The Polar and Subpolar region comprise one of the seven regions in the world, from the Arctic to the Antarctic, the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Marine biodiversity in the polar and subpolar regions is one of the richest on earth, hosting important populations of crustaceans, pelagic and benthic species that provide resources for the many seabirds and marine mammals that congregate there. However, these ecosystems, as well as their biodiversity, are vulnerable and already affected by the impacts of climate change and other threats. The high climatic dynamics in those areas have already generated strong modifications to the environment, with irreversible losses in biodiversity and diminished ecosystem services that are essential for the whole planet. The current need to study and understand the biodiversity of the world's oceans makes polar and sub-polar areas key regions for taxonomic and ecological studies.
The peri-Antarctic areas are considered by many authors to be a key to interpreting the global Antarctic system. Specific adaptations to these extremely heterogeneous, and physically and chemically modified environments may result in distinct species richness, diversity, dominance, and species roles in the energy flow. Up to now, there are few and isolated indications that we have received in this sense. The identification of the most common zooplankton and micronekton species of the polar and sub-polar areas provides information on their distributions and abundances, as well as background data on the physical and biological environment. Future changes in these zooplankton communities may alter food web connections within regional ecosystems, with implications for biogeochemical cycling, carbon flux, population and community dynamics, and energy flows to benthic communities. We compare and contrast the ecological impacts of atmospheric and oceanic circulation patterns on polar and sub-polar marine ecosystems. Circulation patterns differ strikingly between the north and south. Meridional circulation in the north provides connections between the sub-Arctic and Arctic despite the presence of encircling continental landmasses, whereas annular circulation patterns in the south tend to isolate Antarctic surface waters from those in the north. These differences influence fundamental aspects of the polar ecosystems from the amount, thickness and duration of sea ice, to the types of organisms, and the ecology of zooplankton, fish, seabirds and marine mammals.
As Guest Editors, we are very pleased to announce the opening of the Frontiers in Marine Sciences Research Topic on “Ecology of marine zooplankton and micronekton in polar and sub-polar areas” and we look forward to receiving your contributions. Information to explore and describe zooplankton and micronekton species assemblages in terms of biomass, abundance, richness, diversity, and community structure in the different hydrographically defined sub-basins remain lacking. This Research Topic can be an opportunity for all researchers to provide updated data on the assemblages of epi- and mesopelagic species and to understand which part of the water column of the sub-basins was inhabited by these assemblages, to verify the hypothesis that they are connected, and perhaps controlled, by environmental factors. More recent studies have emphasized that fundamental understanding of zooplankton and micronekton ecology over a range of spatio-temporal and organizational scales (local to circumpolar, seasonal to multidecennial, and species to ecosystems) and the mechanistic processes involved are critical as a basis for future studies on global change. Contributions in the form of original research papers or reviews, are all equally welcome.
The Polar and Subpolar region comprise one of the seven regions in the world, from the Arctic to the Antarctic, the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Marine biodiversity in the polar and subpolar regions is one of the richest on earth, hosting important populations of crustaceans, pelagic and benthic species that provide resources for the many seabirds and marine mammals that congregate there. However, these ecosystems, as well as their biodiversity, are vulnerable and already affected by the impacts of climate change and other threats. The high climatic dynamics in those areas have already generated strong modifications to the environment, with irreversible losses in biodiversity and diminished ecosystem services that are essential for the whole planet. The current need to study and understand the biodiversity of the world's oceans makes polar and sub-polar areas key regions for taxonomic and ecological studies.
The peri-Antarctic areas are considered by many authors to be a key to interpreting the global Antarctic system. Specific adaptations to these extremely heterogeneous, and physically and chemically modified environments may result in distinct species richness, diversity, dominance, and species roles in the energy flow. Up to now, there are few and isolated indications that we have received in this sense. The identification of the most common zooplankton and micronekton species of the polar and sub-polar areas provides information on their distributions and abundances, as well as background data on the physical and biological environment. Future changes in these zooplankton communities may alter food web connections within regional ecosystems, with implications for biogeochemical cycling, carbon flux, population and community dynamics, and energy flows to benthic communities. We compare and contrast the ecological impacts of atmospheric and oceanic circulation patterns on polar and sub-polar marine ecosystems. Circulation patterns differ strikingly between the north and south. Meridional circulation in the north provides connections between the sub-Arctic and Arctic despite the presence of encircling continental landmasses, whereas annular circulation patterns in the south tend to isolate Antarctic surface waters from those in the north. These differences influence fundamental aspects of the polar ecosystems from the amount, thickness and duration of sea ice, to the types of organisms, and the ecology of zooplankton, fish, seabirds and marine mammals.
As Guest Editors, we are very pleased to announce the opening of the Frontiers in Marine Sciences Research Topic on “Ecology of marine zooplankton and micronekton in polar and sub-polar areas” and we look forward to receiving your contributions. Information to explore and describe zooplankton and micronekton species assemblages in terms of biomass, abundance, richness, diversity, and community structure in the different hydrographically defined sub-basins remain lacking. This Research Topic can be an opportunity for all researchers to provide updated data on the assemblages of epi- and mesopelagic species and to understand which part of the water column of the sub-basins was inhabited by these assemblages, to verify the hypothesis that they are connected, and perhaps controlled, by environmental factors. More recent studies have emphasized that fundamental understanding of zooplankton and micronekton ecology over a range of spatio-temporal and organizational scales (local to circumpolar, seasonal to multidecennial, and species to ecosystems) and the mechanistic processes involved are critical as a basis for future studies on global change. Contributions in the form of original research papers or reviews, are all equally welcome.