Southeastern Hudson Bay Research Articles

Size-Fractionated Microbiome Structure in Subarctic Rivers and a Coastal Plume Across DOC and Salinity Gradients.

Little is known about the microbial diversity of rivers that flow across the changing subarctic landscape. Using amplicon sequencing (rRNA and rRNA genes) combined with HPLC pigment analysis and physicochemical measurements, we investigated the diversity of two size fractions of planktonic Bacteria, Archaea and microbial eukaryotes along environmental gradients in the Great Whale River (GWR), Canada. This large subarctic river drains an extensive watershed that includes areas of thawing permafrost, and discharges into southeastern Hudson Bay as an extensive plume that gradually mixes with the coastal marine waters. The microbial communities differed by size-fraction (separated with a 3-μm filter), and clustered into three distinct environmental groups: (1) the GWR sites throughout a 150-km sampling transect; (2) the GWR plume in Hudson Bay; and (3) small rivers that flow through degraded permafrost landscapes. There was a downstream increase in taxonomic richness along the GWR, suggesting that sub-catchment inputs influence microbial community structure in the absence of sharp environmental gradients. Microbial community structure shifted across the salinity gradient within the plume, with changes in taxonomic composition and diversity. Rivers flowing through degraded permafrost had distinct physicochemical and microbiome characteristics, with allochthonous dissolved organic carbon explaining part of the variation in community structure. Finally, our analyses of the core microbiome indicated that while a substantial part of all communities consisted of generalists, most taxa had a more limited environmental range and may therefore be sensitive to ongoing change.

Inuit knowledge of Arctic Terns (Sterna paradisaea) and perspectives on declining abundance in southeastern Hudson Bay, Canada.

The Arctic Tern (Sterna paradisaea; takatakiaq in Inuttitut) breeds in the circumpolar Arctic and undertakes the longest known annual migration. In recent decades, Arctic Tern populations have been declining in some parts of their range, and this has been a cause of concern for both wildlife managers and Indigenous harvesters. However, limited scientific information is available on Arctic Tern abundance and distribution, especially within its breeding range in remote areas of the circumpolar Arctic. Knowledge held by Inuit harvesters engaged in Arctic Tern egg picking can shed light on the ecology, regional abundance and distribution of this marine bird. We conducted individual interviews and a workshop involving 12 Inuit harvesters and elders from Kuujjuaraapik, Nunavik (northern Québec), Canada, to gather their knowledge of Arctic Tern cultural importance, ecology, and stewardship. Interview contributors reported a regional decline in Arctic Tern numbers which appeared in the early 2000s on nesting islands near Kuujjuaraapik. Six possible factors were identified: (1) local harvest through egg picking; (2) nest disturbance and predation; (3) abandonment of tern nesting areas (i.e., islands that have become connected to the mainland due to isostatic rebound); (4) climate change; (5) natural abundance cycles within the Arctic Tern population; and (6) decline of the capelin (Mallotus villosus) in the region. Recommendations from Inuit contributors related to Arctic Tern stewardship and protection included: (1) conduct more research; (2) let nature take its course; (3) conduct an awareness campaign; (4) implement an egg picking ban; (5) coordinate local egg harvest; (6) start 'tern farming'; (7) protect Arctic Terns across their migration route; and (8) harvest foxes predating on terns. Our study highlighted complementarities between Inuit knowledge and ecological science, and showed that Inuit harvesters can make substantial contributions to ongoing and future Arctic tern research and management initiatives.

