{"dp_type": "Project", "free_text": "Antarctic Krill"}
[{"awards": "2628024 Bernard, Kim", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-62 -61,-61.1 -61,-60.2 -61,-59.3 -61,-58.4 -61,-57.5 -61,-56.6 -61,-55.7 -61,-54.8 -61,-53.9 -61,-53 -61,-53 -61.4,-53 -61.8,-53 -62.2,-53 -62.6,-53 -63,-53 -63.4,-53 -63.8,-53 -64.2,-53 -64.6,-53 -65,-53.9 -65,-54.8 -65,-55.7 -65,-56.6 -65,-57.5 -65,-58.4 -65,-59.3 -65,-60.2 -65,-61.1 -65,-62 -65,-62 -64.6,-62 -64.2,-62 -63.8,-62 -63.4,-62 -63,-62 -62.6,-62 -62.2,-62 -61.8,-62 -61.4,-62 -61))", "dataset_titles": null, "datasets": null, "date_created": "Thu, 05 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Antarctic krill are a vital component of the Southern Ocean ecosystem, supporting whales, seals, penguins, fish, and seabirds, while sustaining the region\u2019s largest fishery. Yet the habitats that support successful krill reproduction remain poorly understood, limiting science-based management in a rapidly changing and increasingly fished region. This project will test whether hydrothermal vent systems in the Bransfield Strait provide essential mineral resources to reproductive female krill. Because iron, manganese, and zinc support egg production, embryo development, and core cellular processes, vent-influenced habitats may represent overlooked reproductive resources in the otherwise mineral-limited Southern Ocean. Results will advance understanding of Antarctic food webs and deep-sea\u2013pelagic connections, inform conservation and fishery management through the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, and train an early-career researcher and undergraduate student in polar marine science.\r\n\r\nThis project will leverage an expedition aboard the German research vessel, RV Polarstern, to investigate whether hydrothermal vent-influenced regions contribute to mineral provisioning and reproductive success in Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba. Gravid females will be collected across the Bransfield Strait, Gerlache Strait, northwest Weddell Sea, and Elephant Island regions using towed nets. Shipboard egg-production experiments will quantify batch size, embryo number, and embryo traits, while frozen females and embryos will be analyzed at Oregon State University for trace metals, lipid and protein content, and stable isotopes. Concentrations of iron, Manganese, and Zinc in ovaries, hepatopancreas, muscle, and embryos will be compared among regions using mixed-effects models, and reproductive output will be modeled as a function of ovarian trace-metal concentrations, female size, and region.\r\n\r\nThis award reflects NSF\u0027\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": -53.0, "geometry": "POINT(-57.5 -63)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "TRACE ELEMENTS; ANIMAL ECOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR; PELAGIC; Trace Metal; ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONS; Antarctic Krill; Antarctic Peninsula", "locations": "Antarctic Peninsula", "north": -61.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Bernard, Kim; Buck, Kristen N", "platforms": null, "repositories": null, "science_programs": null, "south": -65.0, "title": "RAPID: Time-Sensitive Assessment of Hydrothermal Vent Influence on Reproductive Ecology of Antarctic Krill", "uid": "p0010591", "west": -62.0}, {"awards": "2042032 Huckstadt, Luis", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "Crabeater seal tracking data 2022-2023", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601861", "doi": "10.15784/601861", "keywords": "Antarctica; Cryosphere", "people": "Huckstadt, Luis", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Crabeater seal tracking data 2022-2023", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601861"}], "date_created": "Wed, 27 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Part I: Non-technical description: The crabeater seal is the most important predator of Antarctic krill in the western Antarctic Peninsula oceanic waters after the disappearance of large whales due to human hunting 100 years ago. The crabeater seals are expected to consume large quantities of krill due to their high abundance (about 7 million individuals), large body size (about 700 pounds in body weight), high metabolism and a diet specializing in krill. This species depends on sea ice presence all year long, living, reproducing, and diving to feed from that environment, making this marine mammal species a good indicator, or sentinel, of how the Antarctic ecosystem responds to a changing climate. As sea ice has been decreasing in the northern Antarctic Peninsula, this project aims to understand if the species food availability has changed in the last decades in response to environmental changes. In particular, the proposed work will concentrate on known populations of crabeater seals in northern (i.e., warmer, sub-polar) and southern (i.e., colder, polar) Antarctic Peninsula, 450 miles apart, making measurements on the abundance, physiology, metabolic needs and movement of the crabeater populations in both locations. The data will be combined to build models that will quantify the existing differences between northern and southern populations, as well as predict their future change, and compare present-day measurements with those collected by the British Antarctic Survey in the mid-1900s. The project is a collaboration between an international and interdisciplinary team from the United States and United Kingdom, benefitting NSF goals to facilitate collaborative geoscience research projects involving these two countries as well as aligning directly with U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) to better understand the forces shaping the global environment, both human and natural, and their impacts on society. To further increase polar literacy and education, Principal Investigators will train at least 2 graduate students and several undergraduates across two US institutions, as well as one UK-based post-doctoral researcher. Part II: Technical description: Crabeater seals (Lobodon carcinophaga) are considered an excellent sentinel species through which to examine the effects of a changing climate on the extended Antarctic krill-dependent predator community and the structure of the entire ecosystem of the western Antarctic Peninsula. Over the last forty years, there have been significant changes in the temporal and spatial patterns of primary productivity, and shifts in the population dynamics of Antarctic krill, the dominant mid-trophic level species. The impact of such changes on year-round resident species of crabeater seals (the most important predator of Antarctic krill) is more difficult to understand as they are not associated with breeding colonies where their population fluctuations could be more readily observed. The proposed research is conceived under the premise that environmental change has accentuated the differences between the northern and southern western Antarctic Peninsula crabeater seal populations due to differential reductions in sea-ice and its possible effect on prey availability. To address this question, this research will combine measurements on animal movement, stable isotope analyses, whole-animal physiology, and novel survey technologies (small Unmanned Aircraft Systems, satellite imagery) to build models. The project is a collaboration between an international and interdisciplinary team from the United States and United Kingdom. These studies will be essential to detect past, and project future, changes in the ecology of this species in response to changes in sea ice when comparing present-day measurements with those collected by the British Antarctic Survey in the mid-1900s. To further increase polar literacy and education, Principal Investigators will train at least 2 graduate students and several undergraduates across two US institutions, as well as one UK-based post-doctoral researcher. Students involved with this project will gain invaluable research experience in the lab and will have a unique opportunity to participate in Antarctic fieldwork. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "ANIMAL ECOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR; MARINE ECOSYSTEMS; Antarctica", "locations": "Antarctica", "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Huckstadt, Luis", "platforms": null, "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": null, "title": "NSFGEO-NERC Collaborative Research: Effects of a Changing Climate on the Habitat Utilization, Foraging Ecology and Distribution of Crabeater Seals", "uid": "p0010490", "west": null}, {"awards": "2203176 Cimino, Megan; 2203177 Steinberg, Deborah", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-80 -60,-77 -60,-74 -60,-71 -60,-68 -60,-65 -60,-62 -60,-59 -60,-56 -60,-53 -60,-50 -60,-50 -61,-50 -62,-50 -63,-50 -64,-50 -65,-50 -66,-50 -67,-50 -68,-50 -69,-50 -70,-53 -70,-56 -70,-59 -70,-62 -70,-65 -70,-68 -70,-71 -70,-74 -70,-77 -70,-80 -70,-80 -69,-80 -68,-80 -67,-80 -66,-80 -65,-80 -64,-80 -63,-80 -62,-80 -61,-80 -60))", "dataset_titles": "Macrozooplankton taxonomic density north and west of Antarctic Peninsula during austral summer, 1992-2023", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "200579", "doi": "10.6073/pasta/3443da26bd04c93becc1883f2a7fc279", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "EDI Data Portal", "science_program": null, "title": "Macrozooplankton taxonomic density north and west of Antarctic Peninsula during austral summer, 1992-2023", "url": "https://portal.edirepository.org/nis/mapbrowse?packageid=knb-lter-pal.324.1"}], "date_created": "Thu, 10 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This project is co-funded by a collaboration between the Directorate for Geosciences and Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure to support Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning and open science activities in the geosciences. Machine learning model will be used in this project to predict the distributions of five zooplankton species in the western Antarctic Peninsula (wAP) based on oceanographic properties. The project will take advantage of a long-term series collected by the Palmer Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program that collects annual data on physics, chemistry, phytoplankton (or food), zooplankton and predators (seabirds, whales and seals). By analyzing this dataset and combining it with other data collected by national and international programs, this project will provide understanding and prediction of zooplankton distribution and abundance in the wAP. The machine learning models will be based on environmental properties extracted from remote sensing images thus providing ecosystem knowledge as it decreases human footprint in Antarctica. The relationship between species distribution and habitat are key for distinguishing natural variability from climate impacts on zooplankton and their predators. This research benefits NSF mission by expanding fundamental knowledge of Antarctic systems, biota, and processes as well as aligning with data and sample reuse strategies in Polar Research. The project will benefit society by supporting two female early-career scientists, a post-doctoral fellow and a graduate student. Polar literacy will be promoted through an existing partnership with Out Of School activities that target Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, expected to reach 120,000 students from under-represented minorities in STEM annually. The project will also contribute to evaluate the ecosystem in the proposed Marine Protected Area in the wAP, subject to krill fishery. Results will be made available publicly through an interactive web application. The Principal Investigators propose to address three main questions: 1) Can geomorphic features, winter preconditioning and summer ocean conditions be used to predict the austral summer distribution of zooplankton species along the wAP? 2) What are the spatial and temporal patterns in modeled zooplankton species distribution along the wAP? And 3) What are the patterns of overlap in zooplankton and predator species? The model will generate functional relationships between zooplankton distribution and environmental variables and provide Zooplankton Distribution Models (ZDMs) along the Antarctic Peninsula. The Palmer LTER database will be combined with the NOAA AMLR data for the northern wAP, and KRILLBASE, made public by the British Antarctic Survey\u2019s Polar Data Center. This project will generate 1) annual environmental spatial layers on the Palmer LTER resolution grid within the study region, 2) annual species-specific standardized zooplankton net data from different surveys, 3) annual species-specific predator sightings on a standardized grid, and 4) ecological model output. Ecological model output will include annual predictions of zooplankton species distributions, consisting of 3-dimensional fields (x,y,t) for the 5 main zooplankton groups, including Antarctic krill, salps and pteropods. Predictions will be derived from merging in situ survey data with environmental data, collected in situ or by remote sensing. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": -50.0, "geometry": "POINT(-65 -65)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "ANIMAL ECOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR; PELAGIC; BIRDS; SPECIES/POPULATION INTERACTIONS; ANIMALS/INVERTEBRATES; Antarctic Peninsula", "locations": "Antarctic Peninsula", "north": -60.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Cimino, Megan; Steinberg, Deborah", "platforms": null, "repo": "EDI Data Portal", "repositories": "EDI Data Portal", "science_programs": null, "south": -70.0, "title": "Collaborative Research: Harvesting Long-term Survey Data to Develop Zooplankton Distribution Models for the Antarctic Peninsula", "uid": "p0010429", "west": -80.0}, {"awards": "2011285 Santora, Jarrod; 2011454 Veit, Richard", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-39 -53,-38.6 -53,-38.2 -53,-37.8 -53,-37.4 -53,-37 -53,-36.6 -53,-36.2 -53,-35.8 -53,-35.4 -53,-35 -53,-35 -53.2,-35 -53.4,-35 -53.6,-35 -53.8,-35 -54,-35 -54.2,-35 -54.4,-35 -54.6,-35 -54.8,-35 -55,-35.4 -55,-35.8 -55,-36.2 -55,-36.6 -55,-37 -55,-37.4 -55,-37.8 -55,-38.2 -55,-38.6 -55,-39 -55,-39 -54.8,-39 -54.6,-39 -54.4,-39 -54.2,-39 -54,-39 -53.8,-39 -53.6,-39 -53.4,-39 -53.2,-39 -53))", "dataset_titles": "Bird, Mammal, Plankton, Oceanographic data, South Georgia, July 2023; Winter marine communities of the Antarctic Peninsula", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601890", "doi": "10.15784/601890", "keywords": "Abundance; Antarctica; Antarctic Winter; Birds; Cryosphere; CTD; Mammals; Plankton; South Georgia Island", "people": "Manne, Lisa; Veit, Richard; Santora, Jarrod; Czapanskiy, Max", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Bird, Mammal, Plankton, Oceanographic data, South Georgia, July 2023", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601890"}, {"dataset_uid": "601795", "doi": "10.15784/601795", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Krill; Antarctic Peninsula; Cryosphere; Pack Ice; Polynya; Seabirds; Sea Ice; Winter; Zooplankton", "people": "Santora, Jarrod; Reiss, Christian; Dietrich, Kim; Czapanskiy, Max", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Winter marine communities of the Antarctic Peninsula", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601795"}], "date_created": "Thu, 06 Oct 2022 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Part I: Non-technical description: Ocean warming in the western Antarctic Peninsula and Scotia Sea in winter is among the highest worldwide. This project will quantify the impact of the climate warming on seabirds. The study area is in South Georgia in the South Atlantic with the largest and most diverse seabird colonies in the world. Detecting and understanding how physics and biology interact to bring positive or negative population changes to seabirds has long challenged scientists. The team in this project hypothesizes that 1) Cold water seabird species decline while warm water species increase due to ocean warming observed in the last 30 years; 2) All species decrease with ocean warming, affecting how they interact with each other and in doing so, decreasing their chances of survival; and 3) Species profiles can be predicted using multiple environmental variables and models. To collect present-day data to compare with observations done in 1985, 1991 and 1993, 2 cruises are planned in the austral winter; the personnel will include the three Principal Investigators, all experienced with sampling of seabirds, plankton and oceanography, with 2 graduate and 5 undergraduate students. Models will be developed based on the cruise data and the environmental change experienced in the last 30 years. The research will improve our understanding of seabird and marine mammal winter ecology, and how they interact with the environment. This project benefits NSF\u0027s goals to expand the fundamental knowledge of Antarctic systems, biota, and processes. The project will provide an exceptional opportunity to teach polar field skills to undergraduates by bringing 5 students to engage in the research cruises. To further increase polar literacy training and educational impacts, broader impacts include the production of an educational documentary that will be coupled to field surveys to assess public perceptions about climate change. Part II: Technical description: Ocean warming in the western Antarctic Peninsula and Scotia Sea in winter is among the highest worldwide. Based on previous work, the Principal Investigators in this project want to test the hypothesis that warming would have decreased seabird abundance and species associations in the South Georgia region of the South Atlantic. A main premise of this proposal is that because of marine environmental change, the structure of the seabird communities has also changed, and potentially in a manner that has diminished the mutually beneficial dynamics of positive interactions, with subsequent consequences to fitness and population trends. The study is structured by 3 main objectives: 1) identify changes in krill, bird and mammal abundance that have occurred from previous sampling off both ends of South Georgia during winter in 1985, 1991 and 1993, 2) identify pairings of species that benefit each other in searching for prey, and quantify how such relationships have changed since 1985, and 3) make predictions about how these changes in species pairing might continue given predicted future changes in climate. The novelty of the approach is the conceptual model that inter-species associations inform birds of food availability and that the associations decrease if bird abundance decreases, thus warming could decrease overall population fitness. These studies will be essential to establish if behavioral patterns in seabird modulate their response to climate change. The project will provide exceptional educational opportunity to undergraduates by bringing 5 students to participate on the cruises. To further increase polar literacy training and educational impacts, broader impacts include the production of an educational documentary that will be coupled to field surveys to assess public perceptions about climate change. 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They leave and return to the same colony location after hunting for food and rely on the availability of Antarctic krill, their primary food source. This research focuses on whether penguin diets and colony location reflect the retention of prey around and near colonies on the West Antarctic Peninsula. Eddies and other oceanographic processes may facilitate prey retention at certain locations, driving penguin colony establishment and success. This project hypothesizes that Pygoscelis penguin diets will be composed of more Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) when local prey retention is high, possibly due to subsurface eddies. This hypothesis will be tested using satellite-based estimates of Pygoscelis penguin diet composition using multispectral sensor data to estimate nitrogen values and infer trophic level. Prey retention will be calculated along the peninsula using the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS). Simulated particles and diel vertical migration will be used to mimic krill behavior. These particles can be experimentally seeded across multiple depths in multiple years to assess residence times in the system. Using penguin colony data from the Mapping Application for Penguin Populations and Projected Dynamics (MAPPPD), the PI will correlate diet and retention metrics to local penguin colony growth and persistence and build a predictive model of where colonies may form in the future. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": -60.0, "geometry": "POINT(-69 -67)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Antarctic Peninsula; PENGUINS; SPECIES/POPULATION INTERACTIONS; OCEAN CURRENTS", "locations": "Antarctic Peninsula", "north": -62.