Ricerc@Sapienza

Nutrient inputs in Arctic lake ecosystems will be affected by changes in snow coverage and abundance of migratory birds associated to climate warming, with implications for the stability of lake food webs and the ecosystem services they provide both at the local and the global scale (e.g. carbon sequestration). Through field experiments, satellite data and modelling, the project will quantify the effects of seasonal snow cover and bird abundance on the origin and quantity of nutrient inputs in high Arctic lakes, and the consequent variations of food web structure, including key topological properties affecting their stability and productivity (e.g. complexity, food chain length). Notably, these issues are not only of interest in Arctic lakes, having the potential to improve predictions on how lake food webs will respond to changes in nutrient inputs at lower latitudes. C and N stable isotope data, high-resolution satellite and field images for bird abundance, snow and vegetation coverage will be collected in the area of Ny-Alesund, Svalbard, to reconstruct the structure of lake food webs and to quantify the importance of aquatic and/or terrestrial nutrient inputs to aquatic primary consumers.
Results will add important information to international and national research actions, including the European project iCUPE, the Terrestrial Ecology flagship of the NySMAC, and the Italian Arctic Research Program. Data and maps will provide an important contribution for hydrological and ecological studies on Arctic freshwater ecosystems, and a necessary baseline to inform future monitoring and conservation plans. Datasets, maps and technical reports on methodologies developed will be made available to the scientific community, being of interest for studies carried out both across the Arctic and in Antarctica.