Ice entrapment mortality may slow expanding presence of Arctic killer whales

Killer whales (Orcinus orca) occur seasonally in the eastern Canadian Arctic during the summer months. Increasing killer whale sightings throughout the region, and incursions into areas where they have not historically been observed, have been linked with declining sea ice, which has raised questions about the potential ecological impacts of a greater killer whale presence in the Arctic. Here we report on four killer whales that died of starvation after overwintering in southeastern Hudson Bay. This incident is similar to two other reported killer whale ice entrapments in Hudson Bay in 2011 and 2013, which together exceed the incidence of such events over the previous century. The six confirmed, and up to 16 more assumed, deaths due to ice entrapments over the past decade almost certainly represent significant levels of mortality for the population(s) of killer whales in the Canadian Arctic. Ice entrapments of naive killer whales exploring new Arctic territory may therefore offer a natural check on range expansions in the region, particularly in convoluted inland bays and inlets into which they pursue previously inaccessible prey, but fail to exit prior to ice formation.

Postglacial relative sea-level histories along the eastern Canadian coastline

We have assembled a database of Relative Sea Level (RSL) data points from the eastern coast of Canada from Hudson Bay to the border with the USA. In compiling this database we have critically reviewed 1092 radiocarbon dated samples from raised beaches, isolation basins, intertidal and marine deposits, and archaeological indicators to produce 405 sea-level index points and 687 sea-level limiting points. Our comprehensive, systematic, and quality-controlled RSL database allowed for the reconstruction of the postglacial evolution of 34 regions of eastern Canada providing new basin-scale insights into the processes driving RSL changes in the last ∼16 ka. The combination of a database of sea-level index points with an innovative empirical-Bayesian spatio-temporal statistical model provided new insights into rates and magnitude of the spatially-variable glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA), which dominated the postglacial RSL evolution in this sector of North America. A continuous postglacial RSL fall is observed at latitudes ≥ ∼50° N with higher rates (up to 35 mm a−1) recorded in southeastern Hudson Bay. At lower latitudes, the evolution is non-monotonic with RSL that dropped to a spatially variable early-Holocene lowstand, followed by a mid-Holocene highstand and, eventually, a gradual drop to present RSL. This pattern is particularly evident in the St Lawrence corridor. Along the majority of the Newfoundland, New Brunswick and western Nova Scotia coasts, a late-Pleistocene/early-Holocene RSL lowstand was followed by a continuous rise through the Holocene. At the margin of the former ice-sheet (i.e. eastern Nova Scotia), our data identify a continuous RSL rise through the Holocene. These records are characterized by decreasing rates of RSL rise through time, commencing with a rapid rise during the early Holocene (up to ∼17 mm a−1), a slowdown in the mid-Holocene (average rates ≤ ∼9 mm a−1), and a further reduction in the late Holocene (average rates < 2 mm a−1). Finally, our database allowed the identification of regions, including the Labrador coast and part of the St Lawrence corridor, where further investigations are required to better constrain the RSL evolution and improve our ability to assess the variability of RSL histories.

Subarctic Thermokarst Ponds: Investigating Recent Landscape Evolution and Sediment Dynamics in Thawed Permafrost of Northern Québec (Canada)

Although widely distributed throughout Arctic and subarctic regions, thermokarst ponds and lakes remain relatively unexplored regarding geomorphological changes in their catchments and their internal properties in relation to climate change over the past decades. This study synthesizes recent landscape evolution and modern sedimentology of limnologically diverse thermokarst ponds near southeastern Hudson Bay, Canada. Spatio-temporal analysis of permafrost mounds, thermokarst ponds, and vegetation surface areas over the past five decades revealed that the recent climate-induced decrease of permafrost-affected areas was not primarily compensated by thermokarst pond development, but rather by a remarkable increase in vegetation cover. These changes appeared to be modulated by topographical and hydrological gradients at the study site, which are associated with east-ward increasing thickness of postglacial marine deposits. At a more contemporary timescale, physico-chemical measurements made on sedimenting materials (sediment traps) and freshly deposited lacustrine sediments of selected thermokarst ponds revealed striking differences both among ponds and between the oxic epilimnion and the oxygen-depleted hypolimnion. These findings underscore the major influence of local landscape properties and oxycline development on pond sedimentology and geochemistry, such as the transport of detritic particles and the concentration of redox-sensitive elements.

