Session Announcement and Call for Abstracts
Role of Arctic Marine Mammals in Northern Ecosystems and Cultures
Arctic Change 2008
Quebec City, Canada
9-12 December 2008
Abstract Submission Deadline: Friday, 26 September 2008
To submit an abstract, please go to:
http://www.arctic-change2008.com/index.php?url=13010
For further information about this session, please contact the session
organizers:
Steven Ferguson
Phone: 204-983-5057
Email: steve.ferguson [at] dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Or:
Cory Matthews
Phone: 204-984-2425
Email: Cory.Matthews [at] dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Organizers of the session "Role of Arctic Marine Mammals in Northern
Ecosystems and Cultures," to be convened at the Arctic Change 2008
Conference in Quebec City, Canada, 9-12 December 2008, announce a call
for abstracts.
Session Description:
Arctic marine mammals such as seals, walrus, whales, polar bears, and
arctic fox play important ecological, social, cultural and nutritional
roles in arctic ecosystems. Many of these species are adapted to sea-ice
conditions, and Inuit hunters have learned to use these habitats as well
for subsistence harvesting. However, these high-latitude marine systems
are currently undergoing pronounced changes, with dramatic sea ice
declines in many areas. Environmental changes may have marked effects on
marine mammal ecosystems, which will in turn have distinct effects on
northern cultures. Many arctic marine mammals occupy top trophic
positions and thus can be viewed as sentinels of marine ecosystem
health. Examining health and condition in marine mammals may provide
valuable information about ecosystem alterations in structure that may
otherwise be difficult to document. Working with northerners to monitor
changes in their subsistence hunts will provide an arctic observation
network that will improve science while empowering Inuit culture.
In this session we will bring together researchers representing diverse
views on marine mammals, their ecosystems, and climate change in the
Arctic. The goals of this session are to present research examining
links between environmental variation and marine mammal ecology
(including, but not limited to: population demographics, competition and
predator-prey relationships, distribution and abundance, migration and
largescale movements, diet and foraging patterns and trophic structure
dynamics, reproductive success and phenology, life history, individual
health such as stress and susceptibility to disease), and to better
understand how marine mammal populations may respond to acute change in
the Arctic. These findings may be used to allow northerners to
anticipate such changes, including development of conservation
initiatives to preserve northern culture and current relationships with
the marine ecosystem.
The abstract submission deadline for this and all other sessions is
Friday, 26 September 2008.
To submit an abstract, please go to:
http://www.arctic-change2008.com/index.php?url=13010
For conference details and online registration forms, please go to:
http://www.arctic-change2008.com/index.php?url=11010
For further information about this session, please contact:
Steven Ferguson (Session Chair)
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Phone: 204-983-5057
Email: steve.ferguson [at] dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Or:
Cory Matthews (ArcticNet Marine Mammals Coordinator)
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Phone: 204-984-2425
Email: Cory.Matthews [at] dfo-mpo.gc.ca