Understanding Antarctic and Arctic marine ecosystems by exploring biodiversity and resilience to environmental change is critical for making policy decisions that will lead to effective stewardship and sustainable management of marine resources. This strand of research combines existing long-term data with new field-based and experimental observations to explore the impact of environmental change on marine ecosystems.
Seabirds are amongst the most globally threatened birds, often as a consequence of incidental mortality (bycatch) in fisheries [1] [2]. At South Georgia, wandering albatrosses have declined since the 1970s [3], and are listed …
Until the last decade, South Georgia held the third largest population of black-browed albatrosses at any island group (Phillips et al. 2016) [4]. However, assuming trends at surveyed sites are …
CUPIDO aims to address: what is the role of zooplankton in promoting the transport of plastic in the ocean?
and how this plastic transport interferes with zooplankton’s ability to store carbon in the deep ocean?
The commercial fishery for Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) operates in the southwest Atlantic, in particular along the west Antarctic Peninsula, and over the shelf breaks of the South Shetland Islands, …
Wandering albatrosses are threatened by bycatch. Populations at South Georgia have declined catastrophically since the 1960s due to incidental mortality (bycatch) in fisheries (Pardo et al. 2017) [1]. This led …
A fishery for Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) operates over the shelf breaks of the South Orkney, South Shetland and South Georgia archipelagos [8]. Krill is an important food source for …
The grey-headed albatross is listed as Endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species because of a decline since the 1970s of the largest global breeding population, which is …
On 12 July 2017, the Larsen-C Ice Shelf calved one of the largest iceberg originating from the Antarctic Peninsula ever recorded. As iceberg A68 moves north, it leaves behind an …
Three species of penguin breed on Signy Island: Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae), chinstrap penguins (Pygoscelis antarcticus) and gentoo penguins (Pygoscelis papua). These species have contrasting breeding and foraging strategies and …
Two species of penguin breed on Bird Island: macaroni penguins (Eudyptes chrysolophus) and gentoo penguins (Pygoscelis papua). These species have contrasting breeding and foraging strategies and ranging behaviour. Gentoo penguins …
1 June, 2023
Concern is rising about tipping points in the Antarctic region (Armstrong et al., 2022). Recent heatwaves, changes in the Southern Ocean, and a reduction in the extent of Antarctic sea …
7 June, 2021
Scientists have conducted the first population study of penguins, seals and albatross using Unoccupied Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or drones on the subantarctic South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands to …
25 November, 2020
Applications for PhD projects with British Antarctic Survey (BAS) are now open for October 2021 admission. There are currently over 100 PhD students associated with BAS, working on a huge variety …
23 October, 2020
New study of plastics in the Antarctic Peninsula, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands
7 August, 2020
Please join us in congratulating Dr Huw Griffiths, Marine Biogeographer at British Antarctic Survey, who has been awarded the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) Medal for Education and Communication. …
23 April, 2020
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has announced its latest round of Future Leaders Fellowships today (23 April 2020). Congratulations to Dr Dan Jones and Dr Clara Manno of British Antarctic …
31 January, 2020
Large brown seaweed can bring invasive species to Antarctica, according to research published today (31 January 2020) in the journal Scientific Reports. The new study describes the first scientific evidence …
8 January, 2020
A new study published this week (7 January 2020) identifies a need for fishery managers to adopt clear objectives for the protection of seabirds and mammals. It is published in …
29 November, 2019
Two studies published in a special issue of the journal Science Advances this week (27 November 2019) highlight the fragility of the Antarctic and its ecosystems in the lead up …
18 October, 2019
A new study involving British Antarctic Survey researchers highlights the influence of krill (Euphausia superba) on atmospheric carbon levels. It is published in the journal Nature Communications today (18th October …
17 October, 2019
A new technique for analysing satellite images may help scientists detect and count stranded whales from space. Researchers tested a new detection method using Very High Resolution (VHR) satellite images …