Seasons of the ringed seal: pelagic open-water hyperphagy, benthic feeding over winter and spring fasting during molt

Context The ringed seal (Phoca hispida), a small phocid seal with a circumpolar Arctic distribution and a strong association with sea ice, occurs at the southern limit of its range in Hudson and James Bays: an area that experiences complete ice cover in winter and complete open water in summer. Because of the high seasonal variability in environmental conditions, it is expected that ringed seals experience seasonal changes in diet and foraging habitat, which will be reflected in body condition and biomarkers of stable isotopes and fatty acids. Aims The purpose of the present study was to investigate intra-annual variation in the feeding habits and body condition of the ringed seal. Methods Tissue samples and morphological measurements from south-eastern Hudson Bay ringed seals were obtained every month during the Inuit subsistence hunt from November 2009 to May 2011 (n = 192). Muscle samples were used for δ15N and δ13C stable isotope analysis, blubber was used for analysis of fatty acid composition, bodyweight and sculp weight were used to estimate percentage blubber, and lower right canines were used to determine age. Key results Fatty acid composition, δ15N, and δ13C varied significantly by season, suggesting seasonal changes in foraging habitat and diet. Variation in percentage blubber indicated that poorest body condition occurs following the molting and fasting period, followed by a gradual increase from late summer through fall, with the highest body condition occurring in time for freeze-up in December. Key conclusions Patterns of δ13C indicate pelagic feeding during the open-water season (August–December) when fat and energy stores are replenished, increased benthic foraging during the period of ice cover (January–May), followed by a period of fasting during the spring molt (June–July). Fatty acid composition suggested seasonal changes in diet that could include increased importance of pelagic fish in the fall during the period of positive energy balance. Implications The first continuous collection of ringed seal tissue samples provided a comprehensive seasonal pattern of biomarker composition, which is baseline data that have important applications for short-term management and ecology studies as well as long-term conservation and monitoring programs.

Lake Agassiz outburst age and routing by Labrador Current and the 8.2 cal ka cold event

Catastrophic drainage of glacial Lake Agassiz, impounded by the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS), into Hudson Bay and Strait is widely thought to have caused the 8.2 cal ka cold event, though the path of its drainage in the North Atlantic is poorly known. Analysis and compilation of 10 sediment cores from 8 sites distributed on the eastern Canadian continental shelf and upper slope south of Hudson Strait revealed distinct beds with elevated detrital carbonate (DC) concentrations, known by their distinct composition to originate from erosion of carbonate bedrock and carbonate-rich glacial sediments in the Hudson Bay-Hudson Strait region. At all but one site, radiocarbon ages, bracketing and within the thickest and most widespread of these beds, are coeval with the age constraints for the Agassiz floods in Hudson Strait and southeastern Hudson Bay. The DC distribution and concentration of this bed are consistent with southward transport in the Labrador Current. Transfer function analysis of dinoflagellate assemblage data from cores on the central Labrador Shelf, in Hudson Bay, and on the Northeast Newfoundland Shelf reveal that early Holocene seasonal ice cover was 5–6 months longer than at present, requiring the application of a 200-year reduction to the radiocarbon age constraints on the Lake Agassiz outburst floods. The age of the floods is reduced to about 8.33 cal ka (7.5 14C ka) from the previous determination of 8.47 cal ka (7.7 14C ka), with a similar reduction in their error ranges to 8.04–8.49 cal ka from 8.16–8.74 cal ka. Based on present current routing, the Agassiz floodwaters and icebergs are inferred to have travelled south in the Labrador Current, and to have possibly become incorporated into the North Atlantic Current, and transported to the Nordic seas. There the freshwater additions would have lessened deepwater production with a concomitant reduction in northward heat transport in the upper limb of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, thereby contributing to the 8.2 cal ka cold event. Variation in the calcite and dolomite content of the Agassiz DC bed, two salinity reductions during Agassiz bed deposition, and low-level shorelines of lakes Agassiz and Ojibway suggest that more than one outburst was delivered during the final Agassiz drainage. The 8.2 cal ka cold event registered in Greenland was coeval with a second or later flood, which possibly accompanied the final collapse of the LIS in Hudson Bay.

