, especially in the eastern basin, where the IW is formed. The long-term records in two Mediterranean channels reveal how fast the response to climate change can be in a marginal sea compared to the global ocean, and demonstrates the essential role of long time series in the ocean.</p>

scholarly journals Exceptional 20th Century Shifts in Deep-Sea Ecosystems Are Spatially Heterogeneous and Associated With Local Surface Ocean Variability

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte L. O’Brien ◽  
Peter T. Spooner ◽  
Jack H. Wharton ◽  
Eirini Papachristopoulou ◽  
Nicolas Dutton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Surface Ocean ◽  
Spatial Coverage ◽  
Major Surface ◽  
Benthic Ecosystems

Traditionally, deep-sea ecosystems have been considered to be insulated from the effects of modern climate change, but with the recognition of the importance of food supply from the surface ocean and deep-sea currents to sustaining these systems, the potential for rapid response of benthic systems to climate change is gaining increasing attention. However, very few ecological time-series exist for the deep ocean covering the twentieth century. Benthic responses to past climate change have been well-documented using marine sediment cores on glacial-interglacial timescales, and ocean sediments have also begun to reveal that planktic species assemblages are already being influenced by global warming. Here, we use benthic foraminifera found in mid-latitude and subpolar North Atlantic sediment cores to show that, in locations beneath areas of major surface water change, benthic ecosystems have also changed significantly over the last ∼150 years. The maximum benthic response occurs in areas which have seen large changes in surface circulation, temperature, and/or productivity. We infer that the observed surface-deep ocean coupling is due to changes in the supply of organic matter exported from the surface ocean and delivered to the seafloor. The local-to-regional scale nature of these changes highlights that accurate projections of changes in deep-sea ecosystems will require (1) increased spatial coverage of deep-sea proxy records, and (2) models capable of adequately resolving these relatively small-scale oceanographic features.

Deep Sea Ostracodes and Climate Change

2003 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 247-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas M. Cronin ◽  
Gary S. Dwyer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Ocean Circulation ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Sediment Cores ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Bottom Water Temperature ◽  
Shell Chemistry ◽  
Practical Guidelines ◽  
Deep Ocean Circulation

Ostracodes are bivalved Crustacea whose fossil shells constitute the most abundant and diverse metazoan group preserved in sediment cores from deep and intermediate ocean water depths. The ecology, zoogeography, and shell chemistry of many ostracode taxa makes them useful for paleoceanographic research on topics ranging from deep ocean circulation, bottom-water temperature, ecological response to global climate change and many others. However, the application of ostracodes to the study of climate change has been hampered by a number of factors, including the misconception that they are rare or absent in deep-sea sediments and the lack of taxonomic and zoogeographic data. In recent years studies from the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic Oceans show that ostracodes are abundant enough for quantitative assemblage analysis and that the geochemistry of their shells can be a valuable tool for paleotemperature reconstruction. This paper presents practical guidelines for using ostracodes in investigations of climate-driven ocean variability and the ecological and evolutionary impacts of these changes.

Environmental Aspects of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Diseases Neuropathologies

2021 ◽  
pp. 79-108
Author(s):  
Nadia Zouhairi ◽  
Omar El Hiba ◽  
Hasna Lahouaoui ◽  
Hind Benammi ◽  
Hicham Chatoui ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Neurodegenerative Diseases ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Rural Population ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Environmental Aspects ◽  
Parkinson’S Diseases

This chapter presents a literature review on the effect of environmental changes factors exposure in the etiology of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. The use of pesticides is more intense and somehow erratic as it aims to face climate change consequences like drought and water scarcity. The rural population is getting to be more vulnerable to have these neurodegenerative diseases. However, intense food production and economic models mean also the use of heavy metals in many stages as well during the production and the consumption processes and practices. Evidence from experimental studies shows that such heavy metals may also be a factor for the occurrence of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. At least, the environmental lifestyle and, likely, genetic factors, individually and collectively, play a significant role in the etiology of the diseases.

Projected Behavioral Impacts of Global Climate Change

2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 449-474 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary W. Evans
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Extreme Weather ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Intergroup Conflict ◽  
Projected Changes

The projected behavioral impacts of global climate change emanate from environmental changes including temperature elevation, extreme weather events, and rising air pollution. Negative affect, interpersonal and intergroup conflict, and possibly psychological distress increase with rising temperature. Droughts, floods, and severe storms diminish quality of life, elevate stress, produce psychological distress, and may elevate interpersonal and intergroup conflict. Recreational opportunities are compromised by extreme weather, and children may suffer delayed cognitive development. Elevated pollutants concern citizens and may accentuate psychological distress. Outdoor recreational activity is curtailed by ambient pollutants. Limitations and issues in need of further investigation include the following: lack of data on direct experience with climate change rather than indirect assessments related to projected changes; poor spatial resolution in environmental exposures and behavioral assessments; few rigorous quasi-experimental studies; overreliance on self-reports of behavioral outcomes; little consideration of moderator effects; and scant investigation of underlying psychosocial processes to explain projected behavioral impacts.

Environmental Aspects of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Diseases Neuropathologies

2019 ◽  
pp. 236-265
Author(s):  
Nadia Zouhairi ◽  
Omar El Hiba ◽  
Hasna Lahouaoui ◽  
Hind Benammi ◽  
Hicham Chatoui ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Neurodegenerative Diseases ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Rural Population ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Environmental Aspects ◽  
Parkinson’S Diseases

This chapter presents a literature review on the effect of environmental changes factors exposure in the etiology of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. The use of pesticides is more intense and somehow erratic as it aims to face climate change consequences like drought and water scarcity. The rural population is getting to be more vulnerable to have these neurodegenerative diseases. However, intense food production and economic models mean also the use of heavy metals in many stages as well during the production and the consumption processes and practices. Evidence from experimental studies shows that such heavy metals may also be a factor for the occurrence of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. At least, the environmental lifestyle and, likely, genetic factors, individually and collectively, play a significant role in the etiology of the diseases.

Natural Capital and Exploitation of the Deep Ocean

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Natural Capital ◽  
Ecological Integrity ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Global Media ◽  
Direct Function ◽  
High Profile ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Oil Gas

The deep ocean is, by far, the planet’s largest biome and holds a wealth of potential natural assets. Most of the ocean lies beyond national jurisdiction and hence is the responsibility of us all. Human exploitation of the deep ocean is rapidly increasing, becoming more visible to many through the popular media. The scientific literature of deep-sea exploitation and its actual and potential effects has also rapidly expanded as a direct function of this increased national and global interest in deep-sea resources, both biological (e.g. fisheries, genetic resources) and non-biological (e.g. minerals, oil, gas, methane hydrate). At the same time there is a growing interest in deep-sea contamination (including plastics), with many such studies featured in high-profile scientific journals and covered by global media outlets. Finally, climate change is affecting even the deepest regions of our oceans and is a major priority for the international scientific and political agendas. However, there is currently no comprehensive integration of information about resource extraction, pollution and effects of climate change and these topics are only superficially covered in classic textbooks on deep-sea biology. The human race is at a pivotal point in potentially benefitting from the deep ocean’s natural resources and this concise and accessible work provides an account of past explorations and exploitations of the deep ocean, a present understanding of its natural capital and how this may be exploited sustainably for the benefit of humankind whilst maintaining its ecological integrity. The book gives a comprehensive account of geological and physical processes, ecology and biology, exploitation, management, and conservation.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document