OGP Arctic Response Consequence Analysis Tables (ARCAT): Arctic Environmental Compartments (Aecs)

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OGP Arctic Response Consequence Analysis Tables (ARCAT): Arctic Environmental Compartments (AECs)

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FA0016-01 November 2014

Suggested format for citation:

LGL Ecological Research Associates Inc. 2014. OGP Arctic Response Consequence Analysis Tables (ARCAT): Arctic Environmental Compartments (AECs). Rep. by LGL Ecological Research Associates, Inc., Bryan, TX, for Environ, Port Gamble, WA. 77 p.

Table of Contents

Page

List of Figures ...... vi List of Tables ...... vii 1.0 Introduction ...... 1 2.0 Description of GIS Metadata ...... 3 3.0 Description of the Arctic Environmental Compartments ...... 4 3.1 Atmosphere ...... 4 3.2 Air-Water Interface (Surface Micro-layer) ...... 4 3.3 Pelagic Open Water ...... 5 3.3.1 <1 m Stratum ...... 5 3.3.2 1 to <10 m Stratum ...... 5 3.3.3 10 to <100 m Stratum ...... 6 3.3.4 100 to 1,000 m Stratum ...... 6 3.4 Ice-Water Interfaces ...... 7 3.4.1 Ice-Water Edges ...... 8 3.4.1.1 Annual Ice ...... 8 3.4.1.2 Multi-year Ice...... 9 3.4.1.3 Polynyas and Leads...... 9 3.4.2 Under Ice ...... 10 3.4.2.1 Annual Ice ...... 10 3.4.2.2 Multi-year Ice...... 11 3.4.3 Within Ice...... 11 3.5 Water-Water Interfaces ...... 11 3.5.1 Surface Currents...... 12 3.5.2 Estuarine Areas ...... 13 3.5.3 Areas of Upwelling and Downwelling ...... 13 3.6 Water-Sediment Interfaces ...... 14 3.7 Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) ...... 15 3.7.1 Chukchi Sea Sub-area ...... 16 3.7.1.1 Northeast Coastal Area (Alaska)-ASBS #1 ...... 16 3.7.1.2 Southeastern Chukchi Sea (Chukchi Bight, Kotzebue Sound Area)-ASBS #2 ...... 17 3.7.1.3 Northern Chukchi Peninsula-ASBS #3 ...... 19 3.7.1.4 South-Central Chukchi Sea (including Bering Strait region)-ASBS #4 ...... 20 3.7.1.5 Wrangel/Herald Islands Area-ASBS #5 ...... 20 3.7.1.6 Chukchi Shelf (Northern and Central Parts)-ASBS #6...... 21 3.7.2 Beaufort Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.13 in Section 4.0) ...... 22

ii 3.7.2.1 Amundsen Gulf Area-ASBS #1 ...... 22 3.7.2.2 Mackenzie Estuary and Shelf-ASBS #2 ...... 22 3.7.2.3 Northeast Alaska and Yukon Coasts and Shelves-ASBS #3 ...... 24 3.7.2.4 North Alaskan Coast and Shelf-ASBS #4 ...... 25 3.7.2.5 Offshore Pack Ice-ASBS #5 ...... 26 3.7.3 Central Arctic Ocean Sub-area (Figure 4.14 in Section 4.0) ...... 26 3.7.3.1 Pack Ice-ASBS #1...... 26 3.7.3.2 Chukchi Plateau (Chukchi Rise Area)-ASBS #2 ...... 27 3.7.3.3 Chukchi Shelf (Northern and Central Parts)-ASBS #3...... 27 3.7.3.4 Wrangel/Herald Islands Area-ASBS #4 ...... 27 3.7.3.5 Arctic Basin Multi-year Pack Ice-ASBS #5 ...... 28 3.7.3.6 Svalbard Archipelago-ASBS #6 ...... 28 3.7.3.7 Franz Josef Land-ASBS #7 ...... 29 3.7.3.8 Northwestern Laptev Sea (including polynyas north and northeast of Severnaya Zemlya)-ASBS #8 ...... 29 3.7.3.9 Great Siberian Polynya System-ASBS #9 ...... 29 3.7.3.10 Ice Zone on the Northern Shelf-ASBS #10 ...... 29 3.7.4 Canadian Arctic Archipelago Sub-area (Figure 4.15 in Section 4.0) ...... 30 3.7.4.1 Amundsen Gulf Area-ASBS #1 ...... 30 3.7.4.2 Western Victoria Island Inlets-ASBS #2 ...... 31 3.7.4.3 Viscount Melville Sound-ASBS #3 ...... 31 3.7.4.4 Coronation Gulf/Queen Maud Gulf-Coasts and Inlets-ASBS #4 ...... 32 3.7.4.5 King William and Southern Victoria Islands-ASBS #5 ...... 32 3.7.4.6 Lancaster Sound and Adjacent Inlets-ASBS #6 ...... 33 3.7.4.7 Prince Regent Inlet and Gulf of Boothia-ASBS #7 ...... 34 3.7.4.8 Peel Sound-ASBS #8 ...... 34 3.7.4.9 Wellington Channel-ASBS #9 ...... 34 3.7.4.10 Cardigan Strait-Hell Gate-ASBS #10 ...... 34 3.7.4.11 Northern Archipelago/Norwegian Bay-ASBS #11 ...... 35 3.7.4.12 Ellesmere Island ASBS #12 ...... 35 3.7.4.13 Northern Foxe Basin-ASBS #13 ...... 36 3.7.5 Baffin Bay Sub-area (Figure 4.16 in Section 4.0) ...... 36 3.7.5.1 North Water-Northern Baffin Bay-ASBS #1 ...... 36 3.7.5.2 Eastern Baffin Island Coast and Shelf-ASBS #2 ...... 37 3.7.5.3 Melville Bay-ASBS #3 ...... 38 3.7.5.4 Northwest Greenland Shelf-ASBS #4 ...... 38 3.7.5.5 Central Baffin Bay and Mouth of UUmmannaq Fjord- ASBS #5...... 38