3D bio-physical model of the sympagic and planktonic productions in the Hudson Bay system

We present a first attempt of simulating the sympagic and planktonic production cycles in the Hudson Bay marine system (HBS) driven by ice cover duration and local hydrodynamics with the help of a 3D coupled biological–physical model. The simulation shows a marked spatial variability of ice and planktonic production and associated carbon fluxes, suggesting the co-existence of several sub-systems in the HBS. Among these, the “low ice–high mixing” Hudson Strait sub-system is characterized by high (low) planktonic (ice algae) production, with annual primary production reaching up to 150 g C m − 2 y − 1 . In contrast, the “high ice–low mixing” conditions over Hudson Bay induce an annual primary production of ca. 10–40 g C m − 2 y − 1 with a strong and early ice algal bloom. New production generally prevails over the simulated system except along the coastal freshwater-influenced southeastern Hudson Bay and shallow Foxe Basin. In most of the HBS, summer conditions are characterized by the prominence of deep chlorophyll and biomass maxima (down to 60 m depth in the Hudson Bay) located near the nutricline. Finally, the residence time of the particulate organic matter and further export to the benthos appear driven by coupled advective and bathymetric effects.

Downward particulate organic carbon export and jellyfish blooms in southeastern Hudson Bay

A long-term sediment trap was deployed at 100 m (station AN03; 55°24′N; 77°55′W; water depth = 136 m) from October 2005 to August 2007 to monitor downward carbon export in southeastern Hudson Bay in the Canadian subarctic region. Elevated particulate organic carbon (POC) and total fluxes during fall 2005 and 2006 were the result of wind-induced resuspension of settled POC. The absence of a significant increase in POC fluxes in summer 2006 in contrast to summer 2007 suggests variation in the processes regulating carbon export in southeastern Hudson Bay. Large quantities of the holoplanktonic jellyfish Aglantha digitale were collected in the sediment trap during fall 2006 and summer 2007. The large collection of A. digitale during fall 2006 corresponds to the seasonal descent of the population, while the large abundance during summer 2007 remains unexplained. The increased POC fluxes in summer 2007 and the large occurrence of A. digitale in 2006 and 2007 may be early signs of environmental changes in southeastern Hudson Bay, however more sampling is needed to capture the variability of the ecosystem.

Sensitivity of Hudson Bay Sea ice and ocean climate to atmospheric temperature forcing

A regional sea-ice–ocean model was used to investigate the response of sea ice and oceanic heat storage in the Hudson Bay system to a climate-warming scenario. Projections of air temperature (for the years 2041–2070; effective CO2 concentration of 707–950 ppmv) obtained from the Canadian Regional Climate Model (CRCM 4.2.3), driven by the third-generation coupled global climate model (CGCM 3) for lateral atmospheric and land and ocean surface boundaries, were used to drive a single sensitivity experiment with the delta-change approach. The projected change in air temperature varies from 0.8°C (summer) to 10°C (winter), with a mean warming of 3.9°C. The hydrologic forcing in the warmer climate scenario was identical to the one used for the present climate simulation. Under this warmer climate scenario, the sea-ice season is reduced by 7–9 weeks. The highest change in summer sea-surface temperature, up to 5°C, is found in southeastern Hudson Bay, along the Nunavik coast and in James Bay. In central Hudson Bay, sea-surface temperature increases by over 3°C. Analysis of the heat content stored in the water column revealed an accumulation of additional heat, exceeding 3 MJ m−3, trapped along the eastern shore of James and Hudson bays during winter. Despite the stratification due to meltwater and river runoff during summer, the shallow coastal regions demonstrate a higher capacity of heat storage. The maximum volume of dense water produced at the end of winter was halved under the climate-warming perturbation. The maximum volume of sea ice is reduced by 31% (592 km³) while the difference in the maximum cover is only 2.6% (32,350 km2). Overall, the depletion of sea-ice thickness in Hudson Bay follows a southeast–northwest gradient. Sea-ice thickness in Hudson Strait and Ungava Bay is 50% thinner than in present climate conditions during wintertime. The model indicates that the greatest changes in both sea-ice climate and heat content would occur in southeastern Hudson Bay, James Bay, and Hudson Strait.

