The warming of the Arctic has caused a significant shift in the ecosystem of Great Slave Lake, with smaller diatoms replacing larger ones, potentially impacting the lake's productivity, carbon dynamics, food web, and nearby communities.
The rapidly warming Arctic is no stranger to loss. Climate change is gradually claiming some of its most iconic features, from melting glaciers in Greenland to shrinking sea ice in the ocean.
Climate change could be altering northern ecosystems more quickly and profoundly than anyone surmised, suggests a study that focused on a large Arctic lake.
As the deepest and most northern of the Great Lakes, Superior was once thought immune to algal blooms, which is why it was such a shock when the first report of blue-green algae came in 2012.