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Ocean warming and acidification; implications for the Arctic brittlestar Ophiocten sericeum

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Abstract

The Arctic Ocean currently has the highest global average pH. However, due to increasing atmospheric CO2 levels, it will become a region with one of the lowest global pH levels. In addition, Arctic waters will also increase in temperature as a result of global warming. These environmental changes can pose a significant threat for marine species, and in particular true Arctic species that are adapted to the historically cold and relatively stable abiotic conditions of the region. Consequently, we investigated some key physiological responses of brittlestar Ophiocten sericeum, a polar endemic which can dominate benthic infauna, to a temperature increase of 3.5°C (ambient, 5–8.5°C) and CO2 induced reduction in pH of 0.6 units (pH 7.7) and 1 unit (pH 7.3) below ambient (pH 8.3). Metabolism was upregulated at low pH. Faster arm regeneration stimulated by increased temperature was counteracted by low pH; at pH 7.3 in the high-temperature treatment, the maintenance of calcium carbonate structures in undersaturated conditions resulted in reduction in the rate of arm regeneration, possibly due to accelerated the use of energy reserves. If so, this could result in an energy deficit at times of increased energetic costs associated with responding to the combined factors of high temperature and low pH.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Dr Jozef Wiktor and the crew aboard RV Oceania for their assistance in animal collection, Elin Austerheim for technical assistance and Helen Findlay for assistance in the laboratory. This work was supported by an ARCFAC grant awarded to HSF & HLW and a NERC Blueskies PhD studentship awarded to HLW. This work is a contribution to PML Theme 3 within the NERC funded programme Oceans 2025. Thanks to Chris Hauton and two anonymous referees whose comments on a previous version of this manuscript were of invaluable help in improving this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Plymouth Marine Laboratory, Prospect Place, West Hoe, Plymouth, PL1 3DH, UK

    Hannah L. Wood, M. A. Kendall, D. M. Lowe & S. Widdicombe

  2. Marine Biology & Ecology Research Centre, School of Marine Science & Engineering, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, PL4 8AA, UK

    J. I. Spicer

  3. Department of Marine Ecology, Göteborg University, Sven Lovén Centre for Marine Sciences, Kristineberg, 45034, Sweden

    Hannah L. Wood

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  1. Hannah L. Wood
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Correspondence to Hannah L. Wood.

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Wood, H.L., Spicer, J.I., Kendall, M.A. et al. Ocean warming and acidification; implications for the Arctic brittlestar Ophiocten sericeum . Polar Biol 34, 1033–1044 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-011-0963-8

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