Structure and function of the western Baffin Bay coastal and shelf ecosystem

Type Article
Date 2023-02
Language English
Author(s) Pedro Sara1, 2, 3, 4, Lemire Mélanie2, 3, Hoover Carie5, Saint Beat Blanche1, 6, Janjua Muhammad Y.7, Herbig Jennifer8, Geoffroy Maxime8, 9, Yunda-Guarin Gustavo1, 4, Moisan Marie-Ange1, 10, Boissinot Justin1, Tremblay Jean-Éric1, 4, Little Matthew11, Chan Laurie12, Babin Marcel1, 4, Kenny Tiff-Annie2, 3, 4, Maps Frédéric1, 4
Affiliation(s) 1 : Département de biologie, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
2 : Département de médecine sociale et préventive, Institut de biologie intégrative et des systèmes, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
3 : Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
4 : Joint International Laboratory Takuvik (UMI 3376), Université Laval (Canada)/CNRS (France), Québec, QC, Canada
5 : Marine Affairs Program, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada
6 : IFREMER, Laboratoire d’Ecologie Pélagique, Centre Bretagne, Plouzané, France
7 : Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Freshwater Institute, University Crescent, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
8 : Centre for Ecosystems Research, Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University, St. John’s, NL, Canada
9 : Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
10 : Département des sciences de l’eau, Institut national de la recherche scientifique, Québec, QC, Canada
11 : School of Public Health and Social Policy, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
12 : Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Source Elementa-science Of The Anthropocene (2325-1026) (University of California Press), 2023-02 , Vol. 11 , N. 1 , P. 26p.
DOI 10.1525/elementa.2022.00015
WOS© Times Cited 2
Keyword(s) Marine environment, Food security, Food web, Climate change, Network analysis, Subsistence, harvest
Abstract

Arctic marine species, from benthos to fish and mammals, are essential for food security and sovereignty of Inuit people. Inuit food security is dependent on the availability, accessibility, quality, and sustainability of country food resources. However, climate change effects are threatening Inuit food systems through changes in abundance and nutritional quality of locally harvested species, while foundational knowledge of Arctic food webs remains elusive. Here, we summarized scientific knowledge available for the western Baffin Bay coastal and shelf ecosystem by building a food web model using the Ecopath with Ecosim modeling framework. Based on this model, we calculated ecological network analysis indices to describe structure and function of the system. We used Linear Inverse Modeling and Monte Carlo analysis to assess parameter uncertainty, generating plausible parameterizations of this ecosystem from which a probability density distribution for each index was generated. Our findings suggest that the system is controlled by intermediate trophic levels, highlighting the key role of Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida) as prey fish, as well as the importance of other less studied groups like cephalopods in controlling energy flows. Most of the ecosystem biomass is retained in the system, with very little lost to subsistence harvest and commercial fisheries, indicating that these activities were within a sustainable range during the modeling period. Our model also highlights the scientific knowledge gaps that still exist (e.g., species abundances), including valued harvest species like Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus), walrus (Odobenus rosmarus), and seals, and importantly our poor understanding of the system in winter. Moving forward, we will collaborate with Inuit partners in Qikiqtarjuaq, NU, Canada, to improve this modeling tool by including Inuit knowledge. This tool thus serves as a starting point for collaborative discussions with Inuit partners and how its use can better inform local and regional decision-making regarding food security.

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Pedro Sara, Lemire Mélanie, Hoover Carie, Saint Beat Blanche, Janjua Muhammad Y., Herbig Jennifer, Geoffroy Maxime, Yunda-Guarin Gustavo, Moisan Marie-Ange, Boissinot Justin, Tremblay Jean-Éric, Little Matthew, Chan Laurie, Babin Marcel, Kenny Tiff-Annie, Maps Frédéric (2023). Structure and function of the western Baffin Bay coastal and shelf ecosystem. Elementa-science Of The Anthropocene, 11(1), 26p. Publisher's official version : https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.2022.00015 , Open Access version : https://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00824/93573/