AUTHOR=Kiesel Joshua , Bienhold Christina , Wenzhöfer Frank , Link Heike TITLE=Variability in Benthic Ecosystem Functioning in Arctic Shelf and Deep-Sea Sediments: Assessments by Benthic Oxygen Uptake Rates and Environmental Drivers JOURNAL=Frontiers in Marine Science VOLUME=7 YEAR=2020 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.00426 DOI=10.3389/fmars.2020.00426 ISSN=2296-7745 ABSTRACT=
Remineralization of organic matter at the seafloor is an important ecosystem function, as it drives carbon and nutrient cycling, supplying nutrients for photosynthetic production, but also controls carbon burial within the sediment. In the Arctic Ocean, changes in primary production due to rapid sea-ice decline and thinning affect the export of organic matter to the seafloor and thus, benthic ecosystem functioning. Due to the remoteness and difficult accessibility of the Arctic Ocean, we still lack baseline knowledge about patterns of benthic remineralization rates and their drivers in both shelf and deep-sea sediments. Particularly comparative studies across regions are scarce. Here, we address this knowledge gap by contrasting benthic diffusive and total oxygen uptake rates (DOU and TOU), both established proxies of the benthic remineralization function, between shelf and deep-sea habitats of the Barents Sea and the central Arctic Ocean, sampled during a RV Polarstern expedition in 2015. DOU and TOU were measured using