Climate change and marine zooplankton

MENÉNDEZ, M. CLARA; FERNÁNDEZ SEVERINI, MELISA D.; BIANCALANA, FLORENCIA; DUTTO, M. SOFÍA; LÓPEZ ABBATE, M. CELESTE; BERASATEGUI, ANABELA A.

Marine ecology in a changing world

CRC Press

Año: 2013; p. 91 - 120

Zooplanktonic organisms are key components of marine ecosystems as integral links between primary producers and upper trophic levels. Zooplankton communities are highly diverse and thus perform a variety of ecosystem functions. One of the most important roles of zooplankton is as the major grazers in ocean food webs, providing the main pathway for energy from primary producers to consumers. Consequently, climate-induced changes on pelagic ecosystems are effectively transferred by zooplankton to upper trophic levels as commercially important fish populations. The goal of this chapter is to summarize the observed and potential future responses of zooplankton communities to climate change. It focuses mainly on the effects that global warming, ocean acidification and UV radiation have on zooplankton communities.