K080 - Resilience in Antarctic biota and ecosystems

This proposal represents an integrated, cross-disciplinary investigation of the resilience of Antarctic ecosystems from terrestrial, through inland aquatic, to near-shore marine habitats.  The proposal aims to merge observations on environment, organisms, and communities with data on functional aspects that are likely to change in response to warming-induced impacts on water/ice dynamics. We will take advantage of strong environmental gradients and use surveys and short-term field and laboratory manipulation experiments to gain insights into properties that we expect will underpin the longer-term resilience of Antarctic ecosystems facing shifting climate baselines.