Publications which the BOOMS project has contributed to will be listed here when they are available, project participants will be highlighted in bold:
So Kawaguchi,
Angus Atkinson, Dominik Bahlburg, Kim S. Bernard, Emma L. Cavan, Martin J. Cox, Simeon L. Hill, Bettina Meyer & Devi Veytia. (2024),
Climate change impacts on Antarctic krill behaviour and population dynamics Nature Reviews Earth & Environment volume 5, pages 43–58 (2024) DOI: 10.1038/s43017-023-00504-y
Abstract
Krill habitats in the Southern Ocean are impacted by changing climate conditions, reduced sea ice and rising temperatures. These changes, in turn, affect krill occurrence, physiology and behaviour, which could have ecosystem impacts. In this Review, we examine climate change impacts on Antarctic krill and the potential implications for the Southern Ocean ecosystem. Since the 1970s, there have been apparent reductions in adult population density and the occurrence of very dense swarms in the northern Southwest Atlantic. These changes were associated with latitudinal and longitudinal rearrangement of population distribution — including a poleward contraction in the Southwest Atlantic — and were likely driven by ocean warming, sea-ice reductions and changes in the quality of larval habitats. As swarms are targeted by fishers and predators, this contraction could increase fishery–predator interactions, potentially exacerbating risk to already declining penguin populations and recovering whale populations. These risks require urgent mitigation measures to be developed. A circumpolar monitoring network using emerging technologies is needed to augment existing surveys and better record the shifts in krill distribution.
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Siegert Martin J., Bentley Mike J.,
Atkinson Angus, Bracegirdle Thomas J., Convey Peter, Davies Bethan, Downie Rod, Hogg Anna E., Holmes Caroline, Hughes Kevin A., Meredith Michael P., Ross Neil, Rumble Jane, Wilkinson Jeremy. (2023),
Antarctic extreme events.
Frontiers in Environmental Science. DOI: 10.3389/fenvs.2023.1229283
Abstract
There is increasing evidence that fossil-fuel burning, and consequential global heating of 1.1°C to date, has led to the increased occurrence and severity of extreme environmental events. It is well documented how such events have impacted society outside Antarctica through enhanced levels of rainfall and flooding, heatwaves and wildfires, drought and water/food shortages and episodes of intense cooling. Here, we briefly examine evidence for extreme events in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean across a variety of environments and timescales. We show how vulnerable natural Antarctic systems are to extreme events and highlight how governance and environmental protection of the continent must take them into account. Given future additional heating of at least 0.4°C is now unavoidable (to contain heating to the “Paris Agreement 1.5°C” scenario), and may indeed be higher unless drastic action is successfully taken on reducing greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by mid-Century, we explain it is virtually certain that future Antarctic extreme events will be more pronounced than those observed to date.
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