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Post Doc/Travel", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Gallagher, Katherine", "platforms": null, "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -72.0, "title": "OPP-PRF Pygoscelis Penguin Response to Potential Prey Retention along the West Antarctic Peninsula", "uid": "p0010349", "west": -78.0}, {"awards": "1744885 Moline, Mark; 1744859 Cimino, Megan", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-64.643 -64.703149,-64.5388975 -64.703149,-64.43479500000001 -64.703149,-64.3306925 -64.703149,-64.22659 -64.703149,-64.1224875 -64.703149,-64.018385 -64.703149,-63.9142825 -64.703149,-63.81018 -64.703149,-63.706077500000006 -64.703149,-63.601975 -64.703149,-63.601975 -64.7258003,-63.601975 -64.7484516,-63.601975 -64.77110289999999,-63.601975 -64.7937542,-63.601975 -64.8164055,-63.601975 -64.8390568,-63.601975 -64.86170809999999,-63.601975 -64.8843594,-63.601975 -64.9070107,-63.601975 -64.929662,-63.706077500000006 -64.929662,-63.81018 -64.929662,-63.9142825 -64.929662,-64.018385 -64.929662,-64.1224875 -64.929662,-64.22659 -64.929662,-64.3306925 -64.929662,-64.43479500000001 -64.929662,-64.5388975 -64.929662,-64.643 -64.929662,-64.643 -64.9070107,-64.643 -64.8843594,-64.643 -64.86170809999999,-64.643 -64.8390568,-64.643 -64.8164055,-64.643 -64.7937542,-64.643 -64.77110289999999,-64.643 -64.7484516,-64.643 -64.7258003,-64.643 -64.703149))", "dataset_titles": "Adelie and gentoo penguin foraging data near Palmer Station, Antarctica; Ancillary Instrument measures via AUV - Palmer Summer 2022-2023 B-308-P", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "602056", "doi": "10.15784/602056", "keywords": "Antarctica; AUV; Cryosphere; CTD; Fluorescence; Irradiance ; Oceans; Palmer Station; Salinity; Temperature; Turbidity", "people": "Moline, Mark", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Ancillary Instrument measures via AUV - Palmer Summer 2022-2023 B-308-P", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/602056"}, {"dataset_uid": "602035", "doi": "10.15784/602035", "keywords": "Adelie Penguin; Antarctica; Biologging; Cryosphere; Gentoo Penguin; Pal-Lter; Palmer Station", "people": "Cimino, Megan", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "LTER", "title": "Adelie and gentoo penguin foraging data near Palmer Station, Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/602035"}], "date_created": "Mon, 18 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This research project will use specially designed autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to investigate interactions between Adelie and Gentoo penguins (the predators) and their primary food source, Antarctic krill (prey). While it has long been known that penguins feed on krill, details about how they search for food and target individual prey items is less well understood. Krill aggregate in large swarms, and the size or the depth of these swarms may influence the feeding behavior of penguins. Similarly, penguin feeding behaviors may differ based on characteristics of the environment, krill swarms, and the presence of other prey and predator species. This project will use specialized smart AUVs to simultaneously collect high-resolution observations of penguins, their prey, and environmental conditions. Data will shed light on strategies used by penguins prove foraging success during the critical summer chick-rearing period. This will improve predictions of how penguin populations may respond to changing environmental conditions in the rapidly warming Western Antarctic Peninsula region. Greater understanding of how individual behaviors shape food web structure can also inform conservation and management efforts in other marine ecosystems. This project has a robust public education and outreach plan linked with the Birch and Monterey Bay Aquariums. Previous studies have shown that sub-mesoscale variability (1-10 km) in Antarctic krill densities and structure impact the foraging behavior of air-breathing predators. However, there is little understanding of how krill aggregation characteristics are linked to abundance on fine spatial scales, how these patterns are influenced by the habitat, or how prey characteristics influences the foraging behavior of predators. These data gaps remain because it is extremely challenging to collect detailed data on predators and prey simultaneously at the scale of an individual krill patch and single foraging event. Building on previously successful efforts, this project will integrate echosounders into autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), so that oceanographic variables and multi-frequency acoustic scattering from both prey and penguins can be collected simultaneously. This will allow for quantification of the environment at the scale of individual foraging events made by penguins during the critical 50+ day chick-rearing period. Work will be centered near Palmer Station, where long-term studies have provided significant insight into predator and prey population trends. The new data to be collected by this project will test hypotheses about how penguin prey selection and foraging behaviors are influenced by physical and biological features of their ocean habitat at extremely fine scale. By addressing the dynamic relationship between individual penguins, their prey, and habitat at the scale of individual foraging events, this study will begin to reveal the important processes regulating resource availability and identify what makes this region a profitable foraging habitat and breeding location. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": -63.601975, "geometry": "POINT(-64.1224875 -64.8164055)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "COASTAL; COMMUNITY DYNAMICS; ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONS; SPECIES/POPULATION INTERACTIONS; Palmer Station; MICROALGAE; PENGUINS; ANIMALS/INVERTEBRATES", "locations": "Palmer Station", "north": -64.703149, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Integrated System Science; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Moline, Mark; Benoit-Bird, Kelly; Cimino, Megan", "platforms": null, "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -64.929662, "title": "Collaborative Research: Linking Predator Behavior and Resource Distributions: Penguin-directed Exploration of an Ecological Hotspot", "uid": "p0010347", "west": -64.643}, {"awards": "9981683 Costa, Daniel; 0003956 Burns, Jennifer", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-70 -65,-69.5 -65,-69 -65,-68.5 -65,-68 -65,-67.5 -65,-67 -65,-66.5 -65,-66 -65,-65.5 -65,-65 -65,-65 -65.5,-65 -66,-65 -66.5,-65 -67,-65 -67.5,-65 -68,-65 -68.5,-65 -69,-65 -69.5,-65 -70,-65.5 -70,-66 -70,-66.5 -70,-67 -70,-67.5 -70,-68 -70,-68.5 -70,-69 -70,-69.5 -70,-70 -70,-70 -69.5,-70 -69,-70 -68.5,-70 -68,-70 -67.5,-70 -67,-70 -66.5,-70 -66,-70 -65.5,-70 -65))", "dataset_titles": "Crabeater seal oxygen stores", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601583", "doi": "10.15784/601583", "keywords": "Antarctica; Crabeater Seal; GLOBEC; Hemoglobin; LMG0104; LMG0106; LMG0204; LMG0205; Marguerite Bay; Myoglobin; Oxygen Stores; Seals", "people": "Burns, Jennifer", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Crabeater seal oxygen stores", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601583"}], "date_created": "Wed, 29 Jun 2022 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This collaborative study between the University of California, Santa Cruz, Duke University, the University of South Florida, the University of Alaska-Anchorage, and the University of California, San Diego will examine the identification of biological and physical features associated with the abundance and distribution of individual Antarctic predators; the identification and characterization of biological \u0027hot spots\u0027 within the Western Antarctic Peninsula; and the development of temporally and spatially explicit models of krill consumption within the WAP by vertebrate predators. It is one of several data synthesis and modeling components that use the data obtained in the course of the field work of the Southern Ocean Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics (SO GLOBEC) experiment.\u003cbr/\u003eSO-Globec is a multidisciplinary effort focused on understanding the physical and biological factors that influence growth, reproduction, recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba). The program uses a multi-trophic level approach that includes the predators and competitors of Antarctic krill, represented by other zooplankton, fish, penguins, seals, and cetaceans. It is currently in a synthesis and modeling phase. This collaborative project is concerned with understanding how predators utilize \u0027hot spots\u0027, i.e. locally intense areas of biological productivity, and how \u0027hot spots\u0027 might temporally and spatially structure krill predation rates, and will be integrated with other synthesis and modeling studies that deal with the hydrography primary production, and krill dynamics.", "east": -65.0, "geometry": "POINT(-67.5 -67.5)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Marguerite Bay; MARINE ECOSYSTEMS", "locations": "Marguerite Bay", "north": -65.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Burns, Jennifer; Costa, Daniel", "platforms": null, "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -70.0, "title": "Foraging Ecology of Crabeater Seals (Lobodon Carcinophagus)", "uid": "p0010345", "west": -70.0}, {"awards": "2038145 Bernard, Kim", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-180 -60,-144 -60,-108 -60,-72 -60,-36 -60,0 -60,36 -60,72 -60,108 -60,144 -60,180 -60,180 -63,180 -66,180 -69,180 -72,180 -75,180 -78,180 -81,180 -84,180 -87,180 -90,144 -90,108 -90,72 -90,36 -90,0 -90,-36 -90,-72 -90,-108 -90,-144 -90,-180 -90,-180 -87,-180 -84,-180 -81,-180 -78,-180 -75,-180 -72,-180 -69,-180 -66,-180 -63,-180 -60))", "dataset_titles": "Winter Female Krill Oocyte Size", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601919", "doi": "10.15784/601919", "keywords": "Antarctica; Biota; Cryosphere; Krill; Oceans; Southern Ocean", "people": "Bernard, Kim", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Winter Female Krill Oocyte Size", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601919"}], "date_created": "Fri, 01 Apr 2022 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Warming at the northern Antarctic Peninsula is causing fundamental changes in the marine ecosystem. Antarctic krill are small shrimp-like animals that are most abundant in that area. They are also an essential part of the marine food web of the waters surrounding Antarctica. Meanwhile, a rapidly growing international fishery has developed for krill. Understanding changes in krill populations is therefore critical both to the management of the fishery and the ability of scientists to predict changes in the Antarctic marine ecosystem. This project will have two broader societal impacts. First, the project will support the training of students for careers in oceanography. The students will be recruited from underrepresented groups in an effort to increase diversity, equity and inclusion in STEM. Second, results from this project will develop improved population models, which are essential for the effective management of the Antarctic krill fishery. In collaboration with US delegates on the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, the researchers will produce a report outlining the key findings from the study. Effective population modeling relies on empirical and theoretical understanding of how environment drives krill reproduction. There are two critical egg development stages in Antarctic krill that impact population growth. They are early egg development, and advanced egg development/spawning. The timing and duration of early egg development determines the number of eggs produced and the number of seasonal spawning events a female can undergo. The research team will use samples of Antarctic krill collected over the last 30 years in late winter/early spring, summer and early fall. The reproductive development stages of individual females in these samples will be assessed. These data will be modeled against climatological and oceanographic data to test three hypotheses. First, they will test if colder winter conditions correspond to early preparation for spawning. Second, they will test if favorable winter-summer conditions increase early spawning. Finally, they will test if favorable winter-summer conditions lengthen the spawning season. The study will advance current understanding of the environmental conditions that promote population increases in Antarctic krill and will fill an important gap in current knowledge of the reproductive development and output of Antarctic krill. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": 180.0, "geometry": "POINT(0 -89.999)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "FISHERIES; AMD; USAP-DC; Antarctic Peninsula; Amd/Us; USA/NSF; PELAGIC; LABORATORY", "locations": "Antarctic Peninsula", "north": -60.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Bernard, Kim", "platforms": "OTHER \u003e PHYSICAL MODELS \u003e LABORATORY", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -90.0, "title": "Drivers of Antarctic Krill Reproductive Output", "uid": "p0010312", "west": -180.0}, {"awards": "1746148 Sirovic, Ana", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((140 -65.5,140.8 -65.5,141.6 -65.5,142.4 -65.5,143.2 -65.5,144 -65.5,144.8 -65.5,145.6 -65.5,146.4 -65.5,147.2 -65.5,148 -65.5,148 -65.57,148 -65.64,148 -65.71,148 -65.78,148 -65.85,148 -65.92,148 -65.99,148 -66.06,148 -66.13,148 -66.2,147.2 -66.2,146.4 -66.2,145.6 -66.2,144.8 -66.2,144 -66.2,143.2 -66.2,142.4 -66.2,141.6 -66.2,140.8 -66.2,140 -66.2,140 -66.13,140 -66.06,140 -65.99,140 -65.92,140 -65.85,140 -65.78,140 -65.71,140 -65.64,140 -65.57,140 -65.5))", "dataset_titles": "Passive acoustic recording metadata from East Antarctica, Feb 2019", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601465", "doi": "10.15784/601465", "keywords": "Antarctica; East Antarctica", "people": "Sirovic, Ana", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Passive acoustic recording metadata from East Antarctica, Feb 2019", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601465"}], "date_created": "Tue, 13 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Understanding the interaction between blue whales and their prey is essential for understanding Antarctic ecosystem dynamics. In the austral summer of 2019 an international interdisciplinary research voyage will head to the Antarctic with the overall goal of mapping Antarctic krill and blue whale distributions to determine if foraging preferences of blue whales are dictated in part by the density and shape of Antarctic krill swarms. This research voyage will combine advanced research technologies (including autonomous underwater vehicles, short term-tags, photogrammetry, and ship-based, real-time passive listening and active echosounders) to answer questions about how the density, swarm shape and behavior of Antarctic krill influence Antarctic blue whales. U.S. participation on this voyage on an Australian research vessel will allow collection of concurrent predator and prey data through the use of passive listening and echosounders from a fixed mooring. By coupling moored data collection with the ship-based survey focusing on Antarctic blue whale behavior and krill dynamics, the project will contribute to the understanding of basic questions relating to the dynamics between blue whales and their prey as well as adding to the development of instrumentation and technologies that will enhance current capabilities for in situ observing on the continent and the surrounding ice-covered waters. The project will provide an educational platform for high school students and the general public to virtually experience Antarctica via \"virtual sailing\" through a project website and blog. Students and the general public also will be allowed the opportunity to participate in post-cruise data analysis. The Australian Antarctic Division and the University of Tasmania will lead an international voyage to the Antarctic in the austral summer of 2019. The overall goal of the voyage will be to map Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) and blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) distributions to determine if the foraging preferences of blue whales are dictated in part by the density and shape of Antarctic krill swarms. US participation in voyage will entail the deployment of passive and active acoustic instrumentation on a fixed mooring in concert with real-time acoustic and visual tracking and localizing of blue whales that will then allow better directing of ship operations towards aggregations of animals such that fine-scale acoustic tracking and prey field mapping can be achieved. This approach will be the first time such an acoustic system is deployed in Antarctica and used in an integrative fashion to assess foraging behaviors and krill. Thus, the project will advance understanding of the relationships between the acoustic ecology of blue whales, krill abundance, and blue whale densities. The technology deployment and testing will also be used to assess its potential use in ice-covered waters for similar studies in the future. Broader impacts of this project will occur through outreach and education, as well as through the collaborations with the broader international scientific community. The project will provide educational platforms for high school students and general public to virtually experience Antarctica. Research findings will be communicated to both the scientific community and the wider public through peer-reviewed publications, presentations, student lectures, seminars and communication through appropriate media channels by institutional communications teams. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": 148.0, "geometry": "POINT(144 -65.85)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Amd/Us; AMD; USAP-DC; SPECIES/POPULATION INTERACTIONS; MAMMALS; PELAGIC; East Antarctica; USA/NSF; ACOUSTIC SCATTERING; FIELD SURVEYS; ARTHROPODS", "locations": "East Antarctica", "north": -65.5, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Sirovic, Ana; Stafford, Kathleen", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD SURVEYS", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -66.2, "title": "EAGER: Collaborative Research: Acoustic Ecology of Foraging Antarctic Blue Whales in the Vicinity of Antarctic Krill", "uid": "p0010228", "west": 140.0}, {"awards": "1643877 Friedlaender, Ari", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-65 -63.5,-64.5 -63.5,-64 -63.5,-63.5 -63.5,-63 -63.5,-62.5 -63.5,-62 -63.5,-61.5 -63.5,-61 -63.5,-60.5 -63.5,-60 -63.5,-60 -63.73,-60 -63.96,-60 -64.19,-60 -64.42,-60 -64.65,-60 -64.88,-60 -65.11,-60 -65.34,-60 -65.57,-60 -65.8,-60.5 -65.8,-61 -65.8,-61.5 -65.8,-62 -65.8,-62.5 -65.8,-63 -65.8,-63.5 -65.8,-64 -65.8,-64.5 -65.8,-65 -65.8,-65 -65.57,-65 -65.34,-65 -65.11,-65 -64.88,-65 -64.65,-65 -64.42,-65 -64.19,-65 -63.96,-65 -63.73,-65 -63.5))", "dataset_titles": "Motion-sensing biologging data from Antarctic minke whales, West Antarctic Peninsula", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601542", "doi": "10.15784/601542", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biologging; Foraging; Ice; Minke Whales", "people": "Friedlaender, Ari", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Motion-sensing biologging data from Antarctic minke whales, West Antarctic Peninsula", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601542"}], "date_created": "Fri, 25 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The Antarctic Peninsula is warming and one of the consequences is a decrease in sea ice cover. Antarctic minke whales are the largest ice-obligate krill predator in the region, yet- little is known about their foraging behavior and ecology. The goals of the project are to use a suite of new technological tools to measure the underwater behavior of the whales and better understand how they exploit the sea ice habitat. Using video-recording motion-sensing tags, the underwater movements of the whales can be reconstructed and it can be determine where and when they feed. UAS (unmanned aerial systems) will be used to generate real-time images of sea ice cover that will be linked with tag data to determine how much time whales spend in sea ice versus open water, and how the behavior of the whales changes between these two habitats. Lastly, scientific echosounders will be used to characterize the prey field that the whales are exploiting and differences in krill availability inside and out of the ice will be investigated. All of this information is critical to understand the ecological role of Antarctic minke whales so that better predictions can be made regarding impacts of climate change not only on these animals, but on the structure and function of the Antarctic marine ecosystem. The project will promote the progress of science by elucidating the ecological role of a poorly known Antarctic predator and using this information to better understand the impact of changes that are occurring in Polar Regions. The educational and outreach program will increase awareness and understanding of minke whales, Antarctic marine ecosystems, sea ice, and the dynamics of climate change through the use of film, social media, and curriculum development for formal STEM educators. To understand how changes in sea ice will manifest in the demography of predators that rely on sea ice habitat requires knowledge of their behavior and ecology. The largest ice-dependent krill predator and most abundant cetacean in the Southern Ocean is the Antarctic minke whale (AMW)- yet, virtually nothing is known of its foraging behavior or ecological role. Thus, the knowledge to understand how climate-driven changes will affect these animals and therefore the dynamics of the ecosystem as a whole is lacking. The project will use multi-sensor and video recording tags, fisheries acoustics, and unmanned aerial systems to study the foraging behavior and ecological role of minke whales in the waters of the Antarctic Peninsula. The following research questions will be posed: 1. What is the feeding performance of AMWs? 2. How important is sea ice to the foraging behavior of AMW? 3. How do AMWs feed directly under sea ice? Proven tagging and analytical approaches to characterize the underwater feeding behavior and kinematics of minke whales will be used. Combined with quantitative measurements of the prey field, the energetic costs of feeding will be measured and it will be determined how minke whales optimize energy gain. Using animal-borne video recording tags and UAS technology it will also be determined how much feeding occurs directly under sea ice and how this mode differs from open water feeding. This knowledge will: (1) significantly enhance knowledge of the least-studied Antarctic krill predator; and (2) be made directly available to international, long-term efforts to understand how climate-driven changes will affect the structure and function of the Antarctic marine ecosystem. The educational and outreach efforts aim to increase awareness and understanding of: (i) the ecological role of minke whales around the Antarctic Peninsula; (ii) the effects of environmental change on an abundant but largely unstudied marine predator; (iii) the advanced methods and technologies used by whale researchers to study these cryptic animals and their prey; and (iv) the variety of careers in the ocean sciences by sharing the experiences of scientists and students. These educational aims will be achieved by delivering continuous near-real-time delivery of project events and data to informal audiences through social media channels as well as curricula and professional development programs that will provide formal STEM educators with specific standards-compliant lesson plans.", "east": -60.0, "geometry": "POINT(-62.5 -64.65)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Andvord Bay; USAP-DC; MARINE ECOSYSTEMS; AMD; FIELD INVESTIGATION; Amd/Us; USA/NSF", "locations": "Andvord Bay", "north": -63.5, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Friedlaender, Ari", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD INVESTIGATION", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -65.8, "title": "Foraging Behavior and Ecological Role of the Least Studied Antarctic Krill Predator, the Antarctic Minke Whale (Balaenoptera Bonaerensis)", "uid": "p0010207", "west": -65.0}, {"awards": "1840949 Fields, David; 1840927 Weissburg, Marc; 1840941 Murphy, David", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "; Krill Morphometric Data; Spectral irradiance of light delivered in the top and side of the flume - BCO_DMO - Light dark Quantum yield; Summary table of conditions tested, replicates of each condition, as well as the number of tracks and frames analyzed for the horizontal flume experiments.", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "602064", "doi": null, "keywords": "Antarctic Krill; Cryosphere; Palmer Station", "people": "Fields, David", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Krill Morphometric Data", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/602064"}, {"dataset_uid": "602066", "doi": null, "keywords": "Antarctica; Cryosphere", "people": "Fields, David", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Spectral irradiance of light delivered in the top and side of the flume - BCO_DMO - Light dark Quantum yield", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/602066"}, {"dataset_uid": "602065", "doi": null, "keywords": "Antarctica; Cryosphere; Palmer Station", "people": "Fields, David", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Summary table of conditions tested, replicates of each condition, as well as the number of tracks and frames analyzed for the horizontal flume experiments.", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/602065"}, {"dataset_uid": "200473", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "BCO-DMO", "science_program": null, "title": "", "url": "https://www.bco-dmo.org/project/898124"}], "date_created": "Fri, 