Southern Ocean Food Web Modelling: Progress, Prognoses, and Future Priorities for Research and Policy Makers

• Autores: McCormack, Stacey A.; Melbourne-Thomas, Jessica; Trebilco, Rowan; Griffith, Gary; Hill, Simeon L.; Hoover, Carie; Johnston, Nadine M.; Marina, Tomas Ignacio; Murphy, Eugene J.; Pakhomov, Evgeny A.; Pinkerton, Matt; Plagányi, Éva; Saravia, Leonardo Ariel; Subramaniam, Roshni C.; Van de Putte, Anton P.; Constable, Andrew J.
• Año de publicación: 2021
• Idioma: inglés
• Tipo de recurso: artículo
• Materia: ANTARCTIC; ECOSYSTEM MODELS; ECOSYSTEM-BASED MANAGEMENT; FOOD WEB ASSESSMENT; MARINE POLICY
• Institución: Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas

Globally important services are supported by Southern Ocean ecosystems, underpinned by the structure, function, and dynamics of complex interconnected and regionally distinctive food webs. These food webs vary in response to a combination of physical and chemical processes that alter productivity, species composition and the relative abundance and dynamics of organisms. Combined with regional and seasonal variability, climate-induced changes and human activities have and are expected to continue to drive important structural and functional changes to Southern Ocean food webs. However, our current understanding of food web structure, function, status, and trends is patchy in space and time, and methods for systematically assessing and comparing community-level responses to change within and across regional and temporal scales are not well developed. Insights gained from food web modelling studies—ranging from theoretical analyses of ecosystem resilience and adaptation, to qualitative and quantitative descriptions of the system—can assist in resolving patterns of energy flow and the ecological mechanisms that drive food web structure, function, and responses to drivers (such as fishing and climate change). This understanding is required to inform robust management strategies to conserve Southern Ocean food webs and the ecosystem services they underpin in the face of change. This paper synthesises the current state of knowledge regarding Southern Ocean pelagic food webs, highlighting the distinct regional food web characteristics, including key drivers of energy flow, dominant species, and network properties that may indicate system resilience. In particular, the insights, gaps, and potential integration of existing knowledge and Southern Ocean food web models are evaluated as a basis for developing integrated food web assessments that can be used to test the efficacy of alternative management and policy options. We discuss key limitations of existing models for assessing change resulting from various drivers, summarise priorities for model development and identify that significant progress could be made to support policy by advancing the development of food web models coupled to projected biogeochemical models, such as in Earth System models.
Fil: McCormack, Stacey A.. University of Tasmania; Australia
Fil: Melbourne-Thomas, Jessica. University of Tasmania; Australia
Fil: Trebilco, Rowan. University of Tasmania; Australia
Fil: Griffith, Gary. University of Princeton; Estados Unidos
Fil: Hill, Simeon L.. British Antarctic Survey; Reino Unido
Fil: Hoover, Carie. Dalhousie University Halifax; Canadá
Fil: Johnston, Nadine M.. British Antarctic Survey; Reino Unido
Fil: Marina, Tomas Ignacio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas; Argentina
Fil: Murphy, Eugene J.. British Antarctic Survey; Reino Unido
Fil: Pakhomov, Evgeny A.. University of British Columbia; Canadá
Fil: Pinkerton, Matt. National Institute Of Water And Atmospheric Research.; Nueva Zelanda
Fil: Plagányi, Éva. University of Tasmania; Australia
Fil: Saravia, Leonardo Ariel. Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento; Argentina
Fil: Subramaniam, Roshni C.. University of Tasmania; Australia
Fil: Van de Putte, Anton P.. Université Libre de Bruxelles; Bélgica. Katholikie Universiteit Leuven; Bélgica
Fil: Constable, Andrew J.. University of Tasmania; Australia