Arctic Ocean Diversity (ArcOD)
The Arctic Ocean is the most extreme ocean on the planet in regards to the seasonality of light and its year-round existing ice cover. The Arctic seas hold a multitude of unique life forms, highly adapted in their life history, ecology and physiology to the extreme and seasonal conditions of their environment. Our knowledge of what currently lives in the Arctic Ocean is still rudimentary compared to other oceans, due to the logistical challenges imposed by its multi-year ice and inhospitable climate. ArcOD will inventory biodiversity in the Arctic sea ice, water column and sea floor from the shallow shelves to the deep basins using a three-step approach: compilation of existing data, taxonomic identification of existing samples, and new collections focusing on taxonomic and regional gaps. The focus of the fieldwork will be during the International Polar Year (IPY) in 2007/2008.
For more information on the project, visit the ArcOD website: http://www.sfos.uaf.edu/research/arcdiv/.
ArcOD Project Team
Principal Investigator:
Bodil Bluhm, University of Alaska Fairbanks, USA
Principal Investigator:
Rolf Gradinger, University of Alaska Fairbanks, USA
Principal Investigator:
Russ Hopcroft, University of Alaska Fairbanks, USA
Related Links
Reports and Other Documents
News Release (24 June 2004)
Summary report of workshop on Arctic Census of Marine Life
The full proceedings of this workshop are available for purchase or as a PDF download through the Alaska Sea Grant College Program Bookstore (Pub no.: M-26).
