Ecosystem dynamics at the north-west Antarctic Peninsula are driven by interactions between physical and biological processes. For example, baleen whale populations are recovering from commercial harvesting against the backdrop of rapid climate change, including reduced sea-ice extent and changing ecosystem composition. Concurrently, the commercial harvesting of Antarctic krill is increasing, with the potential to increase the likelihood for competition with and between krill predators and the fishery. However, understanding the ecology, abundance, and spatial distribution...

Fluctuations in the population abundances of interacting species are widespread. Such fluctuations could be a response to abiotic factors, biotic interactions, or a combination of the two. Correctly identifying the drivers are critical for effective population management. However, such effects are not always static in nature. Nonlinear relationships between abiotic factors and biotic interactions make it difficult to parse true effects. We used a type of nonlinear forecasting, empirical dynamic modeling, to investigate the context-dependent...

The Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON) is a network of ground-based Fourier Transform Spectrometers that record direct solar absorption spectra of the atmosphere in the near-infrared. From these spectra, accurate and precise column-averaged abundances of atmospheric constituents including CO2, CH4, N2O, HF, CO, H2O, and HDO, are retrieved. This is the GGG2020 data release of observations from the TCCON station at Park Falls, Wisconsin, USA

Sea ice leads are long and narrow sea ice fractures. Despite accounting for a small fraction of the Arctic surface area, leads play a critical role in the energy flux between the ocean and atmosphere. As the volume of sea ice in the Arctic has declined over recent decades, it is increasingly important to monitor the corresponding changes in sea ice leads. An approach described in Hoffman et al. 2021 uses artificial intelligence (AI) to...

Rising global temperatures are expected to increase reproductive costs for wildlife as greater thermoregulatory demands interfere with reproductive activities. However, predicting the temperatures at which reproductive performance is negatively impacted remains a significant hurdle. Using a thermoregulatory polygon approach, we derived a reproductive threshold temperature for an Arctic songbird–the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis). We defined this threshold as the temperature at which individuals must reduce activity to suboptimal levels (i.e., < 4-times basal metabolic rate)...

Phytoplankton community composition and size structure vary considerably between oligotrophic and eutrophic regions (areas of low or high macro and micronutrients (e.g., iron)) (Hill et al., 2005; Martin et al., 1989; Strom et al., 2006; 2016), between surface and subsurface depths (Hill et al., 2005), and with season (Moran et al., 2012) and climatic conditions (Batten et al., 2021). Phytoplankton represent the base of the food web providing energy for zooplankton, which in turn support...

Sea ice leads are long and narrow sea ice fractures. Despite accounting for a small fraction of the Arctic surface area, leads play a critical role in the energy flux between the ocean and atmosphere. As the volume of sea ice in the Arctic has declined over recent decades, it is increasingly important to monitor the corresponding changes in sea ice leads. An approach described in Hoffman et al. 2021 uses artificial intelligence (AI) to...

Fundamental movements of migratory species can be substantially influenced by marine habitat disruptions caused by coastal infrastructure. The Hood Canal Bridge (HCB) spans the northern outlet of Hood Canal in the Salish Sea, extends 4.6 meters (15 ft) underwater, and forms a partial barrier for steelhead migrating from Hood Canal to the Pacific Ocean. Spatial mark-recapture survival models using acoustic telemetry data indicate that only 49% (2017; 95% CI = 40, 58%) and 56% (2018;...

The recent availability of global networks of annual or seasonal resolution proxy data, combined with the few long instrumental and historical climate records available during the past few centuries, make it possible now to reconstruct annual and seasonal spatial patterns of temperature variation, as well as hemispheric, global-mean, and regional temperature trends, several centuries back in time. Reconstructions of large-scale global or hemispheric trends during centuries past can place the instrumental assessments of climate during...

The Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON) is a network of ground-based Fourier Transform Spectrometers that record direct solar absorption spectra of the atmosphere in the near-infrared. From these spectra, accurate and precise column-averaged abundances of atmospheric constituents including CO2, CH4, N2O, HF, CO, H2O, and HDO, are retrieved. This is the GGG2020 data release of observations from the TCCON station at Park Falls, Wisconsin, USA

Freshwater mussels (family Unionidae) are among the world’s most endangered taxa, with almost 75% of North American taxa classified as a species of concern, threatened, or endangered. Despite the critical importance of comprehensive distributional data for the conservation of unionids and fishes, these data are often lacking because of the labor and resources associated with traditional survey methods. During their larval stage, unionid mussels use various fish species as obligate hosts, making native fish species...

This dataset contains the trawl and specimen data collected aboard the R/V Bell M. Shimada for the IYS survey in 2022 in the North Pacific Ocean. This package contains three components; event, catch, and specimen data. The event data contains all of the sampling event information, including time, location, and duration. All dates and times are in UTC. The catch data contains all of the catch records, as counts, weights, and lengths, for each species/taxa...

The invasion of lionfish (Pterois volitans and P. miles) in the Western Atlantic is perhaps the best studied marine fish invasion to date; meanwhile another lionfish invasion is rapidly evolving in the Mediterranean. We reviewed lionfish management policies from several decades in the Western Atlantic to suggest policy recommendations for the Mediterranean. These strategic recommendations are synthesized in our corresponding manuscript titled: “Lessons from the Western Atlantic lionfish invasion can inform policy and management strategies...

Gene flow shapes spatial genetic structure as well as the potential for local adaptation of populations. Among marine animals with non-migratory adults, the presence or absence of a pelagic larval stage is thought to be a key determinant in shaping gene flow and the genetic structure of populations. In addition, the spatial distribution of suitable habitats will influence the distribution of biological populations and their pattern of gene flow. We used whole genome sequencing to...

Aim: Understanding the spatial ecology of animal movements is a critical element in conserving long-lived, highly mobile marine species. Analysing networks developed from movements of six sea turtle species reveals marine connectivity and can help prioritize conservation efforts. Location: Global. Methods: We collated telemetry data from 1,235 individuals and reviewed the literature to determine our dataset’s representativeness. We used the telemetry data to develop spatial networks at different scales to examine areas, connections, and their...

Foraging habitat selection and diet quality are key factors that influence individual fitness and metapopulation dynamics through effects on demographic rates. There is growing evidence that sea turtles exhibit regional differences in somatic growth linked to alternative dispersal patterns during the oceanic life stage. Yet, the role of habitat quality and diet in shaping somatic growth rates is poorly understood. Here, we evaluate whether diet variation is linked to regional growth variation in hawksbill sea...

Long-term data allow ecologists to assess trajectories of population abundance. Without this context, it is impossible to know whether a taxon is thriving or declining to extinction. For parasites of wildlife, there are few long-term data – a gap that creates an impediment to managing parasite biodiversity and infectious threats in a changing world. We produced a century-scale time series of metazoan parasite abundance and used it to test whether parasitism is changing in Puget...

This data set contains the at sea data collected aboard the FV Northwest Explorer for the IYS survey in 2022 in the northwestern Gulf of Alaska. This data package contains three separate components; event, catch, and specimen. The event data contains all of the sampling event information, including time, location, and duration. All dates and times are in UTC, and all length measurements are in meters. The catch data contains all of the catch records,...