Soil geochemical survey over concealed kimberlites in the Attawapiskat area in northern Canada

ABSTRACT A soil geochemical survey was conducted over kimberlites in a discontinuous permafrost zone in the James Bay Lowlands, southeastern Hudson Bay Lowlands. The kimberlites are concealed by 10 to 30 m of tills and Tyrell Sea clay sediments. Samples of humus and B-horizon soil were collected at 25–50-m intervals over traverses with the total lengths of 562 m over the Whiskey kimberlite and 740 m over the Yankee kimberlite pipe. B-horizon soil samples, sieved to

Rapid Holocene Deglaciation of the Labrador Sector of the Laurentide Ice Sheet

Abstract Retreat of the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) following the Last Glacial Maximum 21 000 yr BP affected regional to global climate and accounted for the largest proportion of sea level rise. Although the late Pleistocene LIS retreat chronology is relatively well constrained, its Holocene chronology remains poorly dated, limiting our understanding of its role in Holocene climate change and sea level rise. Here new 10Be cosmogenic exposure ages on glacially deposited boulders are used to date the final disappearance of the Labrador sector of the LIS (LS-LIS). These data suggest that following the deglaciation of the southeastern Hudson Bay coastline at 8.0 ± 0.2 cal ka BP, the southwestern margin of the LS-LIS rapidly retreated ∼600 km in 140 yr and most likely in ∼600 yr at a rate of ∼900 m yr−1, with final deglaciation by 6.8 ± 0.2 10Be ka. The disappearance of the LS-LIS ∼6.8 10Be ka and attendant reduction in freshwater runoff may have induced the formation of Labrador Deep Seawater, while the loss of the high albedo surface may have initiated the Holocene Thermal Maximum in eastern Canada and southern Greenland. Moreover, the rapid melting just prior to ∼6.8 10Be ka indicates that the remnant LIS may be the primary source of a postulated rapid rise in global sea level of ∼5 m that occurred sometime between 7.6 and 6.5 cal ka BP.

Using Fuzzy Logic for the Analysis of Sea-level Indicators with Respect to Glacial-isostatic Adjustment: An Application to the Richmond-Gulf Region, Hudson Bay

An important constraint for the inference of mantle viscosity is the variation of the Holocene relative sea-level (RSL) height (with respect to today) following the last deglaciation. As a measure of this variation, sea-level indicators (SLIs) related to the RSL heights at specific past time epochs are used. For the inversion of the RSL-height change in terms of mantle viscosity, neighbouring SLIs may be grouped into an RSL diagram taken as representative for the region considered. Usually, the nominal height and age of a particular SLI are the only characteristics considered when determining the former RSL height. However, only SLIs based on isolation basins yield a narrow range for this height, whereas SLIs based on fossil samples provide a lower bound (shells), an upper bound (driftwood) or a finite interval (basal peat) for it. To also use fossil samples objectively, we develop a classification scheme of the depositional conditions based on fuzzy logic. After the definition of appropriate membership functions, this method leads to a systematic interpretation of the large number of SLIs available. We apply this method to SLIs from the Richmond-Gulf region, southeastern Hudson Bay, near the former glaciation center of Canada and derive a decay time of 5 ka for the exponential function best fitting the RSL diagram for this region.

