Abstract
POLAR regions, particularly Arctic seas covered by ice for a significant portion of the year, have been considered to be relatively unproductive1–4. In the western Arctic, including the northern Bering Sea, high water column productivity5,6, and well developed benthic communities7–9 have recently been reported. Ampeliscid amphipod crustaceans are the benthic community dominants in vast areas of the northern Bering Sea and are the major prey of the migratory California grey whale, Eschrichtius robustus10,11. Our study indicates that productivity of the benthic amphipods is remarkably high, given the latitude. The dominant species, Ampelisca macrocephala, is the most productive benthic marine amphipod ever reported and the amphipod community is more productive then entire benthic communities investigated elsewhere. biomassPolar marine ecosystems clearly have the potential to be highly productive
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Highsmfth, R., Coyle, K. High productivity of northern Bering Sea benthic amphipods. Nature 344, 862–864 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1038/344862a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/344862a0
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