iii 3.7.5.6 Ellesmere Island-ASBS #6 ...... 38 3.7.5.7 Lancaster Sound and Adjacent Inlets-ASBS #7 ...... 39 3.7.6 Davis Strait Sub-area (Figure 4.17 in Section 4.0) ...... 39 3.7.6.1 Eastern Baffin Island Coast and Shelf-ASBS #1 ...... 39 3.7.6.2 Southern Baffin Bay-ASBS #2 ...... 40 3.7.6.3 Disko Bay and Store Hellefiske Banke-ASBS #3 ...... 40 3.7.7 Greenland Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.18 in Section 4.0) ...... 41 3.7.7.1 Northwest Iceland-ASBS #1 ...... 41 3.7.7.2 Denmark Strait-ASBS #2 ...... 41 3.7.7.3 North Iceland-ASBS #3 ...... 42 3.7.7.4 Northeast Water Polynya-ASBS #4 ...... 42 3.7.7.5 Scoresby Sund Fjord/Blosseville Coast-ASBS #5 ...... 42 3.7.7.6 Sirius Water/Young Sund Polynya-ASBS #6 ...... 42 3.7.7.7 Sea Ice in Western Greenland Sea-ASBS #7 ...... 42 3.7.7.8 Southeastern Greenland and Denmark Strait-ASBS #8...... 43 3.7.7.9 Jan Mayen Island-ASBS #9 ...... 43 3.7.7.10 Svalbard Archipelago-ASBS #10...... 43 3.7.8 Norwegian Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.19 in Section 4.0) ...... 44 3.7.8.1 Lofoten Area-ASBS #1 ...... 44 3.7.8.2 Jan Mayen Island-ASBS #2 ...... 44 3.7.8.3 Norwegian and Murman Coasts-ASBS #3 ...... 44 3.7.9 Barents Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.20 in Section 4.0) ...... 44 3.7.9.1 Pechora Sea (off Russia – SE Barents)-ASBS #1 ...... 44 3.7.9.2 Norwegian and Murman Coasts-ASBS #2 ...... 45 3.7.9.3 Bear Island-ASBS #3 ...... 45 3.7.9.4 Svalbard Archipelago-ASBS #4 ...... 45 3.7.9.5 Franz Josef Land-ASBS #5 ...... 45 3.7.9.6 Western and Central Barents Sea-ASBS #6 ...... 46 3.7.9.7 Northern Barents Sea (Marginal Ice Zone)-ASBS #7 ...... 46 3.7.9.8 Western Novaya Zemlya-ASBS #8 ...... 46 3.7.9.9 Northeastern Novaya Zemlya-ASBS #9 ...... 46 3.7.10 White Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.21 in Section 4.0)...... 46 3.7.10.1 Entrance and Northern White Sea-ASBS #1 ...... 46 3.7.10.2 White Sea-ASBS #2 ...... 47 3.7.11 Kara Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.22 in Section 4.0) ...... 47 3.7.11.1 Baydaratskaya Inlet-Western Yamal-ASBS #1 ...... 47 3.7.11.2 Northeastern Novaya Zemlya-ASBS #2 ...... 47 3.7.11.3 Western Novaya Zemlya-ASBS #3 ...... 48 3.7.11.4 Northern Kara Sea (Marginal Ice Zone)-ASBS #4 ...... 48 3.7.11.5 Northeastern Kara Sea Islands-ASBS #5 ...... 48 3.7.11.6 Ob River Estuary-ASBS #6 ...... 48 3.7.11.7 Yenisey River Estuary-ASBS #7 ...... 48

