| definition |
- Investigations at LTER Palmer site include:
1)physical forcing (solar radiation, atmospheric, oceanic and sea ice)
with emphasis on ecological consequences of annual and inter-annual
variation;
2) Life-history parameters of secondary producers (krill) and apex
predators (penguins);
3) Biological process with emphasis on community structure and carbon
fluxes (microbial, phytoplankton);
4)Physical/chemical/biological modeling that links ecosystem processes
to environmental variables. Testable hypotheses link sea ice timing
and magnitude to carbon and oxygen dynamics, seasonal primary
production, krill abundance, distribution and recruitment; breeding
success and survival of apex predators such as penguins; and
large-scale interactions of the atmosphere and ocean. Sampling grids,
motivated by the need for station locations that could be visited
repeatedly over time scales of many years, have been established in
Palmer Basin and along the west coast of the peninsula.
Website: "http://pal.lternet.edu/"
[Summary provided by Palmer LTER.]
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