Arctic Station Dirigibile Italia

ARctic fISh diversiTy: snapshOTs from SvaLbard arEa (ARISTOTLE)

Call year: 2018 Status: active IADC_id: 117

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When looking to the Arctic seas sensu stricto, that is excluding larger stretch of the sub-Arctic Bering, Barents and Norwegian Seas (according to Mecklenburg et al. 2011), as much as about 220 fish species are currently described (Christiansen 2017). However, this number is likely an underestimate of the actual fish diversity. Indeed, despite the presence of human populations living at the northern high latitudes, and despite the occurrence of a prosper commercial fishery in the area, the study of Arctic ocean fishes is still incomplete and patchy, suffering from limitations on both spatial and temporal scales. This lack of knowledge is indeed concerning if one considers the high warming rate experienced by the Arctic in recent decades (Hoegh-Guldberg and Bruno 2010; Timmermans and Proshutinsky 2015), leading to rapid changes of the Arctic scenario: sea-ice loss and increased advection of terrestrial organic matter to the Arctic shelves and slopes among the most relevant expected effects. rnrnIn this frame, of particular interest are the transition zones, that is areas located at the interface between the Arctic and the boreal Atlantic, such as the Svalbard archipelago, characterized by hydrographic features making the western and norther side warmer than the eastern part. rnThe Kongsfjorden, along the western side of Svalbard, presents a mixed Atlantic- Arctic nature, with Atlantic water influx on one end, and melting of tidal glaciers in the innermost part, strongly influencing the animal distribution along the fjord (Hop et al. 2002). Arctic and sub-Arctic fish species can be found there, as well as generalist north-Atlantic ones. rnrnFish community assessments, initially performed through bottom trawling in deep water parts of the fjord (Hop et al. 2002), allowed to detect the dominance of the polar cod (Boreogadus saida) and the presence of other Arctic species: the Greenland halibut (Reinhardtius hippoglossoides), the European sculpin (Artediellus europeus), blennies (Anisarchus medius, Lumpenus lampretaeformis), snailfshes (Liparis spp.) and eelpouts (Lycodes spp.). Boreal species, such as the Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), long rough dab (Hippoglossoides platessoides), and deepwater redfish (Sebastes mentella) have also been found in the deep waters of Kongsfjorden, while the haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) have been caught in the outer fjord.  rnShallow water (<30 m) locations have been explored by divers (Hop et al. 2002) and, more recently, by the use of trammel and fyke nets (Brand and Fischer 2016). The shallow waters fish community resulted to be dominated by the Arctic shorthorn (Myoxocephalus scorpius), but small sized Atlantic cod were also very abundant. Among the Arctic species, the and Arctic staghorn sculpin (Gymnacanthus tricuspis), and juvenile stages of the leatherfin lumpsucker (Eumicrotremus derjugini) and snailfishes (Liparis spp.) have been found. Among the boreal species, the Atlantic wolfish (Anarhichas lupus), and various gadid species (Melanogrammus aeglefinus and Pollachius virens) are present. Cartilaginous fish are also present in the fjord, the large and long living Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus) is regularly caught in Kongsfjorden by shrimp trawlers (Hop et al. 2002) and baited lines (Lydersen et al. 2016).rnrnDespite recent advancements in the faunistic and ecologic knowledge of Kongsfjorden, further studies are needed for a throughout understanding of actual local fish communities and set a baseline for detecting and interpreting future changes.  rn rnThe proposed research aims at contributing to the fish diversity assessment in Kongsfjorden through two complementary approaches. rnrnAccordingly, the project will be organized as follows: rnrnWP1 - Exploration of the genetic diversity of fish, at the inter- and intra- specific level. rnThe fish genetic diversity will be approached at the level of chromosomes. The description of species-specific karyotypes, including identification of the diploid number, number of chromosomal arms (fundamental number, FN), and sex-linked heterochromosomes, when present, will be performed. Furthermore, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) of marker sequences, such as ribosomal genes and telomeric sequences, will be applied to gain structural genomic information chromosomes in a cytogenomic fashion. When opportune, the location of sequences related to cold adaptation, such as the antifreeze genes, will also be studied by FISH. rnThis approach has already been used in the interdisciplinary TUNU Programme: Arctic Ocean Fishes – Diversity, Adaptation and Conservation, active since 2002, in which our team is involved from the beginning. TUNU is the best example of long-term monitoring of fish diversity based on the integration of multilevel biological and ecological information (Christiansen 2012). Target area of TUNU is the north-eastern coast of Greenland, however a limited number of trawling stations have been established in open waters around Svalbard area. In this frame, the opportunity to set fish sampling stations within the fjord, besides being a valuable contribution to the knowledge of fish diversity by itself, would also contribute to expand the cytogenetic fish survey in the Arctic. rnThe proposed sampling in Kongsfjord will also contribute to the PNRA Project POLICY, focused on polar fish cytogenetics, and to the polar fish chromosome repository that is established within the project. rnrnWP2 - Optimization of the use of underwater optical systems for the observation and study of fish communities.rnThe second research line is aimed at optimizing the use of low impact visual sampling techniques to study fish community in situ. A compact remote submersible rotating video system (SRV) will be deployed in shallow waters allowing to record the fish presence, abundance and behavior. The proposed system, conjugating monitoring effectiveness and minimized disturbance, have already been successfully used by our team in the study of flag-fish species in Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas, and will be used in the Arctic for the first time. This would represent the first step toward the establishment of a more comprehensive, and timeframe expanded, system of observatories for the study of fish and ecosystems in general, in the fjord.rnrnWP3 – Dissemination and outreach. rnThe results will be disseminated in peer-reviewed scientific journals and communicated at national/international congresses. The participants will be actively engaged in polar science outreach activities within the network of science communication established at the national and international levels (CNR, PNRA Educational Section, Polar Museums, Polar Institutions, etc.). rnrn rnReferences:rnBrand, M., & Fischer, P. (2016). Species composition and abundance of the shallow water fish community of Kongsfjorden, Svalbard. Polar Biology, 39(11), 2155-2167.rnChristiansen, J. S. (2017). No future for Euro-Arctic ocean fishes? Marine Ecology Progress Series, 575, 217-227.rnHoegh-Guldberg, O., & Bruno, J. F. (2010). The impact of climate change on the world’s marine ecosystems. Science, 328(5985), 1523-1528.rnHop, H., Pearson, T., Hegseth, E. N., Kovacs, K. M., Wiencke, C., Kwasniewski, S., ... & Lydersen, C. (2002). The marine ecosystem of Kongsfjorden, Svalbard. Polar Research, 21(1), 167-208.rnLydersen, C., Fisk, A. T., & Kovacs, K. M. (2016). A review of Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus) studies in the Kongsfjorden area, Svalbard Norway. Polar Biology, 39(11), 2169-2178.rnMecklenburg, C. W., Møller, P. R., & Steinke, D. (2011). Biodiversity of arctic marine fishes: taxonomy and zoogeography. Marine Biodiversity, 41(1), 109-140.rnTimmermans, M. L., & Proshutinsky, A. (2015). Sea surface temperature. Arctic Report Card: Update for 2015.

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ARctic fISh diversiTy: snapshOTs from SvaLbard arEa (ARISTOTLE)