Publications

Critical slowing down suggests that the western Greenland Ice Sheet is close to a tipping point

Publication ID: pub.1138112198

Publication date: 17/05/2021

Keywords: Critical Slowing Down; Early-warning Signals; Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS); Tipping Points

The Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS) is a potentially unstable component of the Earth system and may exhibit a critical transition under ongoing global warming. Mass reductions of the GrIS have substantial impacts on global sea level and the speed of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, due to the additional freshwater caused by increased meltwater runoff […]

Plastic contamination of a Galapagos Island (Ecuador) and the relative risks to native marine species

Publication ID: pub.1137970038

Publication date: 13/05/2021

Keywords: Ecosystem; Ecuador; Environmental Monitoring; Galapagos Islands; Plastics; Risk; San Cristobal Island; Water Pollutants, Chemical

Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands and their unique biodiversity are a global conservation priority. We explored the presence, composition and environmental drivers of plastic contamination across the marine ecosystem at an island scale, investigated uptake in marine invertebrates and designed a systematic priority scoring analysis to identify the most vulnerable vertebrate species. Beach contamination varied by site […]

Global declines in coral reef calcium carbonate production under ocean acidification and warming

Publication ID: pub.1137889577

Publication date: 10/05/2021

Keywords: Calcification; Carbonate Production; Climate Change; Corals; Global

Ocean warming and acidification threaten the future growth of coral reefs. This is because the calcifying coral reef taxa that construct the calcium carbonate frameworks and cement the reef together are highly sensitive to ocean warming and acidification. However, the global-scale effects of ocean warming and acidification on rates of coral reef net carbonate production […]

Prolonged Siberian heat of 2020 almost impossible without human influence

Publication ID: pub.1137812623

Publication date: 06/05/2021

Keywords: Extreme Event Attribution; Extremes; Heatwave; Multi-model; Rapid Attribution; Siberia; Verkhoyansk

Over the first half of 2020, Siberia experienced the warmest period from January to June since records began and on the 20th of June the weather station at Verkhoyansk reported 38 °C, the highest daily maximum temperature recorded north of the Arctic Circle. We present a multi-model, multi-method analysis on how anthropogenic climate change affected the […]

Carbon loss from forest degradation exceeds that from deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon

Publication ID: pub.1137602502

Publication date: 29/04/2021

Keywords: Aboveground Biomass (AGB); Amazon; Biodiversity; Brazil; Carbon Losses; Climate; Deforestation; Degradation; Forest Area; Forest Protection; Policy Priorities; Spatial-temporal Dynamics

Spatial–temporal dynamics of aboveground biomass (AGB) and forest area affect the carbon cycle, climate and biodiversity in the Brazilian Amazon. Here we investigate interannual changes in AGB and forest area by analysing satellite-based annual AGB and forest area datasets. We found that the gross forest area loss was larger in 2019 than in 2015, possibly […]

The Functional Significance of Bacterial Predators

Publication ID: pub.1137507036

Publication date: 27/04/2021

Keywords: Bdellovibrio; Cytophaga; Food Webs; Lysobacter; North America; Predator; qSIP; Stable Isotope Probing; Top-down Control; Trophic Interactions; Vampirovibrionales; 18O-H2O

Predation structures food webs, influences energy flow, and alters rates and pathways of nutrient cycling through ecosystems, effects that are well documented for macroscopic predators. In the microbial world, predatory bacteria are common, yet little is known about their rates of growth and roles in energy flows through microbial food webs, in part because these […]