@article {3219, title = {The spatial structure of Antarctic biodiversity}, journal = {Ecological Monographs}, volume = {84}, year = {2014}, month = {05/2014}, pages = {203 - 244}, abstract = {

Patterns of environmental spatial structure lie at the heart of the most fundamental and familiar patterns of diversity on Earth. Antarctica contains some of the strongest environmental gradients on the planet and therefore provides an ideal study ground to test hypotheses on the relevance of environmental variability for biodiversity. To answer the pivotal question, \“How does spatial variation in physical and biological environmental properties across the Antarctic drive biodiversity?\” we have synthesized current knowledge on environmental variability across terrestrial, freshwater, and marine Antarctic biomes and related this to the observed biotic patterns. The most important physical driver of Antarctic terrestrial communities is the availability of liquid water, itself driven by solar irradiance intensity. Patterns of biota distribution are further strongly influenced by the historical development of any given location or region, and by geographical barriers. In freshwater ecosystems, free water is also crucial, with further important influences from salinity, nutrient availability, oxygenation, and characteristics of ice cover and extent. In the marine biome there does not appear to be one major driving force, with the exception of the oceanographic boundary of the Polar Front. At smaller spatial scales, ice cover, ice scour, and salinity gradients are clearly important determinants of diversity at habitat and community level. Stochastic and extreme events remain an important driving force in all environments, particularly in the context of local extinction and colonization or recolonization, as well as that of temporal environmental variability. Our synthesis demonstrates that the Antarctic continent and surrounding oceans provide an ideal study ground to develop new biogeographical models, including life history and physiological traits, and to address questions regarding biological responses to environmental variability and change.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, issn = {0012-9615}, doi = {10.1890/12-2216.1}, url = {http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/12-2216.1}, author = {Peter Convey and Steven L. Chown and Clarke, Andrew and Barnes, David K. A. and Bokhorst, Stef and Vonda Cummings and Hugh W. Ducklow and Francesco Frati and Green, T. G. Allan and Shulamit Gordon and Griffiths, Huw J. and Clive Howard-Williams and Huiskes, Ad H. L. and Johanna Laybourn-Parry and W. Berry Lyons and McMinn, Andrew and Morley, Simon A. and Lloyd S. Peck and Quesada, Antonio and Robinson, Sharon A. and Schiaparelli, Stefano and Diana H. Wall} } @article {3217, title = {Antarctic Thresholds - Ecosystem Resilience and Adaptation (AnT-ERA), a new SCAR-biology programme}, journal = {Polarforschung}, volume = {82}, year = {2013}, month = {10/2013}, pages = {147-150.}, chapter = {147}, abstract = {

Stresses on Antarctic ecosystems result from environmental change, including extreme events, and from (other) human impacts. Consequently, Antarctic habitats are changing, some at a rapid pace while others are relatively stable. A cascade of responses from molecular through organismic to the community level are expected. The differences in biological complexity and evolutionary histories between both polar regions and the rest of the planet suggest that stresses on polar ecosystem function may have fundamentally different outcomes from those at lower latitudes. Polar ecosystem processes are therefore key to informing wider ecological debate about the nature of stability and potential changes across the biosphere. The main goal of AnT-ERA is to facilitate the science required to examine changes in biological processes in Antarctic and sub-Antarctic marine-, freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems. Tolerance limits, as well as thresholds, resistance and resilience to environmental change will be determined. AnT-ERA is classified into three overlapping themes, which represent three levels of biological organisation: (1) molecular and physiological performance, (2) population processes and species traits, (3) ecosystem function and services.

}, keywords = {LTER-MCM}, url = {http://epic.awi.de/34238/1/Polarforschung_82-2_147-150.pdf}, author = {Gutt, J. and Byron Adams and T Bracegirdle and Cowan, D. and Vonda Cummings and di Prisco, G. and Gradinger, R. and Isla, E. and McIntyre, T. and Murphy, E and Lloyd S. Peck and I.R. Schloss and Smith, C. and Suckling, C. C. and Takahashi, A. and Diana H. Wall and J.C. Xavier} }