25 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) are an ecologically important component of the Southern Ocean\u0027s food web, yet little is known about their behavior in response to many features of their aquatic environment. This project will improve understanding of krill swimming and schooling behavior by examining individual responses to light levels, water flow rates, the presence of attractive and repulsive chemical cues. Flow, light and chemical conditions will be controlled and altered in specialized tanks outfitted with high speed digital camera systems so that individual krill responses to these factors can be measured in relevant schooling settings. This analysis will be used to predict preferred environments, define the capacity of krill to detect and move to them (and away from unfavorable ones). Such information will then be used to improve models that estimate the energetic costs of behaviors associated with different types of environments. Linking individual behavior to those of larger krill aggregations will also improve acoustic assessments of krill densities. Understanding the capacity of krill to respond to environmental perturbations will improve our understanding of the ecology of high latitude ecosystems and provide relevant information for the management of krill fisheries. The project will support graduate and undergraduate students and provide training for as post-doctoral associate. Curricular materials and public engagement activities will be based on the project\u0027s aims and activities. Project investigators will share model results and predictions of krill movements and school structure with experts interested in krill conservation and management. The project will use horizontal and vertical laminar flow tunnels to examine krill behavior under naturally relevant conditions. Horizontal (1-10 cm per second) and vertical (1-3 mm per second) flow velocities mimic naturally relevant current patterns, while light levels and spectral quality will be varied from complete darkness to intensities experienced across the depth range inhabited by krill. Attractive phytoplankton odor will be created by dosing the flumes to obtain background chlorophyll a levels approximating average and bloom conditions, while repulsive cues will be generated from penguin guano. Behavior of individual krill in all conditions will be video recorded with cameras visualizing X-Y and Y-Z planes, and 3D movements will be reconstructed by video motion analysis at a 5 Hz sampling rate. The distribution of horizontal and vertical swimming angles and velocities will be used to create an individual based model (IBM) of krill movement in response to each condition, where krill behavior at each model time step is based on random draws from the velocity and angular distributions. Since krill commonly travel in groups, further experiments will examine the behavior of small krill schools in these same conditions to further parameterize variables such as individual spacing. Researchers will examine krill aggregation structure from 3D video records of krill swimming in a specially designed kriesel tank, and compute nearest neighbor distances (NND) and correlations of swimming angles among individuals within the aggregation. Krill movements in the IBM will be constrained to adhere to observed NND and angular correlations. Large scale oceanographic models will be used to define spatial environments in which the modelled krill will be allowed to move using simulated schools of 1000-100,000 krill. Model output will include the school swimming speed, direction and structure (packing density, NND). Researchers will compare available acoustic data sets of krill schools in measured flow and phytoplankton abundance to evaluate the model predictions. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "ANIMAL ECOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR; AMD; FIELD INVESTIGATION; Amd/Us; USAP-DC; Palmer Station; USA/NSF", "locations": "Palmer Station", "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Integrated System Science", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Record, Nicholas ; Weissburg, Marc; Murphy, David; Fields, David", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD INVESTIGATION", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "BCO-DMO; USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": null, "title": "Collaborative Research: Individual Based Approaches to Understanding Krill Distributions and Aggregations", "uid": "p0010202", "west": null}, {"awards": "1753101 Bernard, Kim", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-65 -64,-64.7 -64,-64.4 -64,-64.1 -64,-63.8 -64,-63.5 -64,-63.2 -64,-62.9 -64,-62.6 -64,-62.3 -64,-62 -64,-62 -64.1,-62 -64.2,-62 -64.3,-62 -64.4,-62 -64.5,-62 -64.6,-62 -64.7,-62 -64.8,-62 -64.9,-62 -65,-62.3 -65,-62.6 -65,-62.9 -65,-63.2 -65,-63.5 -65,-63.8 -65,-64.1 -65,-64.4 -65,-64.7 -65,-65 -65,-65 -64.9,-65 -64.8,-65 -64.7,-65 -64.6,-65 -64.5,-65 -64.4,-65 -64.3,-65 -64.2,-65 -64.1,-65 -64))", "dataset_titles": "2019 Krill Carbon Content; 2019 Krill Morphometrics; CAREER: \"The Omnivores Dilemma\": The Effect of Autumn Diet on Winter Physiology and Condition of Juvenile Antarctic Krill; Expedition of NBP2205; Feeding Experiment - Krill Lipid Classes; Gerlache Strait Krill Demographics", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601706", "doi": "10.15784/601706", "keywords": "Abundance; Antarctica; Antarctic Krill", "people": "Bernard, Kim", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Gerlache Strait Krill Demographics", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601706"}, {"dataset_uid": "601709", "doi": "10.15784/601709", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Krill; Palmer Station; Winter", "people": "Bernard, Kim", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "2019 Krill Carbon Content", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601709"}, {"dataset_uid": "200368", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "BCO-DMO", "science_program": null, "title": "CAREER: \"The Omnivores Dilemma\": The Effect of Autumn Diet on Winter Physiology and Condition of Juvenile Antarctic Krill", "url": "https://www.bco-dmo.org/project/824760"}, {"dataset_uid": "200369", "doi": "10.7284/909918", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition of NBP2205", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/NBP2205"}, {"dataset_uid": "601708", "doi": "10.15784/601708", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Krill; Palmer Station; Winter", "people": "Bernard, Kim", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "2019 Krill Morphometrics", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601708"}, {"dataset_uid": "601707", "doi": "10.15784/601707", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Krill; Palmer Station; Winter", "people": "Bernard, Kim", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Feeding Experiment - Krill Lipid Classes", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601707"}], "date_created": "Mon, 31 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Antarctic krill are essential in the Southern Ocean as they support vast numbers of marine mammals, seabirds and fishes, some of which feed almost exclusively on krill. Antarctic krill also constitute a target species for industrial fisheries in the Southern Ocean. The success of Antarctic krill populations is largely determined by the ability of their young to survive the long, dark winter, where food is extremely scarce. To survive the long-dark winter, young Antarctic krill must have a high-quality diet in autumn. However, warming in certain parts of Antarctica is changing the dynamics and quality of the polar food web, resulting in a shift in the type of food available to young krill in autumn. It is not yet clear how these dynamic changes are affecting the ability of krill to survive the winter. This project aims to fill an important gap in current knowledge on an understudied stage of the Antarctic krill life cycle, the 1-year old juveniles. The results derived from this work will contribute to the development of improved bioenergetic, population and ecosystem models, and will advance current scientific understanding of this critical Antarctic species. This CAREER project\u0027s core education and outreach objectives seek to enhance education and increase diversity within STEM fields. An undergraduate course will be developed that will integrate undergraduate research and writing in way that promotes authentic scientific inquiry and analysis of original research data by the students, and that enhances their communication skills. A graduate course will be developed that will promote students\u0027 skills in communicating their own research to a non-scientific audience. Graduate students will be supported through the proposed study and will gain valuable research experience. Traditionally underserved undergraduate students will be recruited to conduct independent research under the umbrella of the larger project. Throughout each field season, the research team will maintain a weekly blog that will include short videos, photographs and text highlighting the research, as well as their experiences living and working in Antarctica. The aim of the blog will be to engage the public and increase awareness and understanding of Antarctic ecosystems and the impact of warming, and of the scientific process of research and discovery. In this 5-year CAREER project, the investigator will use a combination of empirical and theoretical techniques to assess the effects of diet on 1-year old krill in autumn-winter. The research is centered on four hypotheses: (H1) autumn diet affects 1-year old krill physiology and condition at the onset of winter; (H2) autumn diet has an effect on winter physiology and condition of 1-year old krill under variable winter food conditions; (H3) the rate of change in physiology and condition of 1-year old krill from autumn to winter is dependent on autumn diet; and (H4) the winter energy budget of 1-year old krill will vary between years and will be dependent on autumn diet. Long-term feeding experiments and in situ sampling will be used to measure changes in the physiology and condition of krill in relation to their diet and feeding environment. Empirically-derived data will be used to develop theoretical models of growth rates and energy budgets to determine how diet will influence the overwinter survival of 1-year old krill. The research will be integrated with an education and outreach plan to (1) develop engaging undergraduate and graduate courses, (2) train and develop young scientists for careers in polar research, and (3) engage the public and increase their awareness and understanding. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": -62.0, "geometry": "POINT(-63.5 -64.5)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Antarctic Peninsula; AMD; FIELD INVESTIGATION; ANIMALS/INVERTEBRATES; PELAGIC; Anvers Island; Amd/Us; USAP-DC; NSF/USA", "locations": "Antarctic Peninsula; Anvers Island", "north": -64.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Bernard, Kim", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD INVESTIGATION", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "BCO-DMO; R2R; USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -65.0, "title": "CAREER: \"The Omnivore\u0027s Dilemma\": The Effect of Autumn Diet on Winter Physiology and Condition of Juvenile Antarctic Krill", "uid": "p0010124", "west": -65.0}, {"awards": "1443585 Polito, Michael; 1826712 McMahon, Kelton; 1443424 McMahon, Kelton; 1443386 Emslie, Steven", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-180 -60,-166 -60,-152 -60,-138 -60,-124 -60,-110 -60,-96 -60,-82 -60,-68 -60,-54 -60,-40 -60,-40 -61.8,-40 -63.6,-40 -65.4,-40 -67.2,-40 -69,-40 -70.8,-40 -72.6,-40 -74.4,-40 -76.2,-40 -78,-54 -78,-68 -78,-82 -78,-96 -78,-110 -78,-124 -78,-138 -78,-152 -78,-166 -78,180 -78,178 -78,176 -78,174 -78,172 -78,170 -78,168 -78,166 -78,164 -78,162 -78,160 -78,160 -76.2,160 -74.4,160 -72.6,160 -70.8,160 -69,160 -67.2,160 -65.4,160 -63.6,160 -61.8,160 -60,162 -60,164 -60,166 -60,168 -60,170 -60,172 -60,174 -60,176 -60,178 -60,-180 -60))", "dataset_titles": "Amino acid nitrogen isotope values of modern and ancient Ad\u00e9lie penguin eggshells from the Ross Sea and Antarctic Peninsula regions; Amino acid nitrogen isotope values of penguins from the Antarctic Peninsula region 1930s to 2010s; Amino acid nitrogen stable isotope values of feathers from adult and fledgling Ad\u00e9lie and chinstrap penguins from the South Shetlands Islands in 2012; Ancient Adelie penguin colony revealed by snowmelt at Cape Irizar, Ross Sea, Antarctica; Bulk tissue and amino acid stable isotope values of modern and historical Ad\u00e9lie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) feathers from the Ross Sea and Antarctic Peninsula regions (1840s to 2010s); Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope values of Antarctic Krill from the South Shetland Islands and the northern Antarctic Peninsula 2007 and 2009; Radiocarbon dates from pygoscelid penguin tissues excavated at Stranger Point, King George Island, Antarctic Peninsula; Radiocarbon dating and stable isotope values of penguin and seal tissues recovered from ornithogenic soils on Platter Island, Danger Islands Archipelago, Antarctic Peninsula in December 2015.; Radioisotope dates and carbon (\u03b413C) and nitrogen (\u03b415N) stable isotope values from modern and mummified Ad\u00e9lie Penguin chick carcasses and tissue from the Ross Sea, Antarctica; Radiometric dating, geochemical proxies, and predator biological remains obtained from aquatic sediment cores on South Georgia Island.; Receding ice drove parallel expansions in Southern Ocean penguin; SNP data from \"Receding ice drove parallel expansions in Southern Ocean penguins\".; Stable isotope analysis of multiple tissues from chick carcasses of three pygoscelid penguins in Antarctica; Stable isotopes of Adelie Penguin chick bone collagen; The rise and fall of an ancient Adelie penguin \u0027supercolony\u0027 at Cape Adare, Antarctica", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601232", "doi": "10.15784/601232", "keywords": "Amino Acids; Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; Isotope Data; Nitrogen Isotopes; Oceans; Penguin; Southern Ocean; Stable Isotope Analysis", "people": "McMahon, Kelton; Polito, Michael", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Amino acid nitrogen isotope values of penguins from the Antarctic Peninsula region 1930s to 2010s", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601232"}, {"dataset_uid": "200180", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "NCBI BioProject", "science_program": null, "title": "Receding ice drove parallel expansions in Southern Ocean penguin", "url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bioproject/?term=PRJNA589336"}, {"dataset_uid": "200181", "doi": "10.6084/m9.figshare.c.4475300.v1", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "Figshare", "science_program": null, "title": "SNP data from \"Receding ice drove parallel expansions in Southern Ocean penguins\".", "url": "https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.4475300.v1"}, {"dataset_uid": "601210", "doi": "10.15784/601210", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Krill; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; Carbon Isotopes; Isotope Data; Krill; Nitrogen Isotopes; Oceans; Southern Ocean; Stable Isotope Analysis", "people": "Polito, Michael", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope values of Antarctic Krill from the South Shetland Islands and the northern Antarctic Peninsula 2007 and 2009", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601210"}, {"dataset_uid": "601212", "doi": "10.15784/601212", "keywords": "Abandoned Colonies; Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Beach Deposit; Geochronology; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Holocene; Penguin; Radiocarbon; Radiocarbon Dates; Snow/ice; Snow/Ice; Stranger Point", "people": "Emslie, Steven D.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Radiocarbon dates from pygoscelid penguin tissues excavated at Stranger Point, King George Island, Antarctic Peninsula", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601212"}, {"dataset_uid": "601263", "doi": "10.15784/601263", "keywords": "Abandoned Colonies; Antarctica; Holocene; Penguin; Ross Sea; Stable Isotope Analysis", "people": "Kristan, Allyson; Patterson, William; Emslie, Steven D.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Radioisotope dates and carbon (\u03b413C) and nitrogen (\u03b415N) stable isotope values from modern and mummified Ad\u00e9lie Penguin chick carcasses and tissue from the Ross Sea, Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601263"}, {"dataset_uid": "601327", "doi": "10.15784/601327", "keywords": "Adelie Penguin; Antarctica; Biota; Cape Adare; East Antarctica; Population Movement; Pygoscelis Adeliae; Radiocarbon; Ross Sea; Sea Level Rise; Stable Isotopes", "people": "Patterson, William; McKenzie, Ashley; Emslie, Steven D.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "The rise and fall of an ancient Adelie penguin \u0027supercolony\u0027 at Cape Adare, Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601327"}, {"dataset_uid": "601364", "doi": "10.15784/601364", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Arctocephalus Gazella; Carbon; Holocene; Nitrogen; Paleoecology; Penguin; Pygoscelis Spp.; Stable Isotope Analysis; Weddell Sea", "people": "Herman, Rachael; Polito, Michael; Clucas, Gemma; Kalvakaalva, Rohit", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Radiocarbon dating and stable isotope values of penguin and seal tissues recovered from ornithogenic soils on Platter Island, Danger Islands Archipelago, Antarctic Peninsula in December 2015.", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601364"}, {"dataset_uid": "601374", "doi": "10.15784/601374", "keywords": "Adelie Penguin; Antarctica; Cape Irizar; Drygalski Ice Tongue; Ross Sea; Stable Isotopes", "people": "Emslie, Steven D.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Ancient Adelie penguin colony revealed by snowmelt at Cape Irizar, Ross Sea, Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601374"}, {"dataset_uid": "601382", "doi": "10.15784/601382", "keywords": "25 De Mayo/King George Island; Antarctica; Biota; Delta 13C; Delta 15N; Dietary Shifts; Opportunistic Sampling; Penguin; Pygoscelis Penguins; Stranger Point", "people": "Ciriani, Yanina; Emslie, Steven D.", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Stable isotope analysis of multiple tissues from chick carcasses of three pygoscelid penguins in Antarctica", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601382"}, {"dataset_uid": "601509", "doi": "10.15784/601509", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Fur Seal; Elemental Concentrations; King Penguin; Population Dynamics; South Atlantic Ocean; South Georgia Island; Stable Isotope Analysis; Sub-Antarctic", "people": "Polito, Michael; Kristan, Allyson; Maiti, Kanchan; McMahon, Kelton", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Radiometric dating, geochemical proxies, and predator biological remains obtained from aquatic sediment cores on South Georgia Island.", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601509"}, {"dataset_uid": "601760", "doi": "10.15784/601760", "keywords": "Adelie Penguin; Amino Acids; Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Ross Sea; Stable Isotope Analysis; Trophic Position", "people": "Wonder, Michael; Emslie, Steven D.; McMahon, Kelton; Patterson, William; McCarthy, Matthew; Michelson, Chantel; Polito, Michael", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Amino acid nitrogen isotope values of modern and ancient Ad\u00e9lie penguin eggshells from the Ross Sea and Antarctic Peninsula regions", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601760"}, {"dataset_uid": "601913", "doi": "10.15784/601913", "keywords": "Adelie Penguin; Antarctica; Cryosphere; Foraging; Polynya; Pygoscelis Adeliae; Ross Sea; Stable Isotopes", "people": "Reaves, Megan; Emslie, Steven D.; Powers, Shannon", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Stable isotopes of Adelie Penguin chick bone collagen", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601913"}, {"dataset_uid": "602061", "doi": "10.15784/602061", "keywords": "25 De Mayo/King George Island; Antarctica; Cryosphere; Livingston Island", "people": "Polito, Michael", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Amino acid nitrogen stable isotope values of feathers from adult and fledgling Ad\u00e9lie and chinstrap penguins from the South Shetlands Islands in 2012", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/602061"}, {"dataset_uid": "602094", "doi": "10.15784/602094", "keywords": "Adelie Penguin; Amino Acid Stable Isotope Analysis; Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; Cryosphere; Pygoscelis Adeliae; Ross Sea; Trophic Position", "people": "Michelson, Chantel; McMahon, Kelton; Hart, Tom; McCarthy, Matthew; Emslie, Steven D.; Polito, Michael; Patterson, William", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Bulk tissue and amino acid stable isotope values of modern and historical Ad\u00e9lie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) feathers from the Ross Sea and Antarctic Peninsula regions (1840s to 2010s)", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/602094"}], "date_created": "Thu, 08 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The Antarctic marine ecosystem is highly productive and supports a diverse range of ecologically and commercially important species. A key species in this ecosystem is Antarctic krill, which in addition to being commercially harvested, is the principle prey of a wide range of marine organisms including penguins, seals and whales. The aim of this study is to use penguins and other krill predators as sensitive indicators of past changes in the Antarctic marine food web resulting from climate variability and the historic harvesting of seals and whales by humans. Specifically this study will recover and analyze modern (\u003c20 year old), historic (20-200 year old) and ancient (200-10,000 year old) penguin and other krill predator tissues to track their past diets and population movements relative to shifts in climate and the availability of Antarctic krill. Understanding how krill predators were affected by these factors in the past will allow us to better understand how these predators, the krill they depend on, and the Antarctic marine ecosystem as a whole will respond to current challenges such as global climate change and an expanding commercial fishery for Antarctic krill. The project will further the NSF goals of training new generations of scientists and of making scientific discoveries available to the general public. This project will support the cross-institutional training of undergraduate and graduate students in advanced analytical techniques in the fields of ecology and biogeochemistry. In addition, this project includes educational outreach aimed encouraging participation in science careers by engaging K-12 students in scientific issues related to Antarctica, penguins, marine ecology, biogeochemistry, and global climate change. This research will help place recent ecological changes in the Southern Ocean into a larger historical context by examining decadal and millennial-scale shifts in the diets and population movements of Antarctic krill predators (penguins, seals, and squid) in concert with climate variability and commercial harvesting. This will be achieved by coupling advanced stable and radio isotope techniques, particularly compound-specific stable isotope analysis, with unprecedented access to modern, historical, and well-preserved paleo-archives of Antarctic predator tissues dating throughout the Holocene. This approach will allow the project to empirically test if observed shifts in Antarctic predator bulk tissue stable isotope values over the past millennia were caused by climate-driven shifts at the base of the food web in addition to, or rather than, shifts in predator diets due to a competitive release following the historic harvesting of krill eating whale and seals. In addition, this project will track the large-scale abandonment and reoccupation of penguin colonies around Antarctica in response to changes in climate and sea ice conditions over the past several millennia. These integrated field studies and laboratory analyses will provide new insights into the underlying mechanisms that influenced past shifts in the diets and population movements of charismatic krill predators such as penguins. This will allow for improved projections of the ecosystem consequences of future climate change and anthropogenic harvesting scenarios in the Antarctica that are likely to affect the availability of Antarctic krill.", "east": -40.0, "geometry": "POINT(-120 -69)", "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "ANIMAL ECOLOGY AND BEHAVIOR; South Shetland Islands; Penguin; Stable Isotopes; Polar; Ross Sea; USA/NSF; Weddell Sea; AMD; MARINE ECOSYSTEMS; USAP-DC; Antarctica; PENGUINS; Southern Hemisphere; FIELD INVESTIGATION; Amd/Us; Krill; MACROFOSSILS", "locations": "Southern Hemisphere; Ross Sea; South Shetland Islands; Weddell Sea; Polar; Antarctica", "north": -60.