Antarctic tourism as a research tool: Citizen Science monitoring phytoplankton community in the western Antarctic Peninsula

MASCIONI, M.; LEE, A.; ALMANDOZ, G.O.; VERNET, M.

Ushuaia

Conferencia; SC-HASS Conference 2019, Antarctic connections at the end of the world: understanding the past and shaping the future; 2019

Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research?s (SCAR)

Travelers visiting the polar regions are helping Argentinean and US scientists monitor changes in phytoplankton communities in coastal fjords on the western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) through the FjordPhyto citizen science project. Due to climate change, the Antarctic Peninsula is undergoing the most rapid rates of warming seen globally. The melted glacial water enters the ocean along coastal fjords affecting the marine ecosystem. The first organisms to experience environmental changes are phytoplankton, the main entry of energy to the marine ecosystem. Small environmental variations may favor different phytoplankton assemblages and shift the timing of blooms during the season. Variations on the phytoplankton composition may lead to changes in the higher trophic levels, potentially influencing the dynamics of krill ? a key species to the Antarctic food web. Currently, detailed information on coastal fjords from the WAP is scarce. Every summer, numerous tourists travel to the WAP aboard cruise vessels, bringing over 51,000 visitors to the region. With the help from tour operators registered with the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO), polar guide staff, and passenger citizen scientists, biological and physical data could be gathered from multiple fjords throughout the spring/summer season (November ? March) in WAP coastal areas. FjordPhyto citizen scientists are helping improve the knowledge gap that currently exists regarding phytoplankton community structure and bloom dynamics of fjords in the WAP. With many volunteers around the world, citizen science has become a very effective new research and public engagement tool. As there are not enough experts to monitor biodiversity at large scale, nor adequate resolution, citizen science offers a novel way to collect biodiversity data, and also offers benefits to conservation through involving visitors of these regions. FjordPhyto is one of the only projects operating with tourists in Antarctica at a hands-on level; allowing visitors to literally get their hands wet with sampling. Sampling has already been carried out during the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 seasons. Thanks to FjordPhyto, it has been possible to evaluate the spatial and temporal variability of the phytoplankton community, evidencing the different groups that structure the community, as well as the summer blooms. It is expected that over time the phytoplanktonic biodiversity of these understudied areas can be improved, interannual variations identified, related phytoplankton changes to environmental variables, and in this way, place them in a context of climate change. This new approach will not only provide a better understanding of glacial meltwater impacts on phytoplankton biodiversity and ecology, but also increase tourism engagement and understanding of science.