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 ...

The critical endangered Common and Brünnich guillemot are exhibiting contrasting population trends in the Barents Sea region, where the Common guillemots are increasing, while Brünnich guillemots are declining. The non-breeding season is regarded as the main mortality period among seabirds, especially in winter, as climate conditions may be harsh and prey availability rather limited. The contrasting ...

In many seabird colonies along the coast of Norway, the increased population of white-tailed eagle Haliaeetus albicilla and the growing industry of birdwatching tourism are causing a dilemma for management decisions. Thus, this study aimed to examine the indirect effect of white-tailed eagles and tourists on the breeding success of the endangered seabird species, black legged kittiwake Rissa tridactyla ...

The rise in offshore oil and gas operations, maritime shipping and tourism in northern latitudes enhance the risk of petroleum pollution and anthropogenic impacts of oil-related compounds on sub-Arctic and Arctic organisms. In particular, there is a need to investigate the potential adverse effects of petroleum to the early life stages of capelin (<i>Mallotus villosus</i>), an important forage and ...

Seabird distributions reflect physical and biological features of the marine environment and their variability on different spatial and temporal scales. Different species assemblages are associated with specific oceanic habitats and concentrations of birds typically occur in areas of high biological productivity. Here I explore seabird distributions and habitat use relative to biophysical cues of ...

Recent studies have concluded that groundwater driven methane escape through open system pingos is an important greenhouse gas source in the vulnerable high Arctic. In wetlands and marine sediments, large quantities of methane are consumed by methane oxidizing bacteria (MOB) and ANaerobic MEthanotrophic (ANME) archaea, preventing its release to the atmosphere. The methanotrophic capacity of open ...

Flavonoids are a group of phenolic compounds produced in plants. They have many biological functions in plants and also beneficial bioactivities in human’s health. Light quality is one of the major environmental factors regulating the accumulation of flavonoids in plants. Understanding plants accumulation of secondary metabolites in response to light qualities is important in order to optimize plants ...

ARIS sonar and Timespace video cameras were used to estimate spawning run and migration pattern of Atlantic salmon in Máskejohka, a tributary belonging to the River Tana. Máskejohka has not been monitored before and needs more detailed information about the stock size and its migration pattern, after several years with declining Atlantic salmon catch. Data for the first weeks of the migration period ...

Seen in light of the increasing interest of nature-based tourism and recreational outdoor activities in Norway the last decades (Haukeland, Grue & Veisten, 2010), spatiotemporal information on human activity in remote areas and knowledge about how this activity may affect wildlife and nature is a crucial part of a knowledge-based management (Gundersen et.al., 2011, p.14; Gundersen, Strand & Punsvik, ...

Recent evidence shows that temporal changes of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Arctic ecosystems are not only due to emission patterns and regulations; environment-related changes in prey availability and long-range transport may also influence concentrations of these compounds in tissues of Arctic predators. Arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus) in Svalbard, Norway, scavenge and hunt opportunistically ...