An increased pressure of human activities that can introduce new infectious agents and therefore alter host-pathogen interactions, resulting in epizootics and biodiversity loss, challenges the Southern Ocean. Health status information and the potential effect of disease outbreaks in the Southern Ocean fauna is scare and evaluating the susceptibility to new infectious agents is decisive for its ...

Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus) inhabit the Arctic and have evolved adaptions to meet the climatic challenges in this region. Peripheral heterothermia, which is a heat conserving mechanism in homeotherms during cold exposure, is well documented in the reindeer and manifests itself in tissue temperatures in the extremities well below 10°C. It is, however, unknown whether peripheral heteothermia ...

The pineal gland is part of the endocrine system involved with rhythmic activity in e.g. fish. The main product of the pineal gland is the indole hormone melatonin, synthesised from the amino acid tryptophan. Melatonin is mainly synthesized when it is dark, as light inhibit the production. For this reason melatonin is thought to be strongly involved in biological rhythms. Arctic charr (Salvelinus ...

The once pristine Arctic is now facing negative alterations with a rapidly changing climate, increasing human activity, and plastic pollution. Seabirds are intrinsic to the marine ecosystems, and in recent years, plastic ingestion by seabirds has been of increasing concern because of the potential negative impact on individual and population levels. The aim of this study was to investigate the plastic ...

Russiske forskere introduserte kongekrabben, Paralithodes camtschaticus, til Barentshavet på 1960 og 1970-tallet for å gi lokale fiskere en ny art å høste av. Det var antatt at spredning til norske farvann var lite sannsynlig. Artens etablering ble en suksess sett fra russisk side. Kongekrabben har nå spredt seg over hele kysten av Finnmark fylke, og Porsangerfjorden er den siste av fjordene ...

Anthropogenic and natural stressors can affect ecosystems negatively and it is therefore important to have a clear understanding of the responses of organisms to stressors. The Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) is a common raptor species of the boreal forest ecosystem and its location at the top of its food chain makes it a special target for two important stressors; endoparasitism and environmental ...

Predator aversion is an important adaptation that can significantly lower the mortality rate among prey animals, but avoiding a predator requires knowing and recognizing them. The predator aversion of Common gulls and Mallard ducks at Prestvannet Lake, Tromsø, Northern Norway was tested in an experiment by placing differing objects resembling snakes next to bread during the summer and autumn of 2017. ...

The red king crab, Paralithodes camtchaticus, is a new generalist predator in the Barents Sea and may have negative effects upon the commercially fished lumpfish eggs (Cyclopterus lumpus), sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) and scallops (Chlamys islandica). Generalist predators consume an array of prey types, but have been shown to select certain prey over others. To obtain knowledge ...

Marine copepods of the genus Pseudocalanus (Calanoida) are common in Svalbard waters as well as throughout the northern hemisphere. They contribute considerably to plankton biomass in addition to Calanus spp. and play an important role in the marine food web as a link between planktivores, such as fish larvae, and microalgae. Pseudocalanus consists of several sibling species, and two of them, ...

Arctic peatlands act as important sources and sinks of carbon. Microbial decomposition takes place in these soils, producing the greenhouse gasses carbon dioxide and methane as end-products. A variety of aerobic and anaerobic microbial pathways are involved in the decomposition of organic material in peat soil. In anoxic soil layers, methane and carbon dioxide is often produced through syntropic ...