Arctic Ecology

Readers need to know that this reviewer is not an ecologist, although I have worked on some aspects of present-day arctic ecology and have been an author/collaborator on papers dealing with paleoclimate records both on land and in the marine realm. These warnings aside, let me say at the outset that I strongly recommend that Arctic Ecology be purchased by all academic units involved in arctic research, because it would be an extremely useful source of data and information for individuals with research projects in arctic ecology, paleoecology, and climate change. The authors of the fifteen chapters represent a range of countries with either actual “arctic” territory or a history of research in the region. Thus, researchers from Denmark, Norway, Canada, and the United States are well represented, but no contributors were based in Russia or Iceland. Other authors come from the United Kingdom, France, Sweden, Poland, the Netherlands, and Australia.

In the preface, the editor David Thomas of the University of Helsinki states, “Our aim was to produce a book that seeks to systematically introduce the diverse array of ecologies within the Arctic region, highlighting some influences of global climate change where appropriate” (p. xiii). This goal is achieved in a total of fifteen richly illustrated chapters, each chapter ending with a reasonably extensive list of references. Importantly, another stated goal “is that the book stimulates a wide audience to think about the Arctic, … ” (p. xiii) and this is evident in the nature of the writing, which attempts to inform both the general and interested reader and researchers with an interest in one or more aspects of arctic ecology. I would add one caveat for a chapter that I feel should have been included: one that would have outlined the climate history of what we now call the Arctic, starting in the mid-Tertiary when conditions were warmer than present and describing the growth of the large ice sheets that have been part of the story for much of Canada, Fennoscandia, Iceland, and parts of northern Russia. To my mind these are important facts that have influenced the array of present-day arctic ecologies, whether dealing with plants, insects, birds, or mammals.

The first chapter opens with the fundamental question of “What is the Arctic?” and basically lays out the rationale for the subsequent fourteen chapters. This first chapter explores such issues as: how was the Arctic discovered, how large is the Arctic, and what is in the Arctic, as well as briefly introducing the reader to the array of arctic ecologies. The second chapter explores “A Paleoenvironmental Perspective” to arctic ecology, thus in a sense laying the groundwork for what is present today and differences from the past. This chapter, by Michael Pisaric and John P. Smol, touches briefly on evidence from ice cores but also explores exciting new avenues, such as the interpretation of well-preserved DNA archives in a variety of materials. The chapter covers other more conventional ecological proxies including tree rings, diatoms, and pollen. For some reason they have denoted marine records as “the Last Realm.” This chapter is well illustrated and has nearly six pages of references, constituting an important reference work in its own right.

For this review I am not going to comment on every chapter, but it is important to illustrate the breadth of coverage. Because of the ongoing climate changes, interest in the Arctic is high, and chapter 3, “Climate Change in the Arctic,” explores the evidence with the emphasis on the changes that have occurred in the last few decades. Changes in climate are currently having significant effects on the degradation of permafrost, and that is dealt with in chapter 4. For many researchers as well as the general public, the term “arctic” is synonymous with “tundra,” and that topic forms the basis for chapter 5, thoroughly explained and illustrated by authors J. Hobbie, G. Shaver, T. T. Høye, and J. Bowden from the United States, Denmark, and Canada. The geographic extent of high arctic, low arctic, and sub-arctic tundra is shown in a clear map (figure 5.1) and an explicit table (table 5.1) that provides the climatic limits. Other chapter titles clearly signal their topics: “The Ecology of Arctic Lakes and Ponds,” “The Ecology of Arctic Birds,” and “The Ecology of Arctic Shallow Subtidal and Intertidal Benthos,” and even “Ecology of Arctic Sea Ice” (chapters 7, 14, 11, and 10, respectively).

The final chapter discusses challenges faced by indigenous arctic peoples from environmental changes and suggests that “effective strategies needed in responding and adapting to the range of ecological, social, economic, and political stressors” (p. 410) will come from including indigenous peoples at all levels of environmental governance. This chapter ends with the cautionary comment that “the scenario (climate change) is an uncertain and unpredictable future for many indigenous communities” (p. 420).

Thus, as noted at the onset, this is a wide-ranging book that discusses the full range of arctic environments from the terrestrial to lakes, to birds, to mammals, and to the deep sea. Arctic Ecology is certainly recommended for university libraries and research groups, though anyone with a deep interest in the Arctic will discover new facts and new problems to explore.