iv 3.7.11.8 Pyasina River Estuary-ASBS #8 ...... 49 3.7.11.9 Vilkitskij Strait-ASBS #9 ...... 49 3.7.11.10 Western Severnaya Zemlya-ASBS #10 ...... 49 3.7.12 Laptev Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.23 in Section 4.0) ...... 49 3.7.12.1 Northwestern Laptev Sea (including polynyas north and northeast of Severnaya Zemlya)-ASBS #1 ...... 49 3.7.12.2 Northeast Taymir and Preobrazheniya Island-ASBS #2 ...... 50 3.7.12.3 Great Siberian Polynya System-ASBS #3 ...... 50 3.7.12.4 New Siberian Islands-ASBS #4 ...... 50 3.7.12.5 Deltas and Estuaries of the Khatanga, Anabar, Lena and Yana Rivers-ASBS #5 ...... 50 3.7.13 East Siberian Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.24 in Section 4.0) ...... 51 3.7.13.1 New Siberian Islands-ASBS #1 ...... 51 3.7.13.2 Great Siberian Polynya System-ASBS #2 ...... 51 3.7.13.3 De Long Islands-ASBS #3 ...... 51 3.7.13.4 Indigirka and Kolyma Deltas and Estuaries-ASBS #4 ...... 51 3.7.13.5 Chaun Bay-ASBS #5 ...... 51 3.7.13.6 Wrangel/Herald Islands Area-ASBS #6 ...... 51 4.0 Arctic Environmental Compartment Figures ...... 53 5.0 References ...... 77

v List of Figures

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Figure 3.1. Major Areas of Upwelling, including those within the Study Area...... 14 Figure 4.1. Study Area (north of Arctic Circle) and Associated Sub-areas...... 53 Figure 4.2. Study Area Bathymetry (100 m, 200 m and 1,000 m isobaths)...... 54 Figure 4.3. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 1980, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads...... 55 Figure 4.4. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 1990, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads...... 56 Figure 4.5. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2000, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads...... 57 Figure 4.6. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2005, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads...... 58 Figure 4.7. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2008, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads...... 59 Figure 4.8. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2010, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads...... 60 Figure 4.9. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2011, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads...... 61 Figure 4.10. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2014, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads...... 62 Figure 4.11. Surface Current Patterns in the Study Area...... 63 Figure 4.12. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Chukchi Sea Sub-area...... 64 Figure 4.13. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Beaufort Sea Sub-area...... 65 Figure 4.14. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Central Arctic Ocean Sub-area...... 66 Figure 4.15. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago Sub-area...... 67 Figure 4.16. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Baffin Bay Sub-area...... 68 Figure 4.17. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Davis Strait Sub-area...... 69 Figure 4.18. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Greenland Sea Sub-area...... 70 Figure 4.19. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Norwegian Sea Sub-area...... 71 Figure 4.20. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Barents Sea Sub-area...... 72

vi Figure 4.21. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the White Sea Sub-area...... 73 Figure 4.22. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Kara Sea Sub-area...... 74 Figure 4.23. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Laptev Sea Sub-area...... 75 Figure 4.24. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the East Siberian Sea Sub-area...... 76

List of Tables

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Table 1.1. Arctic Environmental Compartments and Sub-Compartments...... 2 Table 3.1. Number of Areas of Special Biological Significance within the Study Area Sub-Areas by VEC Group...... 16

vii OGP-ARCAT: Arctic Environmental Compartments (AECs)

