Author(s): Carolin Arndt; Ole Jorgen Lonne
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Abstract: The true Arctic sea-ice macrofauna is almost entirely composed of gammarid amphipods. They appear to be the main grazers in all Arctic sympagic environments and thus represent a major energetic link in ice-based food webs. They feed on primary production, fauna, and detritus derived from the ice community. Previous studies indicate that there are significant differences in the biomass and abundance of sympagic organisms in different ice covered areas of the Arctic. By comparing data on species composition, abundance and biomass of sympagic communities to physical factors such as large-scale drift patterns and seasonality in ice-cover, we suggest that these differences to a large extent are related to large-scale drift patterns of the ice. The resulting structure of the sea ice community is thus a result of the history of its habitat.
Year: 2002