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Polito, Michael; Kelton, McMahon; Patterson, William; McCarthy, Matthew", "platforms": "LAND-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e FIELD SITES \u003e FIELD INVESTIGATION", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "Figshare; NCBI BioProject; USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -78.0, "title": "Collaborative Research: Investigating Holocene Shifts in the Diets and Paleohistory of Antarctic Krill Predators", "uid": "p0010047", "west": 160.0}, {"awards": "1543412 Reinfelder, John", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "16S rRNA gene libraries of krill gut microbial communities; Microbial gene libraries of krill gut microbial communities", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601171", "doi": "10.15784/601171", "keywords": "Antarctica; Biota; Krill; LTER Palmer Station; Microbiome; Oceans; Southern Ocean", "people": "Reinfelder, John", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "LTER", "title": "16S rRNA gene libraries of krill gut microbial communities", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601171"}, {"dataset_uid": "200024", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "NCBI GenBank", "science_program": null, "title": "Microbial gene libraries of krill gut microbial communities", "url": "https://nam02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov%2Fbioproject%2F531145\u0026amp;data=02%7C01%7Creinfeld%40envsci.rutgers.edu%7C7e30a0192dc748ab271408d6b9d57d08%7Cb92d2b234d35447093ff69aca6632ffe%7C1%7C0%7C636900723909188941\u0026amp;sdata=G6cNg4bBHzeikrWSCYITcT6XS3NLWwjQ1yNdwtrALPc%3D\u0026amp;reserved=0"}], "date_created": "Sun, 31 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Marine food webs can concentrate monomethylmercury (MMHg), a neurotoxin in mammals, in upper trophic level consumers. Despite their remoteness, coastal Antarctic marine ecosystems accumulate and biomagnify MMHg to levels observed at lower latitudes and in the Arctic. Marine sediments and other anoxic habitats in the oceans are typical areas where methylation of mercury occurs and these are likely places where MMHg is being produced. Krill, and more specifically their digestive tracts, may be a previously unaccounted for site where the production of MMHg may be occurring in the Antarctic. If monomethylmercury production is occurring in krill, current views regarding bioaccumulation in the food web and processes leading to the production and accumulation of mercury in the Antarctic Ocean could be better informed, if not transformed. This project will conduct a preliminary assessment of the krill gut microbiomes, the microbiome\u0027s genomic content and potential for production of monomethyl mercury by detecting the genes involved in mercury transformations. By analyzing the krill gut microbiome, the project will provide insights regarding animal-microbe interactions and their potential role in globally important biogeochemical cycles. This project will conduct a preliminary assessment of the krill gut microbiomes, the microbiomes genomic content and potential for production of monomethylmercury. The diversity and metabolic profiles of microorganisms in krill digestive tracts will be evaluated using massively parallel Illumina DNA sequencing technology to produce 16S rRNA gene libraries and assembled whole metagenomes. The project will also quantify the abundance and expression of Hg methylation genes, hgcAB, and identify their taxonomic affiliations in the microbiome communities. Environmental metagenomes, 16S rRNA gene inventories produced from this project will provide the polar science community with valuable databases and experimental tools with which to examine coastal Antarctic microbial ecology and biogeochemistry. The project will seek to provide a wider window into the diversity of extremophile microbial communities and the identification of potentially unique and useful bioactive compounds. In addition to public education and outreach. This project will train graduate students and provide educational and outreach opportunities at the participating institutions", "east": -68.2816, "geometry": "POINT(-69.09295 -66.8017)", "instruments": "NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "USAP-DC; Antarctica; NOT APPLICABLE; BACTERIA/ARCHAEA", "locations": "Antarctica", "north": -65.8708, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Schaefer, Jeffra; Reinfelder, John; Barkar, T.", "platforms": "OTHER \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "NCBI GenBank; USAP-DC", "science_programs": "LTER", "south": -67.7326, "title": "Methylmercury in Antarctic Krill Microbiomes", "uid": "p0010023", "west": -69.9043}, {"awards": "1443733 Winsor, Peter; 1443680 Smith, Craig; 1443705 Vernet, Maria", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-66 -64,-65.6 -64,-65.2 -64,-64.8 -64,-64.4 -64,-64 -64,-63.6 -64,-63.2 -64,-62.8 -64,-62.4 -64,-62 -64,-62 -64.1,-62 -64.2,-62 -64.3,-62 -64.4,-62 -64.5,-62 -64.6,-62 -64.7,-62 -64.8,-62 -64.9,-62 -65,-62.4 -65,-62.8 -65,-63.2 -65,-63.6 -65,-64 -65,-64.4 -65,-64.8 -65,-65.2 -65,-65.6 -65,-66 -65,-66 -64.9,-66 -64.8,-66 -64.7,-66 -64.6,-66 -64.5,-66 -64.4,-66 -64.3,-66 -64.2,-66 -64.1,-66 -64))", "dataset_titles": "Andvord Bay Glacier Timelapse; Andvord Bay sediment core data collected during the FjordEco project (LMG1510 and NBP1603); Expedition Data; Expedition data of LMG1702; FjordEco Phytoplankton Ecology Dataset in Andvord Bay ; Fjord-Eco Sediment OrgC OrgN Data - Craig Smith; LMG1510 Expedition data; NBP1603 Expedition data; Sediment macrofaunal abundance and family richness from inner Andvord Bay to the open continental shelf", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "601157", "doi": "10.15784/601157", "keywords": "Antarctica; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Glaciology; Snow/ice; Snow/Ice", "people": "Smith, Craig", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "FjordEco", "title": "Fjord-Eco Sediment OrgC OrgN Data - Craig Smith", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601157"}, {"dataset_uid": "601236", "doi": "10.15784/601236", "keywords": "Abundance; Andvord Bay; Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; Fjord; LMG1510; Marine Sediments; Oceans; Polychaete; Polychaete Family Richness; R/v Laurence M. Gould; Sediment Core Data; Sediment Macrofauna", "people": "Smith, Craig", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "FjordEco", "title": "Sediment macrofaunal abundance and family richness from inner Andvord Bay to the open continental shelf", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601236"}, {"dataset_uid": "601158", "doi": "10.15784/601158", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Biota; Ecology; Fjord; Phytoplankton", "people": "Vernet, Maria; Pan, B. Jack; Manck, Lauren; Forsch, Kiefer", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "FjordEco", "title": "FjordEco Phytoplankton Ecology Dataset in Andvord Bay ", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601158"}, {"dataset_uid": "000402", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition Data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG1702"}, {"dataset_uid": "200039", "doi": "10.7284/907205", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "NBP1603 Expedition data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/NBP1603"}, {"dataset_uid": "200040", "doi": "10.7284/907085", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "LMG1510 Expedition data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG1510"}, {"dataset_uid": "601193", "doi": "10.15784/601193", "keywords": "Antarctica; Geochronology; Grain Size; LMG1510; NBP1603; Sediment; Sediment Core Data", "people": "Homolka, Khadijah; Nittrouer, Charles; Eidam, Emily; Smith, Craig", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "Andvord Bay sediment core data collected during the FjordEco project (LMG1510 and NBP1603)", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601193"}, {"dataset_uid": "002733", "doi": null, "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition data of LMG1702", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG1702"}, {"dataset_uid": "601111", "doi": "10.15784/601111", "keywords": "Antarctica; Antarctic Peninsula; Glaciers/ice Sheet; Glaciers/Ice Sheet; Iceberg; Photo; Photo/video; Photo/Video", "people": "Winsor, Peter; Truffer, Martin", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": "FjordEco", "title": "Andvord Bay Glacier Timelapse", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/601111"}, {"dataset_uid": "001366", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition Data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG1702"}], "date_created": "Wed, 13 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Marine communities along the western Antarctic Peninsula are highly productive ecosystems which support a diverse assemblage of charismatic animals such as penguins, seals, and whales as well as commercial fisheries such as that on Antarctic krill. Fjords (long, narrow, deep inlets of the sea between high cliffs) along the central coast of the Peninsula appear to be intense, potentially climate sensitive, hotspots of biological production and biodiversity, yet the structure and dynamics of these fjord ecosystems are very poorly understood. Because of this intense biological activity and the charismatic fauna it supports, these fjords are also major destinations for a large Antarctic tourism industry. This project is an integrated field and modeling program to evaluate physical oceanographic processes, glacial inputs, water column community dynamics, and seafloor bottom community structure and function in these important yet little understood fjord systems. These Antarctic fjords have characteristics that are substantially different from well-studied Arctic fjords, likely yielding much different responses to climate warming. This project will provide major new insights into the dynamics and climate sensitivity of Antarctic fjord ecosystems, highlighting contrasts with Arctic sub-polar fjords, and potentially transforming our understanding of the ecological role of fjords in the rapidly warming west Antarctic coastal marine landscape. The project will also further the NSF goal of training new generations of scientists, providing scientific training for undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students. This includes the unique educational opportunity for undergraduates to participate in research cruises in Antarctica and the development of a novel summer graduate course on fjord ecosystems. Internet based outreach activities will be enhanced and extended by the participation of a professional photographer who will produce magazine articles, websites, radio broadcasts, and other forms of public outreach on the fascinating Antarctic ecosystem. This project will involve a 15-month field program to test mechanistic hypotheses concerning oceanographic and glaciological forcing, and phytoplankton and benthic community response in the Antarctic fjords. Those efforts will be followed by a coupled physical/biological modeling effort to evaluate the drivers of biogeochemical cycles in the fjords and to explore their potential sensitivity to enhanced meltwater and sediment inputs. Fieldwork over two oceanographic cruises will utilize moorings, weather stations, and glacial, sea-ice and seafloor time-lapse cameras to obtain an integrated view of fjord ecosystem processes. The field team will also make multiple shipboard measurements and will use towed and autonomous underwater vehicles to intensively evaluate fjord ecosystem structure and function during spring/summer and autumn seasons. These integrated field and modeling studies are expected to elucidate fundamental properties of water column and sea bottom ecosystem structure and function in the fjords, and to identify key physical-chemical-glaciological forcing in these rapidly warming ecosystems.", "east": -62.0, "geometry": "POINT(-64 -64.5)", "instruments": "NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e CTD; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e CHEMICAL METERS/ANALYZERS \u003e FLUOROMETERS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e RECORDERS/LOGGERS \u003e AWS; EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e POSITIONING/NAVIGATION \u003e GPS \u003e GPS; EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e ACTIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e ACOUSTIC SOUNDERS \u003e ECHO SOUNDERS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e THERMOSALINOGRAPHS", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "OCEAN CURRENTS; Bellingshausen Sea; LMG1702; COMMUNITY DYNAMICS; FJORDS; R/V LMG; MARINE ECOSYSTEMS; USAP-DC; ECOSYSTEM FUNCTIONS; ANIMALS/INVERTEBRATES; SEDIMENTATION; NOT APPLICABLE; BENTHIC", "locations": "Bellingshausen Sea", "north": -64.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Integrated System Science; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Winsor, Peter; Truffer, Martin; Smith, Craig; Powell, Brian; Merrifield, Mark; Vernet, Maria; Kohut, Josh", "platforms": "OTHER \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE; WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V LMG", "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "R2R; USAP-DC", "science_programs": "FjordEco", "south": -65.0, "title": "Collaborative Research: Fjord Ecosystem Structure and Function on the West Antarctic Peninsula - Hotspots of Productivity and Biodiversity? (FjordEco)", "uid": "p0010010", "west": -66.0}, {"awards": "1246293 Saba, Grace", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "2014 Antarctic krill growth experiment - submitted", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "002572", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "BCO-DMO", "science_program": null, "title": "2014 Antarctic krill growth experiment - submitted", "url": "https://www.bco-dmo.org/project/721363"}], "date_created": "Fri, 14 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Climate change projections for this century suggest that the Southern Ocean will be the first region to be affected by seawater chemistry changes associated with enhanced carbon dioxide (CO2). Additionally, regions of the Southern Ocean are warming faster than any other locations on the planet. Ocean acidification and warming may act synergistically to impair the performance of different organisms by simultaneously increasing metabolic needs and reducing oxygen transport. However, no studies have measured krill acid-base regulation, metabolism, growth, or reproduction in the context of ocean acidification or synergistic \u0027greenhouse\u0027 conditions of elevated CO2 and temperature. In the present project, the investigators will conduct both short and prolonged exposure experiments at Palmer Station, Antarctica to determine the responses of Euphausia superba to elevated CO2 and temperature. The investigators will test hypotheses related to acid-base compensation and acclimation of various life stages of krill to elevated CO2 and temperature. Furthermore, they will determine these impacts on feeding, respiration, metabolism, growth, and reproduction. The Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba, is a key component of Antarctic food webs as they are a primary food source for many of the top predators in the Southern Ocean including baleen whales, seals, penguins, and other sea birds. This project will determine the responses of Antarctic krill exposed to elevated CO2 and temperature and whether or not krill have the capacity to fully compensate under future ocean conditions. The proposed field effort will be complemented by an extensive broader impact effort focused on bringing marine science to both rural and urban high school students in the Midwest (Kansas). The core educational objectives of this proposal are to 1) instruct students about potential careers in marine science, 2) engage students and promote their interest in the scientific process, critical thinking, and applications of science, mathematics, and technology, and 3) and increase student and teacher awareness and understanding of the oceans and global climate change, with special focus on the Western Antarctic Peninsula region. Finally, this project will engage undergraduate and graduate students in the production, analysis, presentation and publication of datasets.", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": "NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "USAP-DC; NOT APPLICABLE", "locations": null, "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Saba, Grace", "platforms": "OTHER \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE", "repo": "BCO-DMO", "repositories": "BCO-DMO", "science_programs": null, "south": null, "title": "Collaborative Research: Synergistic effects of Elevated Carbon Dioxide (CO2) and Temperature on the Metabolism, Growth, and Reproduction of Antarctic Krill (Euphausia Superba)", "uid": "p0000700", "west": null}, {"awards": "0528728 Vernet, Maria; 0529666 Fritsen, Christian; 0529087 Ross, Robin", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-69.08 -64.8,-68.632 -64.8,-68.184 -64.8,-67.736 -64.8,-67.288 -64.8,-66.84 -64.8,-66.392 -64.8,-65.944 -64.8,-65.496 -64.8,-65.048 -64.8,-64.6 -64.8,-64.6 -65.121,-64.6 -65.442,-64.6 -65.763,-64.6 -66.084,-64.6 -66.405,-64.6 -66.726,-64.6 -67.047,-64.6 -67.368,-64.6 -67.689,-64.6 -68.01,-65.048 -68.01,-65.496 -68.01,-65.944 -68.01,-66.392 -68.01,-66.84 -68.01,-67.288 -68.01,-67.736 -68.01,-68.184 -68.01,-68.632 -68.01,-69.08 -68.01,-69.08 -67.689,-69.08 -67.368,-69.08 -67.047,-69.08 -66.726,-69.08 -66.405,-69.08 -66.084,-69.08 -65.763,-69.08 -65.442,-69.08 -65.121,-69.08 -64.8))", "dataset_titles": "Expedition data of NBP0103; The Dynamic Coupling among Phytoplankton, Ice, Ice Algae and Krill (PIIAK)", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "002595", "doi": null, "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition data of NBP0103", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/NBP0103"}, {"dataset_uid": "600049", "doi": "10.15784/600049", "keywords": "Bellingshausen Sea; Biota; Oceans; Southern Ocean", "people": "Quetin, Langdon B.; Ross, Robin Macurda", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "The Dynamic Coupling among Phytoplankton, Ice, Ice Algae and Krill (PIIAK)", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/600049"}, {"dataset_uid": "600048", "doi": "10.15784/600048", "keywords": "Bellingshausen Sea; Biota; Oceans; Phytoplankton; Southern Ocean", "people": "Vernet, Maria", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "The Dynamic Coupling among Phytoplankton, Ice, Ice Algae and Krill (PIIAK)", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/600048"}, {"dataset_uid": "600050", "doi": "10.15784/600050", "keywords": "Bellingshausen Sea; Cryosphere; Oceans; Photosynthetically Active Radiation (par); Sea Ice; Sea Surface; Southern Ocean; Total Integrated Exposure To PAR", "people": "Fritsen, Christian", "repository": "USAP-DC", "science_program": null, "title": "The Dynamic Coupling among Phytoplankton, Ice, Ice Algae and Krill (PIIAK)", "url": "https://www.usap-dc.org/view/dataset/600050"}], "date_created": "Sat, 02 Apr 2011 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This collaborative study between the Desert Research Institute, the University of California, Santa Barbara (0529087; Robin Ross), and the University of California, San Diego (0528728; Maria Vernet) will examine the relationship between sea ice extent along the Antarctic Peninsula and the life history of krill (Euphausia superba), by developing, refining, and linking diagnostic datasets and models of phytoplankton decreases in the fall, phytoplankton biomass incorporation into sea ice, sea ice growth dynamics, sea ice algal production and biomass accumulation, and larval krill energetics, condition, and survival. Krill is a key species in the food web of the Southern Ocean ecosystem, and one that is intricately involved with seasonal sea ice dynamics. Results from the Southern Ocean experiment of the Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics program (SO-Globec) field work as well as historical information on sea ice dynamics and krill recruitment suggest a shift in the paradigm that all pack ice is equally good krill habitat.