Next-generation ensemble projections reveal higher climate risks for marine ecosystems

Projections of climate change impacts on marine ecosystems have revealed long-term declines in global marine animal biomass and unevenly distributed impacts on fisheries. Here we apply an enhanced suite of global marine ecosystem models from the Fisheries and Marine Ecosystem Model Intercomparison Project (Fish-MIP), forced by new-generation Earth system model outputs from Phase 6 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6), to provide insights into how projected climate change will affect future ocean ecosystems. Compared with the previous generation CMIP5-forced Fish-MIP ensemble, the new ensemble ecosystem simulations show a greater decline in mean global ocean animal biomass under both strong-mitigation and high-emissions scenarios due to elevated warming, despite greater uncertainty in net primary production in the high-emissions scenario. Regional shifts in the direction of biomass changes highlight the continued and urgent need to reduce uncertainty in the projected responses of marine ecosystems to climate change to help support adaptation planning.

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Tittensor Derek P., Novaglio Camilla, Harrison Cheryl S., Heneghan Ryan F., Barrier Nicolas, Bianchi Daniele, Bopp Laurent, Bryndum-Buchholz Andrea, Britten Gregory L., Büchner Matthias, Cheung William W. L., Christensen Villy, Coll Marta, Dunne John P., Eddy Tyler D., Everett Jason D., Fernandes-Salvador Jose A., Fulton Elizabeth A., Galbraith Eric D., Gascuel Didier, Guiet Jerome, John Jasmin G., Link Jason S., Lotze Heike K., Maury Olivier, Ortega-Cisneros Kelly, Palacios-Abrantes Juliano, Petrik Colleen M., Du Pontavice Hubert, Rault Jonathan, Richardson Anthony J., Shannon Lynne, Shin Yunne-Jai, Steenbeek Jeroen, Stock Charles A., Blanchard Julia L (2021). Next-generation ensemble projections reveal higher climate risks for marine ecosystems. Nature Climate Change. 11 (11). 973-981. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-021-01173-9, https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00731/84276/

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