Mercury Contamination Challenges the Behavioral Response of a Keystone Species to Arctic Climate Change

Andrea S Grunst1, Melissa L Grunst1, David Grémillet2,3

  • 1Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, La Rochelle FR-17000, France.

Related Concept Videos

Keystone Species01:39

Keystone Species

Measures of species biodiversity, such as richness (i.e., the number of species present) and evenness (i.e., their relative abundance), describe an ecological community’s structure. Many factors affect community structure, including abiotic factors (e.g., sunlight and nutrients), disturbances (e.g., fire or flood), species interactions (e.g., predation or competition), and chance events (e.g., foreign species invasion). Certain species—such as keystone species—also play a...
22.0K
Ecological Organization01:26

Ecological Organization

Ecological OrganizationEcological organization refers to the hierarchical structure of ecosystems, which organizes life from individual organisms to the entire biosphere. The levels of ecological organization include organism, population, community, ecosystem, biome, and biosphere. Each level represents increasing complexity, showcasing how living organisms interact with each other and with their environment to maintain ecological balance.Science and Engineering Practices (SEP): Analyzing and...
Threats to Biodiversity01:50

Threats to Biodiversity

There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...
22.6K
Global Climate Change01:50

Global Climate Change

Throughout its ~4.5 billion year history, the Earth has experienced periods of warming and cooling. However, the current drastic increase in global temperatures is well outside of the Earth’s cyclic norms, and evidence for human-caused global climate change is compelling. Paleoclimatology, the study of ancient climate conditions, provides ample evidence for human-caused global climate change by comparing recent conditions with those in the past.
24.6K
The Periodic Table and Organismal Elements01:27

The Periodic Table and Organismal Elements

Elements are the smallest units of matter that cannot be broken down further by chemical processes. There are 118 known elements, but not all of these are naturally occurring, and only a few of them are essential for life. Living matter is composed primarily of carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen, with smaller amounts of other elements like calcium, phosphorus, potassium, and sulfur. Other elements are also necessary for life but only in trace amounts.
Periodic Table Provides Information...
18.4K
Ecosystems01:28

Ecosystems

Ecosystems An ecosystem is a community of living organisms interacting with their physical environment. Ecosystems include biotic (living) components like plants, animals, and microorganisms, and abiotic (non-living) elements such as water, soil, and climate. These interactions create a dynamic balance where energy flows through food webs, and matter cycles through photosynthesis, decomposition, and nutrient cycling.Science and Engineering Practices (SEP): Analyzing and Interpreting Data...