1.0 Introduction

The marine portion of the Study Area (i.e., area north of the Arctic Circle [66.5622° N]) (see Figure 4.1, Section 4.0) consists of a deep central basin divided by ridges (i.e., Central Arctic Ocean Sub-area), and the surrounding continental shelf areas (i.e., 14 other Sub-areas). The 15 Study Area Sub-areas used in this report include the following (see Figure 4.1, Section 4.0):

(1) Chukchi Sea; (2) Beaufort Sea; (3) Central Arctic Ocean; (4) Canadian Arctic Archipelago; (5) Lincoln Sea; (6) Baffin Bay; (7) Davis Strait; (8) North Atlantic Ocean; (9) Greenland Sea; (10) Norwegian Sea; (11) Barents Sea; (12) White Sea; (13) Kara Sea; (14) Laptev Sea; and (15) East Siberian Sea.

The 14 shelf regions account for about 50% of the marine portion of the Study Area (Michel et al. 2013 in Eamer et al. 2013).

The annual pattern of sea ice formation and melting controls much of the seasonal cycle for marine biota in the Arctic. Relatively warm, highly saline Atlantic waters enter the Study Area through Fram Strait between Greenland and Svalbard, Norway, while less saline (i.e., less dense) Pacific waters enter the Study Area through the Bering Strait between Siberia and Alaska. Being less dense, the Pacific water forms a layer on top of the Atlantic water mass. Fresh water from ice melt and river discharges forms a layer over the Pacific and Atlantic waters, thereby adding to the stratification (Eamer et al. 2013).

Both the Atlantic and Pacific water masses circulate but at different depths and in different patterns, mixing at some locations and distributing nutrients, organic matter, plankton and larvae of fishes and larger invertebrates. Linked to this dynamic pattern of ocean conditions is the Arctic marine biodiversity. For example, fishes associated with warm Atlantic waters are typically found in the waters of the Greenland Sea and the Barents Sea, while those of Pacific origin are most commonly found in the Chukchi, Beaufort and East Siberian seas (Michel et al. 2013 in Eamer et al. 2013). This relationship between marine species and water masses also applies to vertical distributions (Kosobokova and Hopcraft 2010 in Eamer et al. 2013).

The Arctic Environmental Compartments (AECs) identified in this study include atmosphere, pelagic ocean environments, and convergence zones at air-water, water-water, ice-water and

LGL Ecological Research Associates 1 OGP-ARCAT: Arctic Environmental Compartments (AECs) water-sediment interfaces (Table 1.1). The water-sediment interfaces include shorelines. Locations of some AECs and associated sub-compartments are relatively consistent (e.g., shorelines, polynyas) while others are seasonally and/or annually variable (e.g., annual ice front). Note that the AEC ‘Subtidal Rock Environment’ and the particle size-based sub-compartments of the AEC ‘Water-Sediment Interfaces’ have been removed due to lack of surficial sediment particle size data. See Section 3.6 for a more detailed explanation.

These AECs are similar to those in temperate and tropical environments throughout the world except for the addition of ice. The AECs provide habitat to marine organisms during at least a part of their life cycle. While inhabiting the AECs, the marine organisms may become exposed to Oil Spill Response (OSR) residuals that are transported to the compartments.

Seven AECs are identified, described and mapped in this report. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) was employed to develop the figures of the AECs.

This report is organized as follows:

• Introduction; • Description of GIS Metadata; • Description of Arctic Environmental Compartments; • Arctic Environmental Compartments Figures; and • References.

Four of the seven AECs are divided into sub-compartments (Table 1.1).

Table 1.1. Arctic Environmental Compartments and Sub-Compartments.

Arctic Environmental Compartment Sub-Compartment 1 Atmosphere 2 Air-Water Interface (Surface Micro-layer) 3 Pelagic Open Water Upper 1 m stratum of water column 1 to 10 m stratum of water column 10 to 100 m stratum of water column 100 to 1,000 m stratum of water column 4 Ice-Water Interfaces Ice-water edge – annual ice Ice-water edge – multi-year ice Ice-water edge – polynyas Under ice – annual ice – pressure ridge at shore Under ice – annual ice – pressure ridge offshore Under ice – multi-year ice Within ice 5 Water-Water Interfaces Surface currents Estuarine areas Upwelling and downwelling 6 Water-Sediment Interfaces Shorelines (including intertidal) Shallow subtidal (<10 m depth range) Deep subtidal – 10 to <100 m depth range Deep subtidal – 100 to 1,000 m depth range Deep subtidal – >1,000 m depth range 7 Areas of Special Biological Significance