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eSO-Globec is a multidisciplinary effort focused on understanding the physical and biological factors that influence growth, reproduction, recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba). The program uses a multi-trophic level approach that includes the predators and competitors of Antarctic krill, represented by other zooplankton, fish, penguins, seals, and cetaceans. It is currently in a synthesis and modeling phase. This collaborative project is concerned with the lower trophic levels, and will be integrated with other synthesis and modeling studies that deal with grazers, predators, and other higher trophic levels.", "east": -64.6, "geometry": "POINT(-66.84 -66.405)", "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e MAGNETIC/MOTION SENSORS \u003e GRAVIMETERS \u003e GRAVIMETERS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e ACOUSTIC SOUNDERS \u003e MSBS", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "R/V NBP; Not provided", "locations": null, "north": -64.8, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems; Antarctic Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences; Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Fritsen, Christian; Vernet, Maria; Ross, Robin Macurda; Quetin, Langdon B.", "platforms": "Not provided; WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V NBP", "repo": "R2R", "repositories": "R2R; USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -68.01, "title": "Collaborative Research: U.S. SO GLOBEC Synthesis and Modeling: Timing is Everything: The Dynamic Coupling among Phytoplankton, Ice, Ice Algae and Krill (PIIAK)", "uid": "p0000522", "west": -69.08}, {"awards": "9983751 Veit, Richard", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-70.9063 -52.3528,-67.3465 -52.3528,-63.7867 -52.3528,-60.2269 -52.3528,-56.6671 -52.3528,-53.1073 -52.3528,-49.5475 -52.3528,-45.9877 -52.3528,-42.4279 -52.3528,-38.8681 -52.3528,-35.3083 -52.3528,-35.3083 -52.65918,-35.3083 -52.96556,-35.3083 -53.27194,-35.3083 -53.57832,-35.3083 -53.8847,-35.3083 -54.19108,-35.3083 -54.49746,-35.3083 -54.80384,-35.3083 -55.11022,-35.3083 -55.4166,-38.8681 -55.4166,-42.4279 -55.4166,-45.9877 -55.4166,-49.5475 -55.4166,-53.1073 -55.4166,-56.6671 -55.4166,-60.2269 -55.4166,-63.7867 -55.4166,-67.3465 -55.4166,-70.9063 -55.4166,-70.9063 -55.11022,-70.9063 -54.80384,-70.9063 -54.49746,-70.9063 -54.19108,-70.9063 -53.8847,-70.9063 -53.57832,-70.9063 -53.27194,-70.9063 -52.96556,-70.9063 -52.65918,-70.9063 -52.3528))", "dataset_titles": "Expedition Data; Expedition data of LMG0109", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "002699", "doi": null, "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition data of LMG0109", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG0109"}, {"dataset_uid": "002286", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition Data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/NBP9303"}, {"dataset_uid": "001683", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition Data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG0309"}], "date_created": "Tue, 04 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The goal of this proposal to bring two groups of undergraduate students to the Antarctic, where they will participate in the collection of data on seabird abundance and behavior. This proposal combines research on the dynamics of seabirds that feed on Antarctic krill, with the teaching of mathematical modeling of foraging behavior and spatial statistics. Students will learn a broad collection of skills through collection of data on physical and biological oceanography as part of the research project that focuses on seabirds. The research goal of this proposal is to learn how foraging seabirds in the Antarctic respond to changes in the abundance and distribution of their prey, primarily Antarctic krill. The approach will be to study bird behavior in the vicinity of krill swarms, and to contrast this behavior to that in areas lacking krill. From these comparisons, foraging models that will make predictions about the dispersion of birds under differing levels of krill abundance will be built. The long-term goal is to be able to make predictions about the impact upon seabirds of future changes in krill stocks. Field work will be conducted in the vicinity of Elephant Island in two field seasons. In each season, the insular shelf north of Elephant Island will be surveyed and the abundance, distribution and behavior of seabirds will be recorded. The primary objective will be to quantify the linkage between prey abundance and bird behavior, with the long-term goal of using information on bird behavior to index long-term changes in the prey base. The teaching goal of this proposal is twofold. First, the project will expose inner city college students to a spectacular and economically important ecosystem. Through their work on an oceanographic research vessel, students will be exposed to a broad diversity of research topics and methods, ranging from behavioral ecology to physical oceanography. Second, back at Staten Island, students will participate in the development of a mathematical biology initiative at the College of Staten Island. Here students will be encouraged to apply basic mathematical reasoning and computer modeling to a real problem - that of determining how foraging choices made by seabirds can ultimately impact their reproductive success.", "east": -35.3083, "geometry": "POINT(-53.1073 -53.8847)", "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e CTD; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PRESSURE/HEIGHT METERS \u003e PRESSURE SENSORS; EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e POSITIONING/NAVIGATION \u003e GPS \u003e GPS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e ACOUSTIC SOUNDERS \u003e ADCP", "is_usap_dc": false, "keywords": "R/V NBP; R/V LMG", "locations": null, "north": -52.3528, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Veit, Richard; Blake, Daniel", "platforms": "WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V LMG; WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V NBP", "repo": "R2R", "repositories": "R2R", "science_programs": null, "south": -55.4166, "title": "CAREER: Dynamics of Predator-Prey Behavior in the Antarctic Ocean", "uid": "p0000589", "west": -70.9063}, {"awards": "0739483 Nowacek, Douglas", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-68.0013 -52.7592,-67.34925 -52.7592,-66.6972 -52.7592,-66.04515 -52.7592,-65.3931 -52.7592,-64.74105 -52.7592,-64.089 -52.7592,-63.43695 -52.7592,-62.7849 -52.7592,-62.13285 -52.7592,-61.4808 -52.7592,-61.4808 -53.99669,-61.4808 -55.23418,-61.4808 -56.47167,-61.4808 -57.70916,-61.4808 -58.94665,-61.4808 -60.18414,-61.4808 -61.42163,-61.4808 -62.65912,-61.4808 -63.89661,-61.4808 -65.1341,-62.13285 -65.1341,-62.7849 -65.1341,-63.43695 -65.1341,-64.089 -65.1341,-64.74105 -65.1341,-65.3931 -65.1341,-66.04515 -65.1341,-66.6972 -65.1341,-67.34925 -65.1341,-68.0013 -65.1341,-68.0013 -63.89661,-68.0013 -62.65912,-68.0013 -61.42163,-68.0013 -60.18414,-68.0013 -58.94665,-68.0013 -57.70916,-68.0013 -56.47167,-68.0013 -55.23418,-68.0013 -53.99669,-68.0013 -52.7592))", "dataset_titles": "Expedition Data", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "001467", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition Data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/NBP1003"}, {"dataset_uid": "001483", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition Data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG0905"}], "date_created": "Tue, 04 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The krill surplus hypothesis argues that the near-extirpation of baleen whales from Antarctic waters during much the twentieth century led to significant changes in the availability of krill for other predators. Over the past decade, however, overall krill abundance has decreased by over an order of magnitude around the Antarctic Peninsula, in part due to physical forces, including the duration and extent of winter sea ice cover. Krill predators are vulnerable to variability in prey and have been shown to alter their demography in response to changes in prey availability This research will use novel tagging technology combined with traditional fisheries acoustics methods to quantify the prey consumed by a poorly understood yet ecologically integral and recovering krill predator in the Antarctic, the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). It also will use a combination of advanced non-invasive tag technology to study whale behavior concurrent with hydro-acoustic techniques to map krill aggregations. The project will (1) provide direct and quantitative estimates of krill consumption rates by humpback whales and incorporate these into models for the management of krill stocks and the conservation of the Antarctic marine ecosystem; (2) provide information integral to understanding predator-prey ecology and trophic dynamics, i.e., if/how baleen whales affect the distribution and behavior of krill and/or other krill predators; (3) add significantly to the knowledge of the diving behavior and foraging ecology of baleen whales in the Antarctic; and (4) develop new geospatial tools for the construction of multi-trophic level models that account for physical as well as biological data. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eBroader Impacts: Whales are assumed to be a major predator on Antarctic krill, yet there is little understanding of how whales utilize this resource. This knowledge is critical to addressing both bottom-up and top-down questions, e.g., how climate change may affect whales or how whales may affect falling krill abundances. This program will integrate research and education by providing opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students as well as postdoctoral researchers at Duke University, the Florida State University and the University of Massachusetts at Boston. This project will also seek to integrate interactive learning through real time, seasonal and curriculum development in collaboration with the National Geographic Society as well as at the participating universities and local schools in those communities.", "east": -61.4808, "geometry": "POINT(-64.74105 -58.94665)", "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e CTD; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PRESSURE/HEIGHT METERS \u003e PRESSURE SENSORS; EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e POSITIONING/NAVIGATION \u003e GPS \u003e GPS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e ACOUSTIC SOUNDERS \u003e ADCP; EARTH REMOTE SENSING INSTRUMENTS \u003e PASSIVE REMOTE SENSING \u003e POSITIONING/NAVIGATION \u003e GPS \u003e GPS", "is_usap_dc": false, "keywords": "R/V NBP; R/V LMG", "locations": null, "north": -52.7592, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Nowacek, Douglas", "platforms": "WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V LMG; WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V NBP", "repo": "R2R", "repositories": "R2R", "science_programs": null, "south": -65.1341, "title": "Collaborative Research: The Ecological Role of a Poorly Studied Antarctic Krill Predator: The Humpback Whale, Megaptera Novaeangliae", "uid": "p0000529", "west": -68.0013}, {"awards": "9910122 Martinson, Douglas", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "Expedition Data; Expedition data of LMG0106; Expedition data of LMG0205", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "002703", "doi": null, "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition data of LMG0205", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG0205"}, {"dataset_uid": "002697", "doi": null, "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition data of LMG0106", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG0106"}, {"dataset_uid": "002695", "doi": null, "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition data of LMG0106", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG0106"}, {"dataset_uid": "001757", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition Data", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/LMG0205"}], "date_created": "Tue, 04 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This project is a contribution to a coordinated attempt to understand the interactions of biological and physical dynamics by developing mechanistic links between the evolution of the antarctic winter ice and snow cover, and biological habitat variability, through modeling the optical properties of the environment. The work will be carried out in the context of the Southern Ocean Experiment of the Global Ocean Ecosystem Dynamics Study (Globec), a large, multi-investigator study of the winter survival strategy of krill under the antarctic sea ice. The optical properties of snow and sea ice evolve through the winter and vary greatly both spectrally and spatially. These properties are an important element of the physical environment that strongly influences both the distribution of and the resources available to antarctic krill. The intensity of incident radiant energy and its distribution within the snow, ice, and water column environment, and the linked physical, optical, chemical, and biological processes that modulate its distribution are generally known but poorly quantified. The optical properties of snow and ice also influence snow algae, ice algae, and water column productivity, as well as visibility for both predator and prey. Furthermore, optical properties play an essential role in satellite observations as proxy indicators of geophysical sea ice parameters which permit local observations to be more accurately extrapolated in space and time, thus providing regional coverage that would otherwise not be possible. What is proposed is the deployment of an array of instrumented ice beacons, augmented by periodic ship-based and satellite observations, along with theoretical studies to create improved quantitative models with which to follow the temporal and spatial evolution of this snow and ice marine ecosystem. The specific objective is to develop a thermodynamic sea ice/ecosystem model through coupling of existing components in order to test our understanding of the system, determine its sensitivities, and to provide an organizing mechanism for integrating the Southern Ocean Globec observations. ***", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": null, "is_usap_dc": false, "keywords": "R/V LMG", "locations": null, "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Costa, Daniel", "platforms": "WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V LMG", "repo": "R2R", "repositories": "R2R", "science_programs": null, "south": null, "title": "Collaborative Research: Optical Environmental of the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) Region", "uid": "p0000865", "west": null}, {"awards": "0523166 Hofmann, Eileen", "bounds_geometry": null, "dataset_titles": "Expedition data of NBP0103", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "002595", "doi": null, "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition data of NBP0103", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/NBP0103"}, {"dataset_uid": "002601", "doi": null, "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "R2R", "science_program": null, "title": "Expedition data of NBP0103", "url": "https://www.rvdata.us/search/cruise/NBP0103"}], "date_created": "Tue, 04 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The objective of the proposed work is to provide for the operation of a Planning Office for the synthesis and modeling phase of the Southern Ocean Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics (SO-Globec) program. The office will ensure that synthesis and integration activities that are developed as part of SO-Globec are coordinated with those undertaken by the international and U.S. Globec programs through: 1) organization of special sessions at meetings, 2) preparation of dedicated publications focused on program results, 3) maintenance of a project web site, 4) development of program outreach efforts, and 5) ensuring coordination with International Globec and other national and international programs and organizations. The office will consist of one faculty member and one program specialist.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eSO-Globec is a multidisciplinary effort focused on understanding the physical and biological factors that influence growth, reproduction, recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba). The program uses a multi-trophic level approach that includes the predators and competitors of Antarctic krill, represented by other zooplankton, fish, penguins, seals, and cetaceans. Extensive studies describing the ecology and physiology of important species at all trophic levels contributed to the ecosystem approach which is the essence of SO-Globec. The Planning Office will provide a central focal point for ensuring that the results from SO-Globec are made available to the broader scientific community and to the general public, and that the results will be incorporated into the planning of future Southern Ocean programs.", "east": null, "geometry": null, "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e MAGNETIC/MOTION SENSORS \u003e GRAVIMETERS \u003e GRAVIMETERS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e ACOUSTIC SOUNDERS \u003e MSBS", "is_usap_dc": false, "keywords": "R/V NBP", "locations": null, "north": null, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Hofmann, Eileen", "platforms": "WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e R/V NBP", "repo": "R2R", "repositories": "R2R", "science_programs": null, "south": null, "title": "U.S. SO GLOBEC Synthesis and Modeling: Southern Ocean GLOBEC (SO GLOBEC) Planning Office", "uid": "p0000817", "west": null}, {"awards": "0523183 Padman, Laurence", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-75 -65,-74 -65,-73 -65,-72 -65,-71 -65,-70 -65,-69 -65,-68 -65,-67 -65,-66 -65,-65 -65,-65 -65.6,-65 -66.2,-65 -66.8,-65 -67.4,-65 -68,-65 -68.6,-65 -69.2,-65 -69.8,-65 -70.4,-65 -71,-66 -71,-67 -71,-68 -71,-69 -71,-70 -71,-71 -71,-72 -71,-73 -71,-74 -71,-75 -71,-75 -70.4,-75 -69.8,-75 -69.2,-75 -68.6,-75 -68,-75 -67.4,-75 -66.8,-75 -66.2,-75 -65.6,-75 -65))", "dataset_titles": "U.S. GLOBEC Southern Ocean data", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "002739", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "BCO-DMO", "science_program": null, "title": "U.S. GLOBEC Southern Ocean data", "url": "https://www.bco-dmo.org/project/2039"}], "date_created": "Mon, 22 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "This collaborative study between Old Dominion University, the College of William and Mary, Earth and Space Research, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution will examine the interactions among the ocean circulation, vertical mixing, sea ice, and marine biological processes on the western Antarctic Peninsula continental shelf. The study will result in analytical and numerical modeling tools that are based on, and will have been tested against the extensive data set obtained in the course of the Southern Ocean experiment of the Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics program (SO-Globec). These models will provide insight into circulation and biological dynamics that will be applicable to the development and refinement of physical and biological models for other high latitude systems. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eSO-Globec is a multidisciplinary effort focused on understanding the physical and biological factors that influence growth, reproduction, recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba). The program uses a multi-trophic level approach that includes the predators and competitors of Antarctic krill, represented by other zooplankton, fish, penguins, seals, and cetaceans. It is currently in a synthesis and modeling phase. This collaborative project is concerned with the environmental setting and dynamics that constrain ecological processes, and will be integrated with other synthesis and modeling studies that deal with grazers, predators, and other higher trophic levels", "east": -65.0, "geometry": "POINT(-70 -68)", "instruments": "NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "OCEAN CURRENTS; NOT APPLICABLE; Antarctica; Southern Ocean", "locations": "Antarctica; Southern Ocean", "north": -65.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences", "paleo_time": null, "persons": "Padman, Laurence", "platforms": "OTHER \u003e NOT APPLICABLE \u003e NOT APPLICABLE", "repo": "BCO-DMO", "repositories": "BCO-DMO", "science_programs": null, "south": -71.0, "title": "Collaborative Proposal: U.S. SO GLOBEC Synthesis and Modeling: Circulation and Hydrographic Data Analyses and Modeling Studies", "uid": "p0000216", "west": -75.0}]
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| Project Title/Abstract/Map | NSF Award(s) | Date Created | PIs / Scientists | Dataset Links and Repositories | Abstract | Bounds Geometry | Geometry | Selected | Visible | |||||||||
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RAPID: Time-Sensitive Assessment of Hydrothermal Vent Influence on Reproductive Ecology of Antarctic Krill
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2628024 |
2026-11-05 | Bernard, Kim; Buck, Kristen N | No dataset link provided | Antarctic krill are a vital component of the Southern Ocean ecosystem, supporting whales, seals, penguins, fish, and seabirds, while sustaining the region’s largest fishery. Yet the habitats that support successful krill reproduction remain poorly understood, limiting science-based management in a rapidly changing and increasingly fished region. This project will test whether hydrothermal vent systems in the Bransfield Strait provide essential mineral resources to reproductive female krill. Because iron, manganese, and zinc support egg production, embryo development, and core cellular processes, vent-influenced habitats may represent overlooked reproductive resources in the otherwise mineral-limited Southern Ocean. Results will advance understanding of Antarctic food webs and deep-sea–pelagic connections, inform conservation and fishery management through the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, and train an early-career researcher and undergraduate student in polar marine science. This project will leverage an expedition aboard the German research vessel, RV Polarstern, to investigate whether hydrothermal vent-influenced regions contribute to mineral provisioning and reproductive success in Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba. Gravid females will be collected across the Bransfield Strait, Gerlache Strait, northwest Weddell Sea, and Elephant Island regions using towed nets. Shipboard egg-production experiments will quantify batch size, embryo number, and embryo traits, while frozen females and embryos will be analyzed at Oregon State University for trace metals, lipid and protein content, and stable isotopes. Concentrations of iron, Manganese, and Zinc in ovaries, hepatopancreas, muscle, and embryos will be compared among regions using mixed-effects models, and reproductive output will be modeled as a function of ovarian trace-metal concentrations, female size, and region. This award reflects NSF''s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation''s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((-62 -61,-61.1 -61,-60.2 -61,-59.3 -61,-58.4 -61,-57.5 -61,-56.6 -61,-55.7 -61,-54.8 -61,-53.9 -61,-53 -61,-53 -61.4,-53 -61.8,-53 -62.2,-53 -62.6,-53 -63,-53 -63.4,-53 -63.8,-53 -64.2,-53 -64.6,-53 -65,-53.9 -65,-54.8 -65,-55.7 -65,-56.6 -65,-57.5 -65,-58.4 -65,-59.3 -65,-60.2 -65,-61.1 -65,-62 -65,-62 -64.6,-62 -64.2,-62 -63.8,-62 -63.4,-62 -63,-62 -62.6,-62 -62.2,-62 -61.8,-62 -61.4,-62 -61)) | POINT(-57.5 -63) | false | false | |||||||||
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NSFGEO-NERC Collaborative Research: Effects of a Changing Climate on the Habitat Utilization, Foraging Ecology and Distribution of Crabeater Seals
|
2042032 |
2024-11-27 | Huckstadt, Luis |
|