The Nastapoka drift belt, eastern Hudson Bay: implications of a stillstand of the Quebec–Labrador ice margin in the Tyrrell Sea at 8 ka BP

During deglaciation of eastern Hudson Bay, the western margin of the Québec–Labrador sector of the Laurentide Ice Sheet came to a stillstand about 8 14C ka BP along the Nastapoka Hills, a series of topographic highs along the bay. These hills are the northward continuation of the eastern Hudson Bay cuesta system. It left a drift belt consisting of ice-contact submarine fans along the western slopes of the hills, small frontal moraines on hilltops, and grounding-line deposits on sills between the hills. Geomorphological, sedimentary, and radiometric evidence suggest that the stillstand responsible for deposition of the Nastapoka drift belt was either entirely or partly synchronous with the deposition of the Sakami moraine farther south. There was a period when these two morainic systems marked a continuous ice margin. These stillstands occurred due to reduction of ablation at the ice margin. In the Nastapoka Hills, ablation slowed down when the ice margin was anchored on higher relief and stood at a regional break of slope that grounded the ice margin and reduced water depth at the ice terminus, therefore, putting an end to intensive calving. In eastern James Bay and southeastern Hudson Bay, stabilization of the ice margin was caused by a reequilibrium of the ice terminus after a rapid drop of water level due to the drainage of Glacial Lake Ojibway. The new data improves the resolution of the position ice margin in eastern Hudson Bay at 8 ka BP.

The Omar Story: The Role of Omars in Assessing Glacial History of West-Central North America

The direction of Wisconsinan glacial dispersion of distinctive Proterozoic erratics derived from the Belcher Group in southeastern Hudson Bay is shown to have been northwestward, westward and southward for hundreds of kilometres across Hudson Bay, Northern Ontario, western Canada, and several adjoining northern States. The most distinctive of these erratics, termed "omars", are composed of massive siliceous wacke characterized by buff-weathering calcareous concretions; these erratics were derived from the Omarolluk Formation of the Belcher Group, exposed in the Belcher Islands of eastern Hudson Bay, and probably underlying much of the southern part of this inland sea. Far less common but equally distinctive are erratics of red oolitic jasper that were derived from the Kipalu Formation of the Belcher Group. In parallel with the now widely accepted field term "omar", we introduce the term "kipalu" for such erratics of oolitic jasper. A map showing the distribution of the distinctive erratics, in relation to indicators of Wisconsinan glacier movement, provides the basis for inferring at least two discrete glaciations that produced several major ice lobes. This paper summarizes the field observations of numerous Canadian and American earth scientists, traces the evolution of thought on provenance of the distinctive erratics, and outlines the criteria for distinguishing "true" omars from erratics derived from other bedrock sources of concretion-bearing wackes.

Isolation au postglaciaire d'un bassin côtier près de Kuujjuaraapik-Whapmagoostui, en Hudsonie (Québec) : une analyse biostratigraphique diatomifère

