Sea ice provides a wide range of microhabitats for diverse biota including microbes, single-celled eukaryotes (labelled algae), multicellular meiofauna, larger under-ice fauna (represented by amphipods), as well as polar cod (Boreogadus saida). Modified from Bluhm et al. (2017). STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/sea-ice-biota" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 35 - Figure 3.1.1

This layer details Important Areas (IAs) relevant to important geographic features in the Strait of Georgia (SOG) ecoregion. This data was mapped to inform the selection of marine Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSA). Experts have indicated that these areas are relevant based upon their high ranking in one or more of three criteria (Uniqueness, Aggregation, and Fitness Consequences). The distribution of IAs within ecoregions is used in the designation of EBSAs. Canada’s Oceans Act provides the legislative framework for an integrated ecosystem approach to management in Canadian oceans, particularly in areas considered ecologically or biologically significant. DFO has developed general guidance for the identification of ecologically or biologically significant areas. The criteria for defining such areas include uniqueness, aggregation, fitness consequences, resilience, and naturalness. This science advisory process identifies proposed EBSAs in Canadian Pacific marine waters, specifically in the Strait of Georgia (SOG), along the west coast of Vancouver Island (WCVI, southern shelf ecoregion), and in the Pacific North Coast Integrated Management Area (PNCIMA, northern shelf ecoregion). Initial assessment of IAs in PNCIMA was carried out in September 2004 to March 2005 with spatial data collection coordinated by Cathryn Clarke. Subsequent efforts in WCVI and SOG were conducted in 2009, and may have used different scientific advisors, temporal extents, data, and assessment methods. WCVI and SOG IA assessment in some cases revisits data collected for PNCIMA, but should be treated as a separate effort. Other datasets in this series detail IAs for birds, cetaceans, coral and sponges, fish, invertebrates, and other vertebrates. Though data collection is considered complete, the emergence of significant new data may merit revisiting of IAs on a case by case basis.

Temperature and copepod abundance in Zackenberg, northeastern Greenland. Temperature is measured at 80 m for Microcalanus and 5 m for Pseudocalanus (Arendt et al. 2016). STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/plankton" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 76 - Figure 3.2.7

Bathymetric features, warm currents (red arrows), cold currents (blue arrows) and riverine inflow in the Arctic. Adapted from Jakobsen et al. (2012). Simplified Arctic Ocean currents (Fig. 2.1) show that the main circulation patterns follow the continental shelf breaks and margins of the basins in the Arctic Ocean. Different global models predict different types of changes, which can cause changes to Arctic ecosystems (AMAP 2013, Meltofte 2013). STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/marine" target="_blank">Chapter 2</a> - Page 22 - Figure 2.1

The Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) High Water Mark Lines provide alongshore and across-shore geomorphological and biological attributes of the high water mark shoreline. The lines are used in the CHS nautical charts to represent the level reached by sea water at high tide.

The Regional Ice Ocean Prediction System (RIOPS) provides ice and ocean forecasts up to 84 hours, four times per day on a 1/12° resolution grid (3-8 km). RIOPS is initialized using analyses from the Global Ice-Ocean Prediction System (GIOPS). Atmospheric fluxes up to 84 hours forecasts are calculated using fields from a component of the Global Deterministic Prediction System (GDPS) at 10km horizontal resolution

Distributions of all capelin species (light green) and Pacific capelin (Mallotus catervarius; dark green pattern) based on participation in research sampling, examination of museum voucher collections, the literature and molecular genetic analysis (Mecklenburg and Steinke 2015, Mecklenburg et al. 2016). Map shows the maximum distribution observed from point data and includes both common and rare locations STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/marine-fishes" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 117 - Figure 3.4.5

The Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) Low Water Mark Lines provide alongshore and across-shore geomorphological and biological attributes of the low water mark shoreline. The lines are used in the CHS nautical charts to represent the level reached by sea water at low tide.

This dataset provides 1/36-degree monthly-mean ocean current climatology (April - September) in the Northeast Pacific. The climatological fields are derived from hourly ocean currents for the period from 1993 to 2020, simulated using a high-resolution Northeast Pacific Ocean Model (NEPOM).

Trends in abundance of plankton Focal Ecosystem Components across each Arctic Marine Area. STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - Chapter 4 - Page 178 - Figure 4.2