Part I: Non-technical description: The crabeater seal is the most important predator of Antarctic krill in the western Antarctic Peninsula oceanic waters after the disappearance of large whales due to human hunting 100 years ago. The crabeater seals are expected to consume large quantities of krill due to their high abundance (about 7 million individuals), large body size (about 700 pounds in body weight), high metabolism and a diet specializing in krill. This species depends on sea ice presence all year long, living, reproducing, and diving to feed from that environment, making this marine mammal species a good indicator, or sentinel, of how the Antarctic ecosystem responds to a changing climate. As sea ice has been decreasing in the northern Antarctic Peninsula, this project aims to understand if the species food availability has changed in the last decades in response to environmental changes. In particular, the proposed work will concentrate on known populations of crabeater seals in northern (i.e., warmer, sub-polar) and southern (i.e., colder, polar) Antarctic Peninsula, 450 miles apart, making measurements on the abundance, physiology, metabolic needs and movement of the crabeater populations in both locations. The data will be combined to build models that will quantify the existing differences between northern and southern populations, as well as predict their future change, and compare present-day measurements with those collected by the British Antarctic Survey in the mid-1900s. The project is a collaboration between an international and interdisciplinary team from the United States and United Kingdom, benefitting NSF goals to facilitate collaborative geoscience research projects involving these two countries as well as aligning directly with U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) to better understand the forces shaping the global environment, both human and natural, and their impacts on society. To further increase polar literacy and education, Principal Investigators will train at least 2 graduate students and several undergraduates across two US institutions, as well as one UK-based post-doctoral researcher. Part II: Technical description: Crabeater seals (Lobodon carcinophaga) are considered an excellent sentinel species through which to examine the effects of a changing climate on the extended Antarctic krill-dependent predator community and the structure of the entire ecosystem of the western Antarctic Peninsula. Over the last forty years, there have been significant changes in the temporal and spatial patterns of primary productivity, and shifts in the population dynamics of Antarctic krill, the dominant mid-trophic level species. The impact of such changes on year-round resident species of crabeater seals (the most important predator of Antarctic krill) is more difficult to understand as they are not associated with breeding colonies where their population fluctuations could be more readily observed. The proposed research is conceived under the premise that environmental change has accentuated the differences between the northern and southern western Antarctic Peninsula crabeater seal populations due to differential reductions in sea-ice and its possible effect on prey availability. To address this question, this research will combine measurements on animal movement, stable isotope analyses, whole-animal physiology, and novel survey technologies (small Unmanned Aircraft Systems, satellite imagery) to build models. The project is a collaboration between an international and interdisciplinary team from the United States and United Kingdom. These studies will be essential to detect past, and project future, changes in the ecology of this species in response to changes in sea ice when comparing present-day measurements with those collected by the British Antarctic Survey in the mid-1900s. To further increase polar literacy and education, Principal Investigators will train at least 2 graduate students and several undergraduates across two US institutions, as well as one UK-based post-doctoral researcher. Students involved with this project will gain invaluable research experience in the lab and will have a unique opportunity to participate in Antarctic fieldwork. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | None | None | false | false | |||||||||
|
Collaborative Research: Harvesting Long-term Survey Data to Develop Zooplankton Distribution Models for the Antarctic Peninsula
|
2203176 2203177 |
2023-08-10 | Cimino, Megan; Steinberg, Deborah |
|
This project is co-funded by a collaboration between the Directorate for Geosciences and Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure to support Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning and open science activities in the geosciences. Machine learning model will be used in this project to predict the distributions of five zooplankton species in the western Antarctic Peninsula (wAP) based on oceanographic properties. The project will take advantage of a long-term series collected by the Palmer Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program that collects annual data on physics, chemistry, phytoplankton (or food), zooplankton and predators (seabirds, whales and seals). By analyzing this dataset and combining it with other data collected by national and international programs, this project will provide understanding and prediction of zooplankton distribution and abundance in the wAP. The machine learning models will be based on environmental properties extracted from remote sensing images thus providing ecosystem knowledge as it decreases human footprint in Antarctica. The relationship between species distribution and habitat are key for distinguishing natural variability from climate impacts on zooplankton and their predators. This research benefits NSF mission by expanding fundamental knowledge of Antarctic systems, biota, and processes as well as aligning with data and sample reuse strategies in Polar Research. The project will benefit society by supporting two female early-career scientists, a post-doctoral fellow and a graduate student. Polar literacy will be promoted through an existing partnership with Out Of School activities that target Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, expected to reach 120,000 students from under-represented minorities in STEM annually. The project will also contribute to evaluate the ecosystem in the proposed Marine Protected Area in the wAP, subject to krill fishery. Results will be made available publicly through an interactive web application. The Principal Investigators propose to address three main questions: 1) Can geomorphic features, winter preconditioning and summer ocean conditions be used to predict the austral summer distribution of zooplankton species along the wAP? 2) What are the spatial and temporal patterns in modeled zooplankton species distribution along the wAP? And 3) What are the patterns of overlap in zooplankton and predator species? The model will generate functional relationships between zooplankton distribution and environmental variables and provide Zooplankton Distribution Models (ZDMs) along the Antarctic Peninsula. The Palmer LTER database will be combined with the NOAA AMLR data for the northern wAP, and KRILLBASE, made public by the British Antarctic Survey’s Polar Data Center. This project will generate 1) annual environmental spatial layers on the Palmer LTER resolution grid within the study region, 2) annual species-specific standardized zooplankton net data from different surveys, 3) annual species-specific predator sightings on a standardized grid, and 4) ecological model output. Ecological model output will include annual predictions of zooplankton species distributions, consisting of 3-dimensional fields (x,y,t) for the 5 main zooplankton groups, including Antarctic krill, salps and pteropods. Predictions will be derived from merging in situ survey data with environmental data, collected in situ or by remote sensing. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((-80 -60,-77 -60,-74 -60,-71 -60,-68 -60,-65 -60,-62 -60,-59 -60,-56 -60,-53 -60,-50 -60,-50 -61,-50 -62,-50 -63,-50 -64,-50 -65,-50 -66,-50 -67,-50 -68,-50 -69,-50 -70,-53 -70,-56 -70,-59 -70,-62 -70,-65 -70,-68 -70,-71 -70,-74 -70,-77 -70,-80 -70,-80 -69,-80 -68,-80 -67,-80 -66,-80 -65,-80 -64,-80 -63,-80 -62,-80 -61,-80 -60)) | POINT(-65 -65) | false | false | |||||||||
|
Collaborative Research: Climate, Changing Abundance and Species Interactions of Marine Birds and Mammals at South Georgia in Winter
|
2011285 2011454 |
2022-10-06 | Veit, Richard; Manne, Lisa; Santora, Jarrod |
|
Part I: Non-technical description: Ocean warming in the western Antarctic Peninsula and Scotia Sea in winter is among the highest worldwide. This project will quantify the impact of the climate warming on seabirds. The study area is in South Georgia in the South Atlantic with the largest and most diverse seabird colonies in the world. Detecting and understanding how physics and biology interact to bring positive or negative population changes to seabirds has long challenged scientists. The team in this project hypothesizes that 1) Cold water seabird species decline while warm water species increase due to ocean warming observed in the last 30 years; 2) All species decrease with ocean warming, affecting how they interact with each other and in doing so, decreasing their chances of survival; and 3) Species profiles can be predicted using multiple environmental variables and models. To collect present-day data to compare with observations done in 1985, 1991 and 1993, 2 cruises are planned in the austral winter; the personnel will include the three Principal Investigators, all experienced with sampling of seabirds, plankton and oceanography, with 2 graduate and 5 undergraduate students. Models will be developed based on the cruise data and the environmental change experienced in the last 30 years. The research will improve our understanding of seabird and marine mammal winter ecology, and how they interact with the environment. This project benefits NSF's goals to expand the fundamental knowledge of Antarctic systems, biota, and processes. The project will provide an exceptional opportunity to teach polar field skills to undergraduates by bringing 5 students to engage in the research cruises. To further increase polar literacy training and educational impacts, broader impacts include the production of an educational documentary that will be coupled to field surveys to assess public perceptions about climate change. Part II: Technical description: Ocean warming in the western Antarctic Peninsula and Scotia Sea in winter is among the highest worldwide. Based on previous work, the Principal Investigators in this project want to test the hypothesis that warming would have decreased seabird abundance and species associations in the South Georgia region of the South Atlantic. A main premise of this proposal is that because of marine environmental change, the structure of the seabird communities has also changed, and potentially in a manner that has diminished the mutually beneficial dynamics of positive interactions, with subsequent consequences to fitness and population trends. The study is structured by 3 main objectives: 1) identify changes in krill, bird and mammal abundance that have occurred from previous sampling off both ends of South Georgia during winter in 1985, 1991 and 1993, 2) identify pairings of species that benefit each other in searching for prey, and quantify how such relationships have changed since 1985, and 3) make predictions about how these changes in species pairing might continue given predicted future changes in climate. The novelty of the approach is the conceptual model that inter-species associations inform birds of food availability and that the associations decrease if bird abundance decreases, thus warming could decrease overall population fitness. These studies will be essential to establish if behavioral patterns in seabird modulate their response to climate change. The project will provide exceptional educational opportunity to undergraduates by bringing 5 students to participate on the cruises. To further increase polar literacy training and educational impacts, broader impacts include the production of an educational documentary that will be coupled to field surveys to assess public perceptions about climate change. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((-39 -53,-38.6 -53,-38.2 -53,-37.8 -53,-37.4 -53,-37 -53,-36.6 -53,-36.2 -53,-35.8 -53,-35.4 -53,-35 -53,-35 -53.2,-35 -53.4,-35 -53.6,-35 -53.8,-35 -54,-35 -54.2,-35 -54.4,-35 -54.6,-35 -54.8,-35 -55,-35.4 -55,-35.8 -55,-36.2 -55,-36.6 -55,-37 -55,-37.4 -55,-37.8 -55,-38.2 -55,-38.6 -55,-39 -55,-39 -54.8,-39 -54.6,-39 -54.4,-39 -54.2,-39 -54,-39 -53.8,-39 -53.6,-39 -53.4,-39 -53.2,-39 -53)) | POINT(-37 -54) | false | false | |||||||||
|
OPP-PRF Pygoscelis Penguin Response to Potential Prey Retention along the West Antarctic Peninsula
|
2138277 |
2022-07-19 | Gallagher, Katherine | Pygoscelis penguins are central place foragers during the summer while they raise their chicks. They leave and return to the same colony location after hunting for food and rely on the availability of Antarctic krill, their primary food source. This research focuses on whether penguin diets and colony location reflect the retention of prey around and near colonies on the West Antarctic Peninsula. Eddies and other oceanographic processes may facilitate prey retention at certain locations, driving penguin colony establishment and success. This project hypothesizes that Pygoscelis penguin diets will be composed of more Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) when local prey retention is high, possibly due to subsurface eddies. This hypothesis will be tested using satellite-based estimates of Pygoscelis penguin diet composition using multispectral sensor data to estimate nitrogen values and infer trophic level. Prey retention will be calculated along the peninsula using the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS). Simulated particles and diel vertical migration will be used to mimic krill behavior. These particles can be experimentally seeded across multiple depths in multiple years to assess residence times in the system. Using penguin colony data from the Mapping Application for Penguin Populations and Projected Dynamics (MAPPPD), the PI will correlate diet and retention metrics to local penguin colony growth and persistence and build a predictive model of where colonies may form in the future. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((-78 -62,-76.2 -62,-74.4 -62,-72.6 -62,-70.8 -62,-69 -62,-67.2 -62,-65.4 -62,-63.6 -62,-61.8 -62,-60 -62,-60 -63,-60 -64,-60 -65,-60 -66,-60 -67,-60 -68,-60 -69,-60 -70,-60 -71,-60 -72,-61.8 -72,-63.6 -72,-65.4 -72,-67.2 -72,-69 -72,-70.8 -72,-72.6 -72,-74.4 -72,-76.2 -72,-78 -72,-78 -71,-78 -70,-78 -69,-78 -68,-78 -67,-78 -66,-78 -65,-78 -64,-78 -63,-78 -62)) | POINT(-69 -67) | false | false | ||||||||||
|
Collaborative Research: Linking Predator Behavior and Resource Distributions: Penguin-directed Exploration of an Ecological Hotspot
|
1744885 1744859 |
2022-07-18 | Moline, Mark; Benoit-Bird, Kelly; Cimino, Megan |
|
This research project will use specially designed autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to investigate interactions between Adelie and Gentoo penguins (the predators) and their primary food source, Antarctic krill (prey). While it has long been known that penguins feed on krill, details about how they search for food and target individual prey items is less well understood. Krill aggregate in large swarms, and the size or the depth of these swarms may influence the feeding behavior of penguins. Similarly, penguin feeding behaviors may differ based on characteristics of the environment, krill swarms, and the presence of other prey and predator species. This project will use specialized smart AUVs to simultaneously collect high-resolution observations of penguins, their prey, and environmental conditions. Data will shed light on strategies used by penguins prove foraging success during the critical summer chick-rearing period. This will improve predictions of how penguin populations may respond to changing environmental conditions in the rapidly warming Western Antarctic Peninsula region. Greater understanding of how individual behaviors shape food web structure can also inform conservation and management efforts in other marine ecosystems. This project has a robust public education and outreach plan linked with the Birch and Monterey Bay Aquariums. Previous studies have shown that sub-mesoscale variability (1-10 km) in Antarctic krill densities and structure impact the foraging behavior of air-breathing predators. However, there is little understanding of how krill aggregation characteristics are linked to abundance on fine spatial scales, how these patterns are influenced by the habitat, or how prey characteristics influences the foraging behavior of predators. These data gaps remain because it is extremely challenging to collect detailed data on predators and prey simultaneously at the scale of an individual krill patch and single foraging event. Building on previously successful efforts, this project will integrate echosounders into autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), so that oceanographic variables and multi-frequency acoustic scattering from both prey and penguins can be collected simultaneously. This will allow for quantification of the environment at the scale of individual foraging events made by penguins during the critical 50+ day chick-rearing period. Work will be centered near Palmer Station, where long-term studies have provided significant insight into predator and prey population trends. The new data to be collected by this project will test hypotheses about how penguin prey selection and foraging behaviors are influenced by physical and biological features of their ocean habitat at extremely fine scale. By addressing the dynamic relationship between individual penguins, their prey, and habitat at the scale of individual foraging events, this study will begin to reveal the important processes regulating resource availability and identify what makes this region a profitable foraging habitat and breeding location. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((-64.643 -64.703149,-64.5388975 -64.703149,-64.43479500000001 -64.703149,-64.3306925 -64.703149,-64.22659 -64.703149,-64.1224875 -64.703149,-64.018385 -64.703149,-63.9142825 -64.703149,-63.81018 -64.703149,-63.706077500000006 -64.703149,-63.601975 -64.703149,-63.601975 -64.7258003,-63.601975 -64.7484516,-63.601975 -64.77110289999999,-63.601975 -64.7937542,-63.601975 -64.8164055,-63.601975 -64.8390568,-63.601975 -64.86170809999999,-63.601975 -64.8843594,-63.601975 -64.9070107,-63.601975 -64.929662,-63.706077500000006 -64.929662,-63.81018 -64.929662,-63.9142825 -64.929662,-64.018385 -64.929662,-64.1224875 -64.929662,-64.22659 -64.929662,-64.3306925 -64.929662,-64.43479500000001 -64.929662,-64.5388975 -64.929662,-64.643 -64.929662,-64.643 -64.9070107,-64.643 -64.8843594,-64.643 -64.86170809999999,-64.643 -64.8390568,-64.643 -64.8164055,-64.643 -64.7937542,-64.643 -64.77110289999999,-64.643 -64.7484516,-64.643 -64.7258003,-64.643 -64.703149)) | POINT(-64.1224875 -64.8164055) | false | false | |||||||||
|
Foraging Ecology of Crabeater Seals (Lobodon Carcinophagus)
|
9981683 0003956 |
2022-06-29 | Burns, Jennifer; Costa, Daniel |
|
This collaborative study between the University of California, Santa Cruz, Duke University, the University of South Florida, the University of Alaska-Anchorage, and the University of California, San Diego will examine the identification of biological and physical features associated with the abundance and distribution of individual Antarctic predators; the identification and characterization of biological 'hot spots' within the Western Antarctic Peninsula; and the development of temporally and spatially explicit models of krill consumption within the WAP by vertebrate predators. It is one of several data synthesis and modeling components that use the data obtained in the course of the field work of the Southern Ocean Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics (SO GLOBEC) experiment.<br/>SO-Globec is a multidisciplinary effort focused on understanding the physical and biological factors that influence growth, reproduction, recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba). The program uses a multi-trophic level approach that includes the predators and competitors of Antarctic krill, represented by other zooplankton, fish, penguins, seals, and cetaceans. It is currently in a synthesis and modeling phase. This collaborative project is concerned with understanding how predators utilize 'hot spots', i.e. locally intense areas of biological productivity, and how 'hot spots' might temporally and spatially structure krill predation rates, and will be integrated with other synthesis and modeling studies that deal with the hydrography primary production, and krill dynamics. | POLYGON((-70 -65,-69.5 -65,-69 -65,-68.5 -65,-68 -65,-67.5 -65,-67 -65,-66.5 -65,-66 -65,-65.5 -65,-65 -65,-65 -65.5,-65 -66,-65 -66.5,-65 -67,-65 -67.5,-65 -68,-65 -68.5,-65 -69,-65 -69.5,-65 -70,-65.5 -70,-66 -70,-66.5 -70,-67 -70,-67.5 -70,-68 -70,-68.5 -70,-69 -70,-69.5 -70,-70 -70,-70 -69.5,-70 -69,-70 -68.5,-70 -68,-70 -67.5,-70 -67,-70 -66.5,-70 -66,-70 -65.5,-70 -65)) | POINT(-67.5 -67.5) | false | false | |||||||||
|
Drivers of Antarctic Krill Reproductive Output
|
2038145 |
2022-04-01 | Bernard, Kim |
|
Warming at the northern Antarctic Peninsula is causing fundamental changes in the marine ecosystem. Antarctic krill are small shrimp-like animals that are most abundant in that area. They are also an essential part of the marine food web of the waters surrounding Antarctica. Meanwhile, a rapidly growing international fishery has developed for krill. Understanding changes in krill populations is therefore critical both to the management of the fishery and the ability of scientists to predict changes in the Antarctic marine ecosystem. This project will have two broader societal impacts. First, the project will support the training of students for careers in oceanography. The students will be recruited from underrepresented groups in an effort to increase diversity, equity and inclusion in STEM. Second, results from this project will develop improved population models, which are essential for the effective management of the Antarctic krill fishery. In collaboration with US delegates on the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, the researchers will produce a report outlining the key findings from the study. Effective population modeling relies on empirical and theoretical understanding of how environment drives krill reproduction. There are two critical egg development stages in Antarctic krill that impact population growth. They are early egg development, and advanced egg development/spawning. The timing and duration of early egg development determines the number of eggs produced and the number of seasonal spawning events a female can undergo. The research team will use samples of Antarctic krill collected over the last 30 years in late winter/early spring, summer and early fall. The reproductive development stages of individual females in these samples will be assessed. These data will be modeled against climatological and oceanographic data to test three hypotheses. First, they will test if colder winter conditions correspond to early preparation for spawning. Second, they will test if favorable winter-summer conditions increase early spawning. Finally, they will test if favorable winter-summer conditions lengthen the spawning season. The study will advance current understanding of the environmental conditions that promote population increases in Antarctic krill and will fill an important gap in current knowledge of the reproductive development and output of Antarctic krill. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((-180 -60,-144 -60,-108 -60,-72 -60,-36 -60,0 -60,36 -60,72 -60,108 -60,144 -60,180 -60,180 -63,180 -66,180 -69,180 -72,180 -75,180 -78,180 -81,180 -84,180 -87,180 -90,144 -90,108 -90,72 -90,36 -90,0 -90,-36 -90,-72 -90,-108 -90,-144 -90,-180 -90,-180 -87,-180 -84,-180 -81,-180 -78,-180 -75,-180 -72,-180 -69,-180 -66,-180 -63,-180 -60)) | POINT(0 -89.999) | false | false | |||||||||