En vue de retracer les phases d'isolation postglaciaire d'un lac côtier situé près de Kuujjuaraapik-Whapmagoostui (baie d'Hudson), le contenu diatomifère d'une carotte de sédiments a été analysé. La séquence sédimentaire recueillie dans le lac Kachishayoot démontre trois unités de changements paléoenvironnementaux provoqués par le relèvement isostatique postglaciaire. Ces unités se distinguent entre elles par une sédimentologie et des assemblages fossiles de diatomées contrastants. Le passage de l'argile marine à la gyttja et l'évolution des assemblages diatomifères successivement dominés par des espèces poly-mésohalobes, oligohalobes, puis halophobes, démontrent bien les effets de la salinité décroissante sur le milieu aquatique. De plus, les valeurs décroissantes d'alcalinité calculées par l'intermédiaire d'une fonction de transfert (basée sur les assemblages de diatomées) reflètent le passage d'un environnement riche à un environnement pauvre en nutriments lors de l'isolation du bassin lacustre des eaux de la Mer postglaciaire de Tyrrell. Le recyclage graduel de ses eaux a ainsi éliminé les nutriments et les ions majeurs (carbone inorganique dissous, Ca, Mg) issus du délavement du till et des argiles marines. La datation, par spectrométrie de masse à l'aide d'un accélérateur de particules (SMA) de matériel provenant de la carotte a permis d'évaluer le taux de sédimentation et d'estimer la durée des trois différentes étapes de la succession lacustre dans le bassin du lac Kachishayoot (conditions marines de 5400-4500 ans cal. BP, phase d'isolation entre 4500-1600 ans cal. BP et la phase lacustre depuis 1600 ans cal. BP). Cette étude biostratigraphique fournit aussi des indices quant à l'évolution du paysage dans le sud de l'Hudsonie par suite du retrait de la Mer postglaciaire de Tyrrell, il y a environ 5000 ans.

A 3‐D coupled ice‐ocean model applied to Hudson Bay, Canada: The seasonal cycle and time‐dependent climate response to atmospheric forcing and runoff

A coupled three‐dimensional, time‐dependent ice‐ocean model is developed and applied in order to reproduce the basin‐scale ice and mixed‐layer physical properties of Hudson Bay and James Bay, Canada. Models for albedo, evaporation, storms, frazil ice production, and radiation are included. Observed monthly means of winds, temperature, precipitation, runoff, and cloudiness are used to force the model and obtain multiyear, steady state, and non‐steady state solutions. The seasonal cycle in sea ice thickness, ice concentration, ocean temperature, and salinity is first reproduced. Then we consider a set of five experiments: (1) a strong westerly event from the North Atlantic Oscillation, (2) a year with anomalously high runoff, (3) regulated runoff from hydroelectric development, (4) high autumn winds, and (5) warm conditions. We find that preconditioning of the ocean for winter, controlled by the heat transfer to the atmosphere and freshwater input rates and also related to the mixed‐layer depth attained before freezing, has a strong control over the following ice season. The results show that varying runoff has more of an effect on sea‐ice production in southeastern Hudson Bay than do temperature changes associated with the North Atlantic Oscillation but that both have a small effect on the ice cover when compared to the observed interannual variability. Regulated runoff produces a positive sea‐ice anomaly during the January‐April period which is significant (greater than 10 cm or 10%) in the southeastern part of the bay but less than 1 cm (∼1%) on average. We conclude that ∼90% of the excess winter runoff remains liquid. No significant delay is computed for breakup dates (less than 3 days in southeastern Hudson Bay and less than 1 day overall). Other controls from the atmosphere are required to explain the natural interannual variability of the ice cover. Summer and autumn winds, and air temperature (which control heat loss and winter preconditioning), spring cloud cover (which controls heat gain), and snow cover (which controls the winter insulation) can explain relatively large changes in the system. Simple climate warming by 2°C produces large impacts in the ice‐ocean system, reducing the winter ice volume by over 20%.

Chlorinated hydrocarbon contaminants in polar bears from eastern Russia, North America, Greenland, and Svalbard: biomonitoring of Arctic pollution.