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2.0 Description of GIS Metadata

1. Projection: IBCAO Polar stereographic 2. Datum: WGS 1984 3. Software: a. ArcGIS Desktop 10.2.2 b. QGIS Desktop 2.4 Chugiak 4. Data sources: c. Raster images of the Arctic were attained from the International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (IBACO). Last accessed September 2014. (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/bathymetry/arctic/arctic.html) d. Multi-year and annual ice extent coverages were downloaded from the National Snow and Ice Data Center FTP website. Last accessed October 2014. (http://nsidc.org/data/seaice_index/archives.html) e. Surface currents were replicated from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution depiction of Arctic Ocean circulation patterns. Last accessed October 2014. f. (http://polardiscovery.whoi.edu/arctic/circulation.html) g. Areas of Special Biological Significance were reproduced from areas identified as marine areas of heightened ecological significance by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP). Last accessed October 2014. h. (http://www.amap.no/documents/doc/Identification-of-Arctic-marine-areas- of-heightened-ecological-and-cultural-significance-Arctic-Marine-Shipping- Assessment-AMSA-IIc/869) i. World borders dataset. Last accessed September 2014. j. (http://thematicmapping.org/downloads/world_borders.php) k. Polynyas and leads duplicated from 2013 Arctic Biodiversity Assessment by the Arctic Council. Last accessed September 2014. (http://www.arcticbiodiversity.is/the-report/chapters) l. Arctic Circle. Last accessed October 2014. (http://www.naturalearthdata.com/downloads/10m-physical-vectors/10m- geographic-lines/) m. World Seas coverage. Last accessed September 2014. (http://www.marineregions.org/downloads.php#iho) n. Rivers coverage. Last accessed October 2014. o. (http://www.diva-gis.org/gdata) 5. Derived Data: Contour lines were extracted from the IBCAO Arctic raster coverage using the contour geoprocessing tool in QGIS Desktop. These were then loaded into ArcGIS Desktop for figure creation. Coverages for polynyas, leads and areas of special biological significance were digitized within ArcGIS desktop interface.

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3.0 Description of the Arctic Environmental Compartments

The following sections briefly describe the seven AECs occurring in the Study Area. Each description includes characteristics of the AEC itself, the potential interactions between the compartment and the oil and OSR residuals, and a general indication of which VEC groups are known to use the AEC and how they could potentially be affected by exposure to the oil and OSR residuals.

3.1 Atmosphere

The Atmosphere AEC is defined as the air overlying the surface micro-layer (SML). Therefore, this AEC occurs throughout the Study Area. The portion of the atmosphere most likely to be influenced by OSR residuals is the air immediately above oil spread on the surface of the ocean. The residual treatment materials that may influence this AEC include those which are more volatile and subsequently escape into the atmosphere (e.g. benzene/toluene/ethlybenzene/xylenes [BTEX]), more soluble compounds that are displaced into the atmosphere as aerosols, and the residuals created by in situ burning of the oil.

Marine organisms with the highest likelihood of exposure to contaminants in this AEC include Marine-associated birds and marine mammals (see appendices of associated reports for marine-associated bird and marine mammal VECs). These organisms may either encounter contaminants in this AEC by chance or they may be attracted or repelled by the oil at surface. The potential modes of action for these types of atmospheric exposure include acute exposure of respiratory and/or epithelial tissues to volatile components and contaminated water droplets, and inhalation of ash particles with or without contaminants resulting in physical- or chemical-related effects.

3.2 Air-Water Interface (Surface Micro-layer)

The Air-Water Interface AEC is defined as the uppermost tens to hundreds of µm of the ocean surface (Cunliffe et al. 2013). Therefore, this AEC occurs throughout the Study Area. Also known as the Surface Micro-layer (SML), it is the boundary layer where all exchange occurs between the atmosphere and the ocean. The chemical, physical and biological properties of this AEC differ from those characterizing the water immediately below it. The SML is an aggregate-enriched biofilm environment with distinct microbial communities. Organisms inhabiting the SML are referred to as neuston, distinguishing them from the planktonic organisms inhabiting the water underlying the SML (Cunliffe et al. 2013).

In the case of oil at surface, it is not a mixture of seawater and oil but rather a distinct layer of oil that overlies the SML. Deposition of ash particles on the SML due to in situ burning of the oil can also occur.