|
EAGER: Collaborative Research: Acoustic Ecology of Foraging Antarctic Blue Whales in the Vicinity of Antarctic Krill
|
1746148 |
2021-07-13 | Sirovic, Ana; Stafford, Kathleen |
|
Understanding the interaction between blue whales and their prey is essential for understanding Antarctic ecosystem dynamics. In the austral summer of 2019 an international interdisciplinary research voyage will head to the Antarctic with the overall goal of mapping Antarctic krill and blue whale distributions to determine if foraging preferences of blue whales are dictated in part by the density and shape of Antarctic krill swarms. This research voyage will combine advanced research technologies (including autonomous underwater vehicles, short term-tags, photogrammetry, and ship-based, real-time passive listening and active echosounders) to answer questions about how the density, swarm shape and behavior of Antarctic krill influence Antarctic blue whales. U.S. participation on this voyage on an Australian research vessel will allow collection of concurrent predator and prey data through the use of passive listening and echosounders from a fixed mooring. By coupling moored data collection with the ship-based survey focusing on Antarctic blue whale behavior and krill dynamics, the project will contribute to the understanding of basic questions relating to the dynamics between blue whales and their prey as well as adding to the development of instrumentation and technologies that will enhance current capabilities for in situ observing on the continent and the surrounding ice-covered waters. The project will provide an educational platform for high school students and the general public to virtually experience Antarctica via "virtual sailing" through a project website and blog. Students and the general public also will be allowed the opportunity to participate in post-cruise data analysis. The Australian Antarctic Division and the University of Tasmania will lead an international voyage to the Antarctic in the austral summer of 2019. The overall goal of the voyage will be to map Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) and blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) distributions to determine if the foraging preferences of blue whales are dictated in part by the density and shape of Antarctic krill swarms. US participation in voyage will entail the deployment of passive and active acoustic instrumentation on a fixed mooring in concert with real-time acoustic and visual tracking and localizing of blue whales that will then allow better directing of ship operations towards aggregations of animals such that fine-scale acoustic tracking and prey field mapping can be achieved. This approach will be the first time such an acoustic system is deployed in Antarctica and used in an integrative fashion to assess foraging behaviors and krill. Thus, the project will advance understanding of the relationships between the acoustic ecology of blue whales, krill abundance, and blue whale densities. The technology deployment and testing will also be used to assess its potential use in ice-covered waters for similar studies in the future. Broader impacts of this project will occur through outreach and education, as well as through the collaborations with the broader international scientific community. The project will provide educational platforms for high school students and general public to virtually experience Antarctica. Research findings will be communicated to both the scientific community and the wider public through peer-reviewed publications, presentations, student lectures, seminars and communication through appropriate media channels by institutional communications teams. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((140 -65.5,140.8 -65.5,141.6 -65.5,142.4 -65.5,143.2 -65.5,144 -65.5,144.8 -65.5,145.6 -65.5,146.4 -65.5,147.2 -65.5,148 -65.5,148 -65.57,148 -65.64,148 -65.71,148 -65.78,148 -65.85,148 -65.92,148 -65.99,148 -66.06,148 -66.13,148 -66.2,147.2 -66.2,146.4 -66.2,145.6 -66.2,144.8 -66.2,144 -66.2,143.2 -66.2,142.4 -66.2,141.6 -66.2,140.8 -66.2,140 -66.2,140 -66.13,140 -66.06,140 -65.99,140 -65.92,140 -65.85,140 -65.78,140 -65.71,140 -65.64,140 -65.57,140 -65.5)) | POINT(144 -65.85) | false | false | |||||||||
|
Foraging Behavior and Ecological Role of the Least Studied Antarctic Krill Predator, the Antarctic Minke Whale (Balaenoptera Bonaerensis)
|
1643877 |
2021-06-25 | Friedlaender, Ari |
|
The Antarctic Peninsula is warming and one of the consequences is a decrease in sea ice cover. Antarctic minke whales are the largest ice-obligate krill predator in the region, yet- little is known about their foraging behavior and ecology. The goals of the project are to use a suite of new technological tools to measure the underwater behavior of the whales and better understand how they exploit the sea ice habitat. Using video-recording motion-sensing tags, the underwater movements of the whales can be reconstructed and it can be determine where and when they feed. UAS (unmanned aerial systems) will be used to generate real-time images of sea ice cover that will be linked with tag data to determine how much time whales spend in sea ice versus open water, and how the behavior of the whales changes between these two habitats. Lastly, scientific echosounders will be used to characterize the prey field that the whales are exploiting and differences in krill availability inside and out of the ice will be investigated. All of this information is critical to understand the ecological role of Antarctic minke whales so that better predictions can be made regarding impacts of climate change not only on these animals, but on the structure and function of the Antarctic marine ecosystem. The project will promote the progress of science by elucidating the ecological role of a poorly known Antarctic predator and using this information to better understand the impact of changes that are occurring in Polar Regions. The educational and outreach program will increase awareness and understanding of minke whales, Antarctic marine ecosystems, sea ice, and the dynamics of climate change through the use of film, social media, and curriculum development for formal STEM educators. To understand how changes in sea ice will manifest in the demography of predators that rely on sea ice habitat requires knowledge of their behavior and ecology. The largest ice-dependent krill predator and most abundant cetacean in the Southern Ocean is the Antarctic minke whale (AMW)- yet, virtually nothing is known of its foraging behavior or ecological role. Thus, the knowledge to understand how climate-driven changes will affect these animals and therefore the dynamics of the ecosystem as a whole is lacking. The project will use multi-sensor and video recording tags, fisheries acoustics, and unmanned aerial systems to study the foraging behavior and ecological role of minke whales in the waters of the Antarctic Peninsula. The following research questions will be posed: 1. What is the feeding performance of AMWs? 2. How important is sea ice to the foraging behavior of AMW? 3. How do AMWs feed directly under sea ice? Proven tagging and analytical approaches to characterize the underwater feeding behavior and kinematics of minke whales will be used. Combined with quantitative measurements of the prey field, the energetic costs of feeding will be measured and it will be determined how minke whales optimize energy gain. Using animal-borne video recording tags and UAS technology it will also be determined how much feeding occurs directly under sea ice and how this mode differs from open water feeding. This knowledge will: (1) significantly enhance knowledge of the least-studied Antarctic krill predator; and (2) be made directly available to international, long-term efforts to understand how climate-driven changes will affect the structure and function of the Antarctic marine ecosystem. The educational and outreach efforts aim to increase awareness and understanding of: (i) the ecological role of minke whales around the Antarctic Peninsula; (ii) the effects of environmental change on an abundant but largely unstudied marine predator; (iii) the advanced methods and technologies used by whale researchers to study these cryptic animals and their prey; and (iv) the variety of careers in the ocean sciences by sharing the experiences of scientists and students. These educational aims will be achieved by delivering continuous near-real-time delivery of project events and data to informal audiences through social media channels as well as curricula and professional development programs that will provide formal STEM educators with specific standards-compliant lesson plans. | POLYGON((-65 -63.5,-64.5 -63.5,-64 -63.5,-63.5 -63.5,-63 -63.5,-62.5 -63.5,-62 -63.5,-61.5 -63.5,-61 -63.5,-60.5 -63.5,-60 -63.5,-60 -63.73,-60 -63.96,-60 -64.19,-60 -64.42,-60 -64.65,-60 -64.88,-60 -65.11,-60 -65.34,-60 -65.57,-60 -65.8,-60.5 -65.8,-61 -65.8,-61.5 -65.8,-62 -65.8,-62.5 -65.8,-63 -65.8,-63.5 -65.8,-64 -65.8,-64.5 -65.8,-65 -65.8,-65 -65.57,-65 -65.34,-65 -65.11,-65 -64.88,-65 -64.65,-65 -64.42,-65 -64.19,-65 -63.96,-65 -63.73,-65 -63.5)) | POINT(-62.5 -64.65) | false | false | |||||||||
|
Collaborative Research: Individual Based Approaches to Understanding Krill Distributions and Aggregations
|
1840949 1840927 1840941 |
2021-06-25 | Record, Nicholas ; Weissburg, Marc; Murphy, David; Fields, David | Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) are an ecologically important component of the Southern Ocean's food web, yet little is known about their behavior in response to many features of their aquatic environment. This project will improve understanding of krill swimming and schooling behavior by examining individual responses to light levels, water flow rates, the presence of attractive and repulsive chemical cues. Flow, light and chemical conditions will be controlled and altered in specialized tanks outfitted with high speed digital camera systems so that individual krill responses to these factors can be measured in relevant schooling settings. This analysis will be used to predict preferred environments, define the capacity of krill to detect and move to them (and away from unfavorable ones). Such information will then be used to improve models that estimate the energetic costs of behaviors associated with different types of environments. Linking individual behavior to those of larger krill aggregations will also improve acoustic assessments of krill densities. Understanding the capacity of krill to respond to environmental perturbations will improve our understanding of the ecology of high latitude ecosystems and provide relevant information for the management of krill fisheries. The project will support graduate and undergraduate students and provide training for as post-doctoral associate. Curricular materials and public engagement activities will be based on the project's aims and activities. Project investigators will share model results and predictions of krill movements and school structure with experts interested in krill conservation and management. The project will use horizontal and vertical laminar flow tunnels to examine krill behavior under naturally relevant conditions. Horizontal (1-10 cm per second) and vertical (1-3 mm per second) flow velocities mimic naturally relevant current patterns, while light levels and spectral quality will be varied from complete darkness to intensities experienced across the depth range inhabited by krill. Attractive phytoplankton odor will be created by dosing the flumes to obtain background chlorophyll a levels approximating average and bloom conditions, while repulsive cues will be generated from penguin guano. Behavior of individual krill in all conditions will be video recorded with cameras visualizing X-Y and Y-Z planes, and 3D movements will be reconstructed by video motion analysis at a 5 Hz sampling rate. The distribution of horizontal and vertical swimming angles and velocities will be used to create an individual based model (IBM) of krill movement in response to each condition, where krill behavior at each model time step is based on random draws from the velocity and angular distributions. Since krill commonly travel in groups, further experiments will examine the behavior of small krill schools in these same conditions to further parameterize variables such as individual spacing. Researchers will examine krill aggregation structure from 3D video records of krill swimming in a specially designed kriesel tank, and compute nearest neighbor distances (NND) and correlations of swimming angles among individuals within the aggregation. Krill movements in the IBM will be constrained to adhere to observed NND and angular correlations. Large scale oceanographic models will be used to define spatial environments in which the modelled krill will be allowed to move using simulated schools of 1000-100,000 krill. Model output will include the school swimming speed, direction and structure (packing density, NND). Researchers will compare available acoustic data sets of krill schools in measured flow and phytoplankton abundance to evaluate the model predictions. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | None | None | false | false | ||||||||||
|
CAREER: "The Omnivore's Dilemma": The Effect of Autumn Diet on Winter Physiology and Condition of Juvenile Antarctic Krill
|
1753101 |
2020-08-31 | Bernard, Kim | Antarctic krill are essential in the Southern Ocean as they support vast numbers of marine mammals, seabirds and fishes, some of which feed almost exclusively on krill. Antarctic krill also constitute a target species for industrial fisheries in the Southern Ocean. The success of Antarctic krill populations is largely determined by the ability of their young to survive the long, dark winter, where food is extremely scarce. To survive the long-dark winter, young Antarctic krill must have a high-quality diet in autumn. However, warming in certain parts of Antarctica is changing the dynamics and quality of the polar food web, resulting in a shift in the type of food available to young krill in autumn. It is not yet clear how these dynamic changes are affecting the ability of krill to survive the winter. This project aims to fill an important gap in current knowledge on an understudied stage of the Antarctic krill life cycle, the 1-year old juveniles. The results derived from this work will contribute to the development of improved bioenergetic, population and ecosystem models, and will advance current scientific understanding of this critical Antarctic species. This CAREER project's core education and outreach objectives seek to enhance education and increase diversity within STEM fields. An undergraduate course will be developed that will integrate undergraduate research and writing in way that promotes authentic scientific inquiry and analysis of original research data by the students, and that enhances their communication skills. A graduate course will be developed that will promote students' skills in communicating their own research to a non-scientific audience. Graduate students will be supported through the proposed study and will gain valuable research experience. Traditionally underserved undergraduate students will be recruited to conduct independent research under the umbrella of the larger project. Throughout each field season, the research team will maintain a weekly blog that will include short videos, photographs and text highlighting the research, as well as their experiences living and working in Antarctica. The aim of the blog will be to engage the public and increase awareness and understanding of Antarctic ecosystems and the impact of warming, and of the scientific process of research and discovery. In this 5-year CAREER project, the investigator will use a combination of empirical and theoretical techniques to assess the effects of diet on 1-year old krill in autumn-winter. The research is centered on four hypotheses: (H1) autumn diet affects 1-year old krill physiology and condition at the onset of winter; (H2) autumn diet has an effect on winter physiology and condition of 1-year old krill under variable winter food conditions; (H3) the rate of change in physiology and condition of 1-year old krill from autumn to winter is dependent on autumn diet; and (H4) the winter energy budget of 1-year old krill will vary between years and will be dependent on autumn diet. Long-term feeding experiments and in situ sampling will be used to measure changes in the physiology and condition of krill in relation to their diet and feeding environment. Empirically-derived data will be used to develop theoretical models of growth rates and energy budgets to determine how diet will influence the overwinter survival of 1-year old krill. The research will be integrated with an education and outreach plan to (1) develop engaging undergraduate and graduate courses, (2) train and develop young scientists for careers in polar research, and (3) engage the public and increase their awareness and understanding. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. | POLYGON((-65 -64,-64.7 -64,-64.4 -64,-64.1 -64,-63.8 -64,-63.5 -64,-63.2 -64,-62.9 -64,-62.6 -64,-62.3 -64,-62 -64,-62 -64.1,-62 -64.2,-62 -64.3,-62 -64.4,-62 -64.5,-62 -64.6,-62 -64.7,-62 -64.8,-62 -64.9,-62 -65,-62.3 -65,-62.6 -65,-62.9 -65,-63.2 -65,-63.5 -65,-63.8 -65,-64.1 -65,-64.4 -65,-64.7 -65,-65 -65,-65 -64.9,-65 -64.8,-65 -64.7,-65 -64.6,-65 -64.5,-65 -64.4,-65 -64.3,-65 -64.2,-65 -64.1,-65 -64)) | POINT(-63.5 -64.5) | false | false | ||||||||||
|
Collaborative Research: Investigating Holocene Shifts in the Diets and Paleohistory of Antarctic Krill Predators
|
1443585 1826712 1443424 1443386 |
2019-08-08 | Polito, Michael; Kelton, McMahon; Patterson, William; McCarthy, Matthew | The Antarctic marine ecosystem is highly productive and supports a diverse range of ecologically and commercially important species. A key species in this ecosystem is Antarctic krill, which in addition to being commercially harvested, is the principle prey of a wide range of marine organisms including penguins, seals and whales. The aim of this study is to use penguins and other krill predators as sensitive indicators of past changes in the Antarctic marine food web resulting from climate variability and the historic harvesting of seals and whales by humans. Specifically this study will recover and analyze modern (<20 year old), historic (20-200 year old) and ancient (200-10,000 year old) penguin and other krill predator tissues to track their past diets and population movements relative to shifts in climate and the availability of Antarctic krill. Understanding how krill predators were affected by these factors in the past will allow us to better understand how these predators, the krill they depend on, and the Antarctic marine ecosystem as a whole will respond to current challenges such as global climate change and an expanding commercial fishery for Antarctic krill. The project will further the NSF goals of training new generations of scientists and of making scientific discoveries available to the general public. This project will support the cross-institutional training of undergraduate and graduate students in advanced analytical techniques in the fields of ecology and biogeochemistry. In addition, this project includes educational outreach aimed encouraging participation in science careers by engaging K-12 students in scientific issues related to Antarctica, penguins, marine ecology, biogeochemistry, and global climate change. This research will help place recent ecological changes in the Southern Ocean into a larger historical context by examining decadal and millennial-scale shifts in the diets and population movements of Antarctic krill predators (penguins, seals, and squid) in concert with climate variability and commercial harvesting. This will be achieved by coupling advanced stable and radio isotope techniques, particularly compound-specific stable isotope analysis, with unprecedented access to modern, historical, and well-preserved paleo-archives of Antarctic predator tissues dating throughout the Holocene. This approach will allow the project to empirically test if observed shifts in Antarctic predator bulk tissue stable isotope values over the past millennia were caused by climate-driven shifts at the base of the food web in addition to, or rather than, shifts in predator diets due to a competitive release following the historic harvesting of krill eating whale and seals. In addition, this project will track the large-scale abandonment and reoccupation of penguin colonies around Antarctica in response to changes in climate and sea ice conditions over the past several millennia. These integrated field studies and laboratory analyses will provide new insights into the underlying mechanisms that influenced past shifts in the diets and population movements of charismatic krill predators such as penguins. This will allow for improved projections of the ecosystem consequences of future climate change and anthropogenic harvesting scenarios in the Antarctica that are likely to affect the availability of Antarctic krill. | POLYGON((-180 -60,-166 -60,-152 -60,-138 -60,-124 -60,-110 -60,-96 -60,-82 -60,-68 -60,-54 -60,-40 -60,-40 -61.8,-40 -63.6,-40 -65.4,-40 -67.2,-40 -69,-40 -70.8,-40 -72.6,-40 -74.4,-40 -76.2,-40 -78,-54 -78,-68 -78,-82 -78,-96 -78,-110 -78,-124 -78,-138 -78,-152 -78,-166 -78,180 -78,178 -78,176 -78,174 -78,172 -78,170 -78,168 -78,166 -78,164 -78,162 -78,160 -78,160 -76.2,160 -74.4,160 -72.6,160 -70.8,160 -69,160 -67.2,160 -65.4,160 -63.6,160 -61.8,160 -60,162 -60,164 -60,166 -60,168 -60,170 -60,172 -60,174 -60,176 -60,178 -60,-180 -60)) | POINT(-120 -69) | false | false | ||||||||||
|
Methylmercury in Antarctic Krill Microbiomes
|
1543412 |
2019-03-31 | Schaefer, Jeffra; Reinfelder, John; Barkar, T. |
|
Marine food webs can concentrate monomethylmercury (MMHg), a neurotoxin in mammals, in upper trophic level consumers. Despite their remoteness, coastal Antarctic marine ecosystems accumulate and biomagnify MMHg to levels observed at lower latitudes and in the Arctic. Marine sediments and other anoxic habitats in the oceans are typical areas where methylation of mercury occurs and these are likely places where MMHg is being produced. Krill, and more specifically their digestive tracts, may be a previously unaccounted for site where the production of MMHg may be occurring in the Antarctic. If monomethylmercury production is occurring in krill, current views regarding bioaccumulation in the food web and processes leading to the production and accumulation of mercury in the Antarctic Ocean could be better informed, if not transformed. This project will conduct a preliminary assessment of the krill gut microbiomes, the microbiome's genomic content and potential for production of monomethyl mercury by detecting the genes involved in mercury transformations. By analyzing the krill gut microbiome, the project will provide insights regarding animal-microbe interactions and their potential role in globally important biogeochemical cycles. This project will conduct a preliminary assessment of the krill gut microbiomes, the microbiomes genomic content and potential for production of monomethylmercury. The diversity and metabolic profiles of microorganisms in krill digestive tracts will be evaluated using massively parallel Illumina DNA sequencing technology to produce 16S rRNA gene libraries and assembled whole metagenomes. The project will also quantify the abundance and expression of Hg methylation genes, hgcAB, and identify their taxonomic affiliations in the microbiome communities. Environmental metagenomes, 16S rRNA gene inventories produced from this project will provide the polar science community with valuable databases and experimental tools with which to examine coastal Antarctic microbial ecology and biogeochemistry. The project will seek to provide a wider window into the diversity of extremophile microbial communities and the identification of potentially unique and useful bioactive compounds. In addition to public education and outreach. This project will train graduate students and provide educational and outreach opportunities at the participating institutions | None | POINT(-69.09295 -66.8017) | false | false | |||||||||
