Copepods are a major lipid-rich food source for many Arctic marine animals, such as polar cod and Atlantic cod. There are major concerns about the vulnerability of these organisms to stressors such as ocean warming and acidification, as well as pollution from oil exploitation and shipping activities.

As part of the Nansen Legacy, experiments are conducted to investigate how multiple stressors concertedly affect the survival and abundance of Calanus hyperboreus and C. glacialis – two key copepod species in the Barents Sea and Arctic marine ecosystem. Short-term experiments at sea and long-term (4-month to 1-year) experiments in the laboratory are conducted, exposing these two species to different warming, acidification and pollution scenarios.

These experiments are unique and will generate insights into the consequences and mechanisms for interactive effects of dominant stressors for Arctic copepods.