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Marine organisms with the highest likelihood of exposure to contaminants in this AEC include seabirds and marine mammals (see appendices of associated reports for marine-associated bird and marine mammal VECs). The exposure components would include oil and ash particles. Exposure to surface oil could result in fouling of feathers, skin and more external tissues such as those associated with baleen. The effects of such exposure would be primarily physical in nature and the degree of effect would depend on the type of tissue exposed and the extent of exposure. Another mode of exposure to contaminants in the SML is through feeding behavior (e.g., skim feeding, particle picking).

3.3 Pelagic Open Water

The pelagic open water environment can be divided into the coastal pelagic area and the oceanic pelagic area. The coastal pelagic area refers to the continental shelf waters (i.e., ≤200 m depth) while the oceanic pelagic refers to waters beyond the continental shelf. This AEC is divided into four water column strata, three of which apply to the coastal pelagic area while all four are relevant to the oceanic pelagic area.

3.3.1 <1 m Stratum

This sub-compartment includes the portion of the water column occurring between the SML described in Section 3.2 and 1 m depth. The exposure components most likely to occur in this AEC sub-compartment include soluble components, physically-dispersed oil globules, chemically-dispersed oil droplets, oil mineral aggregates (OMA), hydrated ash residues and weathered, emulsified materials.

3.3.2 1 to <10 m Stratum

This sub-compartment includes the portion of the water column between the 1 m and 10 m depths. The exposure components most likely to occur in this AEC sub-compartment include chemically-dispersed droplets, OMA mixtures, and globular mixtures of oil, organisms and debris produced during weathering of surface oils.

Data underneath dispersed oil plumes indicate the concentration of oil at 10 m depth is generally unmeasurable. Under actual conditions, the majority of the oil is in the upper 3 m of the water column, indicating a dilution of over 3,000-fold if all of the oil were contained within this layer of the water column. Once that initial dilution has occurred the horizontal transport of the oil

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will continue to decrease the concentrations. The chemically-dispersed or OMA treated oil will also be most concentrated near the surface and generally at unmeasurable concentrations at 10 m depth.

Marine organisms with the highest likelihood of exposure to contaminants in this AEC sub-compartment include invertebrates, fishes, seabirds and marine mammals (see appendices of associated reports for invertebrate/fish, marine-associated bird and marine mammal VECs). The types of exposure for organisms living within this portion of the water column includes fouling but to a lesser degree than oil at the sea surface, and ingestion of oil globules and/or droplets. They can be exposed to the soluble fractions of the oil that are released more effectively into the water column by the increase in surface area resulting from the use of oil dispersants, droplets of oil or OMA mixtures through fouling of outer surfaces or ingestion and component uptake into tissues, and fouling of outer surfaces of organisms by mixtures of weathering oil globules and natural products. It is also noted that during weathering the bioavailability of contaminants is altered, influencing the modes of action.

3.3.3 10 to <100 m Stratum

This sub-compartment includes the portion of the water column between the 10 m and 100 m depths. Figure 4.2 in Section 4.0 shows the 100 m isobaths within the Study Area. With increasing depth, the most likely exposure components are reduced in number to OMA and OMA mixtures with natural products or well-weathered mixtures of oil with or without natural products. Since these residuals settle slowly and currents act to disperse them, dilution is relatively rapid and their subsequent concentrations are much lower than those nearer to surface. However, in the case of chemical dispersant use to minimize the upward transport of oil and gas being released at depth (e.g., natural seep, drilling activities), chemical dispersant oil droplets and soluble components could occur in this stratum. Other processes that could alter potential exposure include re-concentration of particles and organisms at pycnoclines, and rapid transport of oil residuals via upwelling and downwelling events.

3.3.4 100 to 1,000 m Stratum

This sub-compartment includes the portion of the water column between the 100 m and 1,000 m depths. Figure 4.2 in Section 4.0 shows the 100 m and 1,000 m isobaths within the Study Area. This stratum is unlikely to be affected by OSR residuals entering the water column at or near surface. As with the 10–100 m water column stratum, chemical dispersant use to minimize the upward transport of oil and gas being released at depth (e.g., natural seep, drilling activities)

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could result in chemical dispersant oil droplets and soluble components in this stratum. Other processes that could alter potential exposure include re-concentration of particles and organisms at pycnoclines, and rapid transport of oil residuals via upwelling and downwelling events.

