In 2007, a possible wreck site was discovered in Trygghamna, Isfjorden, Svalbard by the Norwegian Hydrographic Service. Using (1) a REMUS 100 autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) equipped with a sidescan sonar (SSS) and (2) a Seabotix LBV 200 mini-remotely operated vehicle (ROV) with a high-definition (HD) camera, the wreck was in 2015 identified as the Figaro: a floating whalery that sank in 1908. ...

Aerial surfaces of plants are covered by a waxy cuticle protecting plants from excessive water loss and UV light. In the present study, composition and morphology of cuticular waxes of northern wild berry species bilberry (<i>Vaccinium myrtillus</i> L.), lingonberry (V. <i>vitis-idaea</i> L.), bog bilberry (V. <i>uliginosum</i> L.) and crowberry (<i>Empetrum nigrum</i> L.) were investigated. Scanning ...

<ol><li>Ecosystem‐based adaptation (EbA) relies upon the capacity of ecosystems to buffer communities against the adverse impacts of climate change. Maintaining ecosystems that deliver critical services to communities can also provide co‐benefits beyond adaptation, such as climate mitigation and protection of biological diversity and livelihoods. EbA has, to a limited extent, drawn upon indigenous ...

The marine CO₂ system in Tempelfjorden (Svalbard) was investigated between August 2015 and December 2017 using total alkalinity, pH, temperature, salinity, oxygen isotopic ratio, and nutrient data. Primary production resulted in the largest changes that were observed in the partial pressure of CO₂ (<i>p</i>CO₂, 140 μatm) and the saturation state of aragonite ...

Recent warming in the Arctic, which has been amplified during the winter, greatly enhances microbial decomposition of soil organic matter and subsequent release of carbon dioxide (CO₂). However, the amount of CO₂ released in winter is not known and has not been well represented by ecosystem models or empirically based estimates. Here we synthesize regional in situ observations ...

Brucella serostatus was evaluated in 3189 muskoxen sampled between 1989 and 2016 from various locations of the Canadian Arctic archipelago and mainland, near the communities of Sachs Harbour and Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, and Cambridge Bay and Kugluktuk, Nunavut. Brucella antibodies were found only in muskoxen sampled around Cambridge Bay, both on southern Victoria Island and on the adjacent ...

Climate change, biological invasions, and anthropogenic disturbance pose a threat to the biodiversity and function of Arctic freshwater ecosystems. Understanding potential changes in fish species distribution and richness is necessary, given the great importance of fish to the function of freshwater ecosystems and as a resource to humans. However, information gaps limit large‐scale studies and our ...

High levels of organochlorine contaminants (OCs) have been found in arctic char (<i>Salvelinus alpinus</i>) from Lake Ellasjøen, Bjørnøya (Norwegian Arctic). The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential genotoxic effect of environmental organochlorine contaminant exposure in arctic char from Ellasjøen compared with arctic char from the low‐contaminated Lake Laksvatn nearby. Blood ...

We investigated the temporal trend of mercury (Hg) in arctic foxes from Svalbard, Norway sampled in the period 1997–2014 (<i>n</i> = 109, from 11 trapping seasons). We used linear models to investigate the effect of trapping season, feeding habits (δ¹³C), food availability from marine and terrestrial ecosystems (reindeer carcasses and sea ice cover), sex, age and body condition on liver ...

Studies on the feeding ecology of fish are essential for exploring and contrasting trophic interactions and population and community dynamics within and among aquatic ecosystems. In this respect, many different methods have been adopted for the analysis of fish stomach contents. No consensus has, however, been reached for a standardised methodology despite that for several decades there has been an ...