Ecological responses of typical Antarctic marine organisms to climate change and anthropogenic impacts

Abstract

To improve our understanding and ability to predict biological responses to global climate change, it is important to be able to distinguish the influences of natural forcing from anthropogenic impacts. In the ice-free areas of Antarctica, lake and terrestrial sediments that contain penguin guanos, seal excrement and other biological remains provide natural archives of ecological, geological and climatic information that range from hundreds to thousands of years old. Our review focuses on the paleoecology of typical Antarctic marine organisms (penguins, seals and Antarctic krill) and their responses to climate change and human activities over centennial and millennial timescales. Land-based seabirds and marine mammals play an important role in linking the marine and terrestrial ecosystems and act as bio-vectors, transporting large amounts of nutrients and contaminants from ocean to land. Citation: Yang L J, Huang T, Xie Z Q, et al. Ecological responses of typical Antarctic marine organisms to climate change and anthropogenic impacts. Adv Polar Sci, 2017, 28 (2): 129-138, doi: 10.13679/j.advps.2017.2.00129