Marine organisms with the highest likelihood of exposure to contaminants in this AEC sub-compartment include invertebrates, fishes and marine mammals (see appendices of associated reports for invertebrate/fish and marine mammal VECs). Possible exposure types include ingestion of OMAs, diel vertical migrators or fecal pellets.

3.4 Ice-Water Interfaces

Marine areas seasonally or permanently covered by ice represent very special habitat compared to all other marine habitats. The ice edges and open-water areas favor wind-driven mixing of the seawater which enhances local production (Eamer et al. 2013).

In seasonally ice-covered regions, under-ice production may account for a substantial fraction of total annual carbon fixation (Gosselin et al. 1997 and Michel et al. 2006 in Eamer et al. 2013). The concentration of food attracts ice-associated invertebrates, fishes, marine-associated birds, and marine mammals (Eamer et al. 2013) (see appendices of associated reports for invertebrate/fish, marine-associated bird and marine mammal VECs).

Massive algal blooms form each spring within the ice, under the ice and in open water in the wake of the retreating ice edge, fueling reproduction of numerous marine species from copepods to seals (Perrette et al. 2011 and Arrigo et al. 2012 in Eamer et al. 2013).

Seabirds and mammals exhibit two strategies to access the biological production in ice-covered water: (1) use holes and cracks in the ice; and (2) take advantage of the ice-free period. Many species adapted to living in or around sea ice are poorly equipped to live anywhere else so any reduction in ice-covered areas in the Arctic is likely equivalent to habitat loss and range reduction for some species.

Recent increased air temperatures have affected the age of the ice, its distribution, the timing of ice break-up in the spring and freeze-up in the fall, and the extent and type of ice in different areas at certain times (Meier et al. 2011 and Barber et al. 2008 in Eamer et al. 2013). Changes over the past decade have led to a substantial reduction in the amount of multi-year ice in the Arctic Ocean and a corresponding increase in the area of annual ice (Maslanik et al. 2011 in Eamer et al. 2013). Figures 4.3–4.10 in Section 4.0 demonstrate the changes in spatial coverage of annual and multi-year ice that have occurred during recent years (1980–2014). The maximum extents of the annual and multi-year ice are shown in these figures.

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3.4.1 Ice-Water Edges

The ice-water edge is the demarcation at any given time between the open water and sea ice of any kind. It may be a regular line with compacted floes, a succession of belts or strips, or it may be frayed with off-lying isolated fragments. The ice-water edge is highly variable and exhibits rapid changes due to ice movement and deformation (dynamic processes), and ice growth and melt (thermodynamic processes) (Shuchman et al. 2004).

Variations in ice conditions along an edge result from wind drag, tides, ocean circulation, ice ablation and freezing, and can vary on a daily, monthly, seasonal or yearly basis. Compacted edges are clearly defined due to wind and/or currents moving the ice pack while diffuse edges are poorly defined and are typically associated with the downwind side of the ice pack (Shuchman et al. 2004).

Exposure components associated with this AEC sub-compartment include total oil, volatile components, soluble components and physically dispersed oil globules. Exposure types associated with this AEC include fouling from re-concentrated surface oil, acute respiratory exposure from volatile components, increased weathering and emulsion formation due to wind, waves and ice action could modify exposure, and ingestion of oil/suspended particle mixtures.

Ice-water edges are active zones of high production and intense activity. In their description of the trophic relationships observed at Arctic ice edges, Bradstreet and Cross (1982) reported the use of this habitat by invertebrates, fishes, marine-associated birds and marine mammals (see appendices of associated reports for invertebrate/fish, marine-associated bird and marine mammal VECs).

3.4.1.1 Annual Ice

Annual ice is floating ice of no more than one year’s growth developing from young ice. Its thickness typically ranges from 0.3–2.0 m. Usually annual ice is level where undisturbed by pressure but where ridges occur, it is rough and sharply angular (NSIDC 2014a).

Annual ice typically begins to form by the middle of September, and by the end of October, the ice field is almost solid along the coasts. As winter progresses, the annual ice extends offshore. The thickness of annual ice increases until about May at which time it begins to thaw, eventually becoming broken up into floes (Hebert 2013).

Figures 4.3–4.10 in Section 4.0 demonstrate the changes in spatial coverage of annual and multi-year ice that have occurred during the last 34 years (1980–2014).

