The ecology of snow and ice environments / Johanna Laybourn-Parry, Martyn Tranter and Andrew J. Hodson.

Print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Snow and ice environments support significant biological activity, yet the biological importance of some of these habitats, such as glaciers, has only recently gained appreciation. Collectively, these ecosystems form a significant part of the cryosphere, most of which is situated at high latitudes. These ice environments are important sentinels of climate change since the polar regions are presently undergoing the highest rates of climate warming, resulting in very marked changes inthe extent of ice caps, glaciers, and the sea ice. Glacial systems are also regarded as an analogue for astrobiol.

Cover; Contents; Abbreviations; 1. An introduction to ice environments and their biology; 1.1 Introduction; 1.2 Introduction to functional dynamics and the organisms; 1.2.1 Community structure and function; 1.2.2 Organisms; 1.3 The cryosphere: past and present; 1.3.1 The last glacial maximum; 1.3.2 Contemporary fluctuations of glaciers and ice sheets; 1.3.3 Snowball Earth; 1.4 Sea ice; 1.4.1 Nature of sea ice; 1.4.2 Sea ice communities; 1.5 Lake ice; 1.6 Glaciers; 1.6.1 Ice mass balance zones in glacial ecosystems; 1.6.2 Hydrological zonation in surface ecosystems; 1.6.3 Supraglacial lakes.

English.

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