A summer of research in Antarctica

Sometimes, the answers to society’s biggest questions can be found only by travelling to the most remote places on earth.

Last December, a group of scientists from the University of Rhode Island and Rutgers University spent four months of the austral summer on the Western Antarctic Peninsula. There, isolated at Palmer research station with only 40 other people, these scientists set out to answer what impact climate change will have on the keystone species of the Southern Ocean.

Antarctic krill can be found in the stomachs of most whales, seals, penguins and birds around the Antarctic continent and serve as the link between these large predators and the primary producing phytoplankton — microscopic plants — that form the base of the marine food web.

Krill are not only an essential component of the ecosystem in this area, they also support a large commercial fishery that has operated for more than 35 years and whose marketability is growing. As the most abundant species on earth, the substantial ecological and economic contribution these animals provide is in danger as the population faces an uncertain future under the growing environmental challenges presented by climate change.

During the 2013 season, as a Rhode Island NSF EPSCoR fellow, I worked with a research group at Palmer station, experimenting on live krill to help predict the long-term health and status of the population. By manipulating seawater pH and temperature, the two major environmental factors being influenced by climate change, we were able to examine the effect of these changing variables on krill metabolism, growth and reproduction.

Choosing conditions that are expected to occur by the year 2100, we assessed the effect of both more acidic and warmer seawater on the krill alone, as well as in combination. Often, the influence of one stressor (in this case, lower pH) can be exacerbated greatly by the presence of a second stressor (increased temperature), as the two work together to elicit a stronger negative response.

Therefore, it is possible that while krill might do well when faced with only one of these challenges, they will be unable to handle the stress of both simultaneously. By looking at krill physiology under these conditions, scientists are beginning to understand their ability to acclimate to our changing oceans and how these animals, their populations, and the populations that depend on them will be affected.

The region surrounding the Western Antarctic Peninsula is experiencing some of the most rapid climate change with an increase in temperature five times the global average. With cold temperatures that last year-round, animals in this area already face an increased risk as they experience little natural variability and are ill equipped to handle a new, changing environment.

My colleagues and I are shedding light on what we can expect for the overall fate of Antarctic krill and the delicate ecosystem they support.

By Abigail Bockus | RI NSF EPSCoR graduate fellow 2013-14