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3.4.1.2 Multi-year Ice

Multi-year ice has distinct properties that distinguish it from annual ice, based on processes that occur during the summer melt. Multi-year ice contains much less brine and more air pockets than annual ice. Less brine means stiffer ice that is more difficult to break up (NSIDC 2014a).

Multi-year ice remains frozen year-round but still goes through a cycle of changes. The surface layer of this ice will melt in the summer and the water will drain through pores in the ice to the bottom. This salt-free meltwater will accumulate beneath the ice, atop the denser sea water. In winter, the meltwater refreezes as a layer on the bottom of the pack ice. Multi-year ice forms the permanent polar pack in the center of the Arctic Ocean as well as the summer pack that surrounds the permanent polar ice pack, and breaks up in the summer. Unlike annual ice, the summer ice pack never completely melts (NSIDC 2014a).

Figures 4.3–4.10 in Section 4.0 demonstrate the changes in spatial coverage of annual and multi-year ice that have occurred during recent years (1980–2014).

3.4.1.3 Polynyas and Leads

Figures 4.3–4.5, 4.8 and 4.10 in Section 4.0 show the locations of the predominant and secondary polynyas and leads that occur in the Study Area in relation to the maximum extents of annual and multi-year ice in 1980, 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2014. More information on polynyas and leads in the Study Area is provided in Section 3.7, Areas of Special Biological Significance.

Polynyas

Polynyas are large, persistent regions of open water and thin ice that occur within much thicker pack ice at locations where climatologically, thick pack ice would be expected. They may be created by strong currents, persistent winds or by upwelling that brings warm water to the surface. They serve as a source of abundant food early in the season, injecting energy into food webs before the surrounding ice has broken up (Arrigo and van Dijken 2004 and Lewis et al. 1996 in Eamer et al. 2013). Polynyas have a rectangular or oval aspect ratio with length scales of the 100 km order, persisting with intermittent openings and closings at the same locations for up to several months, and recurring over many years. Polynyas occur in both winter and summer (Martin 2001; Eamer et al. 2013).

Polynyas expand and contract annually as well as over a longer term due to climate changes (Sorensen 2010 in Eamer et al. 2013). For example, the Wrangel Island polynya located in the western part of the Chukchi Sea has doubled in size during the past 30 years (Moore and Pickart 2012 in Eamer et al. 2013). The North Water polynya, located between Canada and Greenland in Baffin Bay, is the largest polynya in the world but it is now showing signs of breaking down because of changes in ice conditions (Dumont 2012 and Dumont et al. 2010 in Eamer et al. 2013).

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Polynyas can be classified into coastal and open-ocean polynyas. Coastal polynyas form adjacent to a lee shore where the winter winds advect the adjacent pack ice away from the coast. The less common open-ocean polynyas have characteristic diameters of 100 km and are driven by the upwelling of warm ocean water, maintaining a large opening in the pack ice (Martin 2001; Eamer et al. 2013).

Coastal polynyas are often referred to as ‘latent heat’ polynyas because heat loss from coastal polynyas goes into ice growth. Open-ocean polynyas are often referred to as ‘sensible heat’ polynyas because the atmospheric heat loss from open-ocean polynyas goes into the cooling of the water column. Some polynyas are maintained by both upwelling and ice advection (e.g., North Water polynya in Baffin Bay) (Martin 2001; Eamer et al. 2013).

Leads

Leads are typically long linear stretches of open water in sea ice, often transient in nature, that are associated with pack ice deformation. Flaw leads, which occur annually, are situated between land-fast ice and pack ice. Leads typically have much smaller areas than polynyas (Eamer et al. 2013).

The width of leads is variable, ranging from a couple of meters to >1 km. They are sometimes branched, creating a complex network of linear features in the ice. As is the case for polynyas, leads are important for marine biota (NSIDC 2014b).

3.4.2 Under Ice

The primary invertebrates feeding on the underside of ice are amphipods, which in turn are main prey items for Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida) and various marine-associated birds (Bradstreet and Cross 1982).

3.4.2.1 Annual Ice

Pressure Ridges

Pressure ridges are composed of ice fragments that are piled up along a line, with the steep-sloped ridge rising up as much as five to ten feet or more above the adjacent stretches of level ice (NOAA 2014). They are formed by the crushing of refrozen leads and can attain drafts exceeding 50 m (Wadhams and Toberg 2012).

Shore Pressure Ridge

Exposure components associated with this AEC sub-compartment include total oