Effects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystem
Abstract Global warming affects the Earth system in complex ways, often preventing a functional understanding of the underlying processes. Disentangling these processes between abiotic drivers and single species or entire communities is, however, essential for an in-depth understanding of the impact...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05621-w |
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| author | Philipp Fischer Holger Brix Ingeborg Bussmann Uta Ködel Max Schwanitz Claudia Schütze Norbert Anselm Markus Brand Yvonne Jenniges Sabine Kasten Alexandra Kraberg Miriam Lienkämper Lisa Spotowitz Ute Weber Karen Wiltshire Peter Dietrich |
| author_facet | Philipp Fischer Holger Brix Ingeborg Bussmann Uta Ködel Max Schwanitz Claudia Schütze Norbert Anselm Markus Brand Yvonne Jenniges Sabine Kasten Alexandra Kraberg Miriam Lienkämper Lisa Spotowitz Ute Weber Karen Wiltshire Peter Dietrich |
| author_sort | Philipp Fischer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Global warming affects the Earth system in complex ways, often preventing a functional understanding of the underlying processes. Disentangling these processes between abiotic drivers and single species or entire communities is, however, essential for an in-depth understanding of the impacts of climate change on the ecosystem. Using a high-resolution time series on heat waves and cold spells in an Arctic fjord system, we demonstrate that AI-supported digital data processing, which is based on state-of-the-art observatory technology, has the potential to provide new insights into the effects of abiotic factors on biotic communities, which would not be possible with traditional expedition-based sampling methods. Furthermore, our study shows that short-term, event-driven anomalies in key ocean variables not only alter a system’s hydrography but also have the potential to impact the entire community across the trophic chain from benthos and zooplankton to fish. We found a significant positive correlation between hydrographic temperature anomalies and biota abundance, with high biota abundances linked to ‘Atlantic’ phases with frequent heat waves and low biota abundances correlated with ‘Arctic’ phases dominated by cold spells. The study also revealed that hydrographic anomalies can not only influence overall biota abundance in an area but also trigger complex shifts in species composition. This leads to fluctuating interannual abundance peaks in specific biotic groups, such as jellyfish, fish, or chaetognaths, depending on trigger factors that are not yet fully understood. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e310afdd2db54402a0cc16e66e6ce9dd |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-e310afdd2db54402a0cc16e66e6ce9dd2025-08-20T02:36:50ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-06-0115111310.1038/s41598-025-05621-wEffects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystemPhilipp Fischer0Holger Brix1Ingeborg Bussmann2Uta Ködel3Max Schwanitz4Claudia Schütze5Norbert Anselm6Markus Brand7Yvonne Jenniges8Sabine Kasten9Alexandra Kraberg10Miriam Lienkämper11Lisa Spotowitz12Ute Weber13Karen Wiltshire14Peter Dietrich15Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Centre for Scientific DivingInstitute of Carbon Cycles, Helmholtz-Zentrum hereon GmbHAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Centre for Scientific DivingDepartment Monitoring and Exploration Technologies, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research UFZAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Centre for Scientific DivingDepartment Monitoring and Exploration Technologies, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research UFZAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Computer and Data CenterAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Centre for Scientific DivingAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Section Ecological ChemistryAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Section Marine GeochemistryAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Section Polar Biological OceanographyAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Centre for Scientific DivingAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Centre for Scientific DivingDepartment Monitoring and Exploration Technologies, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research UFZAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Section Coastal EcologyDepartment Monitoring and Exploration Technologies, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research UFZAbstract Global warming affects the Earth system in complex ways, often preventing a functional understanding of the underlying processes. Disentangling these processes between abiotic drivers and single species or entire communities is, however, essential for an in-depth understanding of the impacts of climate change on the ecosystem. Using a high-resolution time series on heat waves and cold spells in an Arctic fjord system, we demonstrate that AI-supported digital data processing, which is based on state-of-the-art observatory technology, has the potential to provide new insights into the effects of abiotic factors on biotic communities, which would not be possible with traditional expedition-based sampling methods. Furthermore, our study shows that short-term, event-driven anomalies in key ocean variables not only alter a system’s hydrography but also have the potential to impact the entire community across the trophic chain from benthos and zooplankton to fish. We found a significant positive correlation between hydrographic temperature anomalies and biota abundance, with high biota abundances linked to ‘Atlantic’ phases with frequent heat waves and low biota abundances correlated with ‘Arctic’ phases dominated by cold spells. The study also revealed that hydrographic anomalies can not only influence overall biota abundance in an area but also trigger complex shifts in species composition. This leads to fluctuating interannual abundance peaks in specific biotic groups, such as jellyfish, fish, or chaetognaths, depending on trigger factors that are not yet fully understood.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05621-w |
| spellingShingle | Philipp Fischer Holger Brix Ingeborg Bussmann Uta Ködel Max Schwanitz Claudia Schütze Norbert Anselm Markus Brand Yvonne Jenniges Sabine Kasten Alexandra Kraberg Miriam Lienkämper Lisa Spotowitz Ute Weber Karen Wiltshire Peter Dietrich Effects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystem Scientific Reports |
| title | Effects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystem |
| title_full | Effects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystem |
| title_fullStr | Effects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystem |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystem |
| title_short | Effects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystem |
| title_sort | effects of marine heat waves and cold spells on a polar shallow water ecosystem |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05621-w |
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