Arctic's Sea Ice Affecting Food Source

The Arctic's shrinking sea ice is reshaping the region's food web from the bottom up, a new study reports.

Historically, tiny plantlike organisms called phytoplankton burst into bloom in the spring in the Arctic Ocean. The enormous one- to two-week bloom sets off a feeding frenzy among zooplankton, fish and bottom-dwelling creatures at the base of the Arctic food chain.

"The entire ocean system is linked to this massive input of carbon," said lead study author Mathieu Ardyna, a marine biologist at Laval University's Takuvik Joint International Laboratory in Quebec, Canada.  But now, because of the declining sea ice, a second bloom also appears in the fall, according to a new analysis of satellite records, published Sept. 2 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The fall bloom could have widespread ripple effects on marine life and the Arctic climate. Phytoplankton clear carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis.

http://www.livescience.com/48026-arctic-ocean-fall-plankton-blooms.html