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Collaborative Research: Fjord Ecosystem Structure and Function on the West Antarctic Peninsula - Hotspots of Productivity and Biodiversity? (FjordEco)
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1443733 1443680 1443705 |
2019-02-13 | Winsor, Peter; Truffer, Martin; Smith, Craig; Powell, Brian; Merrifield, Mark; Vernet, Maria; Kohut, Josh | Marine communities along the western Antarctic Peninsula are highly productive ecosystems which support a diverse assemblage of charismatic animals such as penguins, seals, and whales as well as commercial fisheries such as that on Antarctic krill. Fjords (long, narrow, deep inlets of the sea between high cliffs) along the central coast of the Peninsula appear to be intense, potentially climate sensitive, hotspots of biological production and biodiversity, yet the structure and dynamics of these fjord ecosystems are very poorly understood. Because of this intense biological activity and the charismatic fauna it supports, these fjords are also major destinations for a large Antarctic tourism industry. This project is an integrated field and modeling program to evaluate physical oceanographic processes, glacial inputs, water column community dynamics, and seafloor bottom community structure and function in these important yet little understood fjord systems. These Antarctic fjords have characteristics that are substantially different from well-studied Arctic fjords, likely yielding much different responses to climate warming. This project will provide major new insights into the dynamics and climate sensitivity of Antarctic fjord ecosystems, highlighting contrasts with Arctic sub-polar fjords, and potentially transforming our understanding of the ecological role of fjords in the rapidly warming west Antarctic coastal marine landscape. The project will also further the NSF goal of training new generations of scientists, providing scientific training for undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students. This includes the unique educational opportunity for undergraduates to participate in research cruises in Antarctica and the development of a novel summer graduate course on fjord ecosystems. Internet based outreach activities will be enhanced and extended by the participation of a professional photographer who will produce magazine articles, websites, radio broadcasts, and other forms of public outreach on the fascinating Antarctic ecosystem. This project will involve a 15-month field program to test mechanistic hypotheses concerning oceanographic and glaciological forcing, and phytoplankton and benthic community response in the Antarctic fjords. Those efforts will be followed by a coupled physical/biological modeling effort to evaluate the drivers of biogeochemical cycles in the fjords and to explore their potential sensitivity to enhanced meltwater and sediment inputs. Fieldwork over two oceanographic cruises will utilize moorings, weather stations, and glacial, sea-ice and seafloor time-lapse cameras to obtain an integrated view of fjord ecosystem processes. The field team will also make multiple shipboard measurements and will use towed and autonomous underwater vehicles to intensively evaluate fjord ecosystem structure and function during spring/summer and autumn seasons. These integrated field and modeling studies are expected to elucidate fundamental properties of water column and sea bottom ecosystem structure and function in the fjords, and to identify key physical-chemical-glaciological forcing in these rapidly warming ecosystems. | POLYGON((-66 -64,-65.6 -64,-65.2 -64,-64.8 -64,-64.4 -64,-64 -64,-63.6 -64,-63.2 -64,-62.8 -64,-62.4 -64,-62 -64,-62 -64.1,-62 -64.2,-62 -64.3,-62 -64.4,-62 -64.5,-62 -64.6,-62 -64.7,-62 -64.8,-62 -64.9,-62 -65,-62.4 -65,-62.8 -65,-63.2 -65,-63.6 -65,-64 -65,-64.4 -65,-64.8 -65,-65.2 -65,-65.6 -65,-66 -65,-66 -64.9,-66 -64.8,-66 -64.7,-66 -64.6,-66 -64.5,-66 -64.4,-66 -64.3,-66 -64.2,-66 -64.1,-66 -64)) | POINT(-64 -64.5) | false | false | ||||||||||
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Collaborative Research: Synergistic effects of Elevated Carbon Dioxide (CO2) and Temperature on the Metabolism, Growth, and Reproduction of Antarctic Krill (Euphausia Superba)
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1246293 |
2018-09-14 | Saba, Grace |
|
Climate change projections for this century suggest that the Southern Ocean will be the first region to be affected by seawater chemistry changes associated with enhanced carbon dioxide (CO2). Additionally, regions of the Southern Ocean are warming faster than any other locations on the planet. Ocean acidification and warming may act synergistically to impair the performance of different organisms by simultaneously increasing metabolic needs and reducing oxygen transport. However, no studies have measured krill acid-base regulation, metabolism, growth, or reproduction in the context of ocean acidification or synergistic 'greenhouse' conditions of elevated CO2 and temperature. In the present project, the investigators will conduct both short and prolonged exposure experiments at Palmer Station, Antarctica to determine the responses of Euphausia superba to elevated CO2 and temperature. The investigators will test hypotheses related to acid-base compensation and acclimation of various life stages of krill to elevated CO2 and temperature. Furthermore, they will determine these impacts on feeding, respiration, metabolism, growth, and reproduction. The Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba, is a key component of Antarctic food webs as they are a primary food source for many of the top predators in the Southern Ocean including baleen whales, seals, penguins, and other sea birds. This project will determine the responses of Antarctic krill exposed to elevated CO2 and temperature and whether or not krill have the capacity to fully compensate under future ocean conditions. The proposed field effort will be complemented by an extensive broader impact effort focused on bringing marine science to both rural and urban high school students in the Midwest (Kansas). The core educational objectives of this proposal are to 1) instruct students about potential careers in marine science, 2) engage students and promote their interest in the scientific process, critical thinking, and applications of science, mathematics, and technology, and 3) and increase student and teacher awareness and understanding of the oceans and global climate change, with special focus on the Western Antarctic Peninsula region. Finally, this project will engage undergraduate and graduate students in the production, analysis, presentation and publication of datasets. | None | None | false | false | |||||||||
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Collaborative Research: U.S. SO GLOBEC Synthesis and Modeling: Timing is Everything: The Dynamic Coupling among Phytoplankton, Ice, Ice Algae and Krill (PIIAK)
|
0528728 0529666 0529087 |
2011-04-02 | Fritsen, Christian; Vernet, Maria; Ross, Robin Macurda; Quetin, Langdon B. | This collaborative study between the Desert Research Institute, the University of California, Santa Barbara (0529087; Robin Ross), and the University of California, San Diego (0528728; Maria Vernet) will examine the relationship between sea ice extent along the Antarctic Peninsula and the life history of krill (Euphausia superba), by developing, refining, and linking diagnostic datasets and models of phytoplankton decreases in the fall, phytoplankton biomass incorporation into sea ice, sea ice growth dynamics, sea ice algal production and biomass accumulation, and larval krill energetics, condition, and survival. Krill is a key species in the food web of the Southern Ocean ecosystem, and one that is intricately involved with seasonal sea ice dynamics. Results from the Southern Ocean experiment of the Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics program (SO-Globec) field work as well as historical information on sea ice dynamics and krill recruitment suggest a shift in the paradigm that all pack ice is equally good krill habitat.<br/><br/>SO-Globec is a multidisciplinary effort focused on understanding the physical and biological factors that influence growth, reproduction, recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba). The program uses a multi-trophic level approach that includes the predators and competitors of Antarctic krill, represented by other zooplankton, fish, penguins, seals, and cetaceans. It is currently in a synthesis and modeling phase. This collaborative project is concerned with the lower trophic levels, and will be integrated with other synthesis and modeling studies that deal with grazers, predators, and other higher trophic levels. | POLYGON((-69.08 -64.8,-68.632 -64.8,-68.184 -64.8,-67.736 -64.8,-67.288 -64.8,-66.84 -64.8,-66.392 -64.8,-65.944 -64.8,-65.496 -64.8,-65.048 -64.8,-64.6 -64.8,-64.6 -65.121,-64.6 -65.442,-64.6 -65.763,-64.6 -66.084,-64.6 -66.405,-64.6 -66.726,-64.6 -67.047,-64.6 -67.368,-64.6 -67.689,-64.6 -68.01,-65.048 -68.01,-65.496 -68.01,-65.944 -68.01,-66.392 -68.01,-66.84 -68.01,-67.288 -68.01,-67.736 -68.01,-68.184 -68.01,-68.632 -68.01,-69.08 -68.01,-69.08 -67.689,-69.08 -67.368,-69.08 -67.047,-69.08 -66.726,-69.08 -66.405,-69.08 -66.084,-69.08 -65.763,-69.08 -65.442,-69.08 -65.121,-69.08 -64.8)) | POINT(-66.84 -66.405) | false | false | ||||||||||
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CAREER: Dynamics of Predator-Prey Behavior in the Antarctic Ocean
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9983751 |
2010-05-04 | Veit, Richard; Blake, Daniel |
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The goal of this proposal to bring two groups of undergraduate students to the Antarctic, where they will participate in the collection of data on seabird abundance and behavior. This proposal combines research on the dynamics of seabirds that feed on Antarctic krill, with the teaching of mathematical modeling of foraging behavior and spatial statistics. Students will learn a broad collection of skills through collection of data on physical and biological oceanography as part of the research project that focuses on seabirds. The research goal of this proposal is to learn how foraging seabirds in the Antarctic respond to changes in the abundance and distribution of their prey, primarily Antarctic krill. The approach will be to study bird behavior in the vicinity of krill swarms, and to contrast this behavior to that in areas lacking krill. From these comparisons, foraging models that will make predictions about the dispersion of birds under differing levels of krill abundance will be built. The long-term goal is to be able to make predictions about the impact upon seabirds of future changes in krill stocks. Field work will be conducted in the vicinity of Elephant Island in two field seasons. In each season, the insular shelf north of Elephant Island will be surveyed and the abundance, distribution and behavior of seabirds will be recorded. The primary objective will be to quantify the linkage between prey abundance and bird behavior, with the long-term goal of using information on bird behavior to index long-term changes in the prey base. The teaching goal of this proposal is twofold. First, the project will expose inner city college students to a spectacular and economically important ecosystem. Through their work on an oceanographic research vessel, students will be exposed to a broad diversity of research topics and methods, ranging from behavioral ecology to physical oceanography. Second, back at Staten Island, students will participate in the development of a mathematical biology initiative at the College of Staten Island. Here students will be encouraged to apply basic mathematical reasoning and computer modeling to a real problem - that of determining how foraging choices made by seabirds can ultimately impact their reproductive success. | POLYGON((-70.9063 -52.3528,-67.3465 -52.3528,-63.7867 -52.3528,-60.2269 -52.3528,-56.6671 -52.3528,-53.1073 -52.3528,-49.5475 -52.3528,-45.9877 -52.3528,-42.4279 -52.3528,-38.8681 -52.3528,-35.3083 -52.3528,-35.3083 -52.65918,-35.3083 -52.96556,-35.3083 -53.27194,-35.3083 -53.57832,-35.3083 -53.8847,-35.3083 -54.19108,-35.3083 -54.49746,-35.3083 -54.80384,-35.3083 -55.11022,-35.3083 -55.4166,-38.8681 -55.4166,-42.4279 -55.4166,-45.9877 -55.4166,-49.5475 -55.4166,-53.1073 -55.4166,-56.6671 -55.4166,-60.2269 -55.4166,-63.7867 -55.4166,-67.3465 -55.4166,-70.9063 -55.4166,-70.9063 -55.11022,-70.9063 -54.80384,-70.9063 -54.49746,-70.9063 -54.19108,-70.9063 -53.8847,-70.9063 -53.57832,-70.9063 -53.27194,-70.9063 -52.96556,-70.9063 -52.65918,-70.9063 -52.3528)) | POINT(-53.1073 -53.8847) | false | false | |||||||||
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Collaborative Research: The Ecological Role of a Poorly Studied Antarctic Krill Predator: The Humpback Whale, Megaptera Novaeangliae
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0739483 |
2010-05-04 | Nowacek, Douglas |
|
The krill surplus hypothesis argues that the near-extirpation of baleen whales from Antarctic waters during much the twentieth century led to significant changes in the availability of krill for other predators. Over the past decade, however, overall krill abundance has decreased by over an order of magnitude around the Antarctic Peninsula, in part due to physical forces, including the duration and extent of winter sea ice cover. Krill predators are vulnerable to variability in prey and have been shown to alter their demography in response to changes in prey availability This research will use novel tagging technology combined with traditional fisheries acoustics methods to quantify the prey consumed by a poorly understood yet ecologically integral and recovering krill predator in the Antarctic, the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). It also will use a combination of advanced non-invasive tag technology to study whale behavior concurrent with hydro-acoustic techniques to map krill aggregations. The project will (1) provide direct and quantitative estimates of krill consumption rates by humpback whales and incorporate these into models for the management of krill stocks and the conservation of the Antarctic marine ecosystem; (2) provide information integral to understanding predator-prey ecology and trophic dynamics, i.e., if/how baleen whales affect the distribution and behavior of krill and/or other krill predators; (3) add significantly to the knowledge of the diving behavior and foraging ecology of baleen whales in the Antarctic; and (4) develop new geospatial tools for the construction of multi-trophic level models that account for physical as well as biological data. <br/><br/>Broader Impacts: Whales are assumed to be a major predator on Antarctic krill, yet there is little understanding of how whales utilize this resource. This knowledge is critical to addressing both bottom-up and top-down questions, e.g., how climate change may affect whales or how whales may affect falling krill abundances. This program will integrate research and education by providing opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students as well as postdoctoral researchers at Duke University, the Florida State University and the University of Massachusetts at Boston. This project will also seek to integrate interactive learning through real time, seasonal and curriculum development in collaboration with the National Geographic Society as well as at the participating universities and local schools in those communities. | POLYGON((-68.0013 -52.7592,-67.34925 -52.7592,-66.6972 -52.7592,-66.04515 -52.7592,-65.3931 -52.7592,-64.74105 -52.7592,-64.089 -52.7592,-63.43695 -52.7592,-62.7849 -52.7592,-62.13285 -52.7592,-61.4808 -52.7592,-61.4808 -53.99669,-61.4808 -55.23418,-61.4808 -56.47167,-61.4808 -57.70916,-61.4808 -58.94665,-61.4808 -60.18414,-61.4808 -61.42163,-61.4808 -62.65912,-61.4808 -63.89661,-61.4808 -65.1341,-62.13285 -65.1341,-62.7849 -65.1341,-63.43695 -65.1341,-64.089 -65.1341,-64.74105 -65.1341,-65.3931 -65.1341,-66.04515 -65.1341,-66.6972 -65.1341,-67.34925 -65.1341,-68.0013 -65.1341,-68.0013 -63.89661,-68.0013 -62.65912,-68.0013 -61.42163,-68.0013 -60.18414,-68.0013 -58.94665,-68.0013 -57.70916,-68.0013 -56.47167,-68.0013 -55.23418,-68.0013 -53.99669,-68.0013 -52.7592)) | POINT(-64.74105 -58.94665) | false | false | |||||||||
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Collaborative Research: Optical Environmental of the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) Region
|
9910122 |
2010-05-04 | Costa, Daniel |
|
This project is a contribution to a coordinated attempt to understand the interactions of biological and physical dynamics by developing mechanistic links between the evolution of the antarctic winter ice and snow cover, and biological habitat variability, through modeling the optical properties of the environment. The work will be carried out in the context of the Southern Ocean Experiment of the Global Ocean Ecosystem Dynamics Study (Globec), a large, multi-investigator study of the winter survival strategy of krill under the antarctic sea ice. The optical properties of snow and sea ice evolve through the winter and vary greatly both spectrally and spatially. These properties are an important element of the physical environment that strongly influences both the distribution of and the resources available to antarctic krill. The intensity of incident radiant energy and its distribution within the snow, ice, and water column environment, and the linked physical, optical, chemical, and biological processes that modulate its distribution are generally known but poorly quantified. The optical properties of snow and ice also influence snow algae, ice algae, and water column productivity, as well as visibility for both predator and prey. Furthermore, optical properties play an essential role in satellite observations as proxy indicators of geophysical sea ice parameters which permit local observations to be more accurately extrapolated in space and time, thus providing regional coverage that would otherwise not be possible. What is proposed is the deployment of an array of instrumented ice beacons, augmented by periodic ship-based and satellite observations, along with theoretical studies to create improved quantitative models with which to follow the temporal and spatial evolution of this snow and ice marine ecosystem. The specific objective is to develop a thermodynamic sea ice/ecosystem model through coupling of existing components in order to test our understanding of the system, determine its sensitivities, and to provide an organizing mechanism for integrating the Southern Ocean Globec observations. *** | None | None | false | false | |||||||||
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U.S. SO GLOBEC Synthesis and Modeling: Southern Ocean GLOBEC (SO GLOBEC) Planning Office
|
0523166 |
2010-05-04 | Hofmann, Eileen |
|
The objective of the proposed work is to provide for the operation of a Planning Office for the synthesis and modeling phase of the Southern Ocean Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics (SO-Globec) program. The office will ensure that synthesis and integration activities that are developed as part of SO-Globec are coordinated with those undertaken by the international and U.S. Globec programs through: 1) organization of special sessions at meetings, 2) preparation of dedicated publications focused on program results, 3) maintenance of a project web site, 4) development of program outreach efforts, and 5) ensuring coordination with International Globec and other national and international programs and organizations. The office will consist of one faculty member and one program specialist.<br/><br/>SO-Globec is a multidisciplinary effort focused on understanding the physical and biological factors that influence growth, reproduction, recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba). The program uses a multi-trophic level approach that includes the predators and competitors of Antarctic krill, represented by other zooplankton, fish, penguins, seals, and cetaceans. Extensive studies describing the ecology and physiology of important species at all trophic levels contributed to the ecosystem approach which is the essence of SO-Globec. The Planning Office will provide a central focal point for ensuring that the results from SO-Globec are made available to the broader scientific community and to the general public, and that the results will be incorporated into the planning of future Southern Ocean programs. | None | None | false | false | |||||||||
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Collaborative Proposal: U.S. SO GLOBEC Synthesis and Modeling: Circulation and Hydrographic Data Analyses and Modeling Studies
|
0523183 |
2009-06-22 | Padman, Laurence |
|
This collaborative study between Old Dominion University, the College of William and Mary, Earth and Space Research, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution will examine the interactions among the ocean circulation, vertical mixing, sea ice, and marine biological processes on the western Antarctic Peninsula continental shelf. The study will result in analytical and numerical modeling tools that are based on, and will have been tested against the extensive data set obtained in the course of the Southern Ocean experiment of the Global Ocean Ecosystems Dynamics program (SO-Globec). These models will provide insight into circulation and biological dynamics that will be applicable to the development and refinement of physical and biological models for other high latitude systems. <br/><br/>SO-Globec is a multidisciplinary effort focused on understanding the physical and biological factors that influence growth, reproduction, recruitment and survival of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba). The program uses a multi-trophic level approach that includes the predators and competitors of Antarctic krill, represented by other zooplankton, fish, penguins, seals, and cetaceans. It is currently in a synthesis and modeling phase. This collaborative project is concerned with the environmental setting and dynamics that constrain ecological processes, and will be integrated with other synthesis and modeling studies that deal with grazers, predators, and other higher trophic levels | POLYGON((-75 -65,-74 -65,-73 -65,-72 -65,-71 -65,-70 -65,-69 -65,-68 -65,-67 -65,-66 -65,-65 -65,-65 -65.6,-65 -66.2,-65 -66.8,-65 -67.4,-65 -68,-65 -68.6,-65 -69.2,-65 -69.8,-65 -70.4,-65 -71,-66 -71,-67 -71,-68 -71,-69 -71,-70 -71,-71 -71,-72 -71,-73 -71,-74 -71,-75 -71,-75 -70.4,-75 -69.8,-75 -69.2,-75 -68.6,-75 -68,-75 -67.4,-75 -66.8,-75 -66.2,-75 -65.6,-75 -65)) | POINT(-70 -68) | false | false |

