Arctic warming attracts new whales to Greenland, transforming ecosystem

Warming waters and diminishing sea ice in the Arctic are transforming Greenland's coastal ecosystem, leading to the arrival of new whale species and disrupting the local food chain. Over the past two decades, researchers have observed a roughly one-degree Celsius rise in summer sea temperatures.

This gradual warming has significantly reduced sea ice since 2000, opening up coastal areas previously inaccessible to marine life. Three whale species, which historically did not frequent these waters, have become regular visitors. These large predators now exert unprecedented pressure on the ecosystem.

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borealization of the marine ecosystem of eastern Greenland

The study highlights that these whales consume an estimated one million tons of prey annually during their roughly four-month stay in Greenlandic waters. Their diet primarily consists of capelin and krill. Capelin, a small fish, plays a crucial role in connecting the upper and lower levels of the food web.

This phenomenon, termed "borealization," signifies a northward expansion of species from lower latitudes as Arctic-specific species recede. Researchers attribute this shift to the recovery of whale populations, which were once endangered, and the ongoing transformation of their habitat due to ocean warming and ice loss. The consequence is a reorganization of predator-prey dynamics that could affect not only capelin but also other fish species and the local fishing industry.

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reorganization of the relationships between predators and prey