Adipose tissue samples from polar bears (Ursus maritimus) were obtained by necropsy or biopsy between the spring of 1989 to the spring of 1993 from Wrangel Island in Russia, most of the range of the bear in North America, eastern Greenland, and Svalbard. Samples were divided into 16 regions corresponding as much as possible to known stocks or management zones. Concentrations of dieldrin (DIEL), 4,4'-DDE (DDE), sum of 16 polychlorinated biphenyl congeners (sigma PCB), and sum of 11 chlordane-related compounds and metabolites (sigma CHL) were determined. In order to minimize the effect of age, only data for adults (320 bears age 5 years and older) was used to compare concentrations among regions. Concentrations of sigma PCB were 46% higher in adult males than females, and there was no significant trend with age. Concentrations of sigma CHL were 30% lower in adult males than females. Concentrations of sigma PCB, sigma CHL, and DDE in individual adult female bears were standardized to adult males using factors derived from the least-square means of each sex category, and geometric means of the standardized concentrations on a lipid weight basis were compared among regions. Median geometric mean standardized concentrations (lipid weight basis) and ranges among regions were as follows: sigma PCB, 5,942 (2,763-24,316) micrograms/kg; sigma CHL, 1,952 (727-4,632) micrograms/kg; DDE, 219 (52-560) micrograms/kg; DIEL, 157 (31-335) micrograms/kg. Geometric mean sigma PCB concentrations in bears from Svalbard, East Greenland, and the Arctic Ocean near Prince Patrick Island in Canada were similar (20,256-24,316 micrograms/kg) and significantly higher than most other areas. Atmospheric, oceanic, and ice transport, as well as ecological factors may contribute to these high concentrations of sigma PCB. sigma CHL was more uniformly distributed among regions than the other CHCs. Highest sigma CHL concentrations were found in southeastern Hudson Bay, which also had the highest DDE and DIEL concentrations. In general, concentrations of sigma CHL, DDE, and DIEL were higher in eastern than western regions, suggesting an influence of North American sources. Average sigma PCB concentrations in bears from the Canadian Arctic were similar to those in 1982-84, while average sigma CHL and DDE concentrations were 35-44% lower and DIEL was 90% lower. However, the significance of these temporal trends during the 1980s is not conclusive because of the problems of comparability of data.

Anthropogenic mercury deposition to Arctic lake sediments

The history of atmosheric mercury inputs to remote arctic regions can be measured in lake sediment cores using lead-210 chronology. In this investigation, total mercury deposition is measured in sediments from Imitavik and Annak Lakes on the Belcher Islands in southeastern Hudson Bay, an area in the southern Canadian Arctic with no history of local industrial or agricultural sources of contamination. Both lakes received background and atmospheric inputs of mercury while Annak also received mercury from raw domestic sewage from the Hamlet of Sanikiluaq, a growing Inuit community of about 550 established in the late 1960's. Results from Imitavik show that anthropogenic mercury inputs, apparently transported through the atmosphere, began to appear in the mid-eighteenth century, and continued to the 1990's. Annak had a similar mercury history until the late 1960's when disposal of domestic sewage led to increased sediment and contaminant accumulation. The high input of mercury to Annak confirms that Sanikiluaq residents are exposed to mercury through native food sources.

Persistent organochlorine compounds in the blubber of ringed seals ( Phoca hispida) from the Belcher Islands, Northwest Territories, Canada

Samples of blubber and morphometric data were obtained in 1991 from a population of ringed seals ( Phoca hispida) located in southeastern Hudson Bay, near the Belcher Islands. Several PCB congeners, DDT and its metabolites, components of technical chlordane, HCH compounds, dieldrin and mirex were detected at concentrations below 150 ng/g lipid in the blubber of these animals. Female seals had lower concentrations of PCB congeners, DDT compounds and chlordane compounds in the blubber than male seals from this region, but there were no sex-specific differences observed for HCH compounds, dieldrin and mirex. Correlations were observed between the age of male seals and their estimated ‘blubber burdens’ (mg) of total PCBs and total DDT. There was evidence that the male seals from the Belcher Islands had higher concentrations and blubber burdens of total PCBs and lower concentrations of total HCHs than male seals sampled in 1989 from a population at Holman Island in the northwest Canadian arctic. Morphometric data indicated that the Holman Island seals were in better condition than the Belcher Islands seals at the time of sampling. Due to the negative correlation observed between contaminant concentrations in ringed seals and the condition of the animals, analysis of blubber burdens in seals may be a preferable method for monitoring spatial and temporal trends in the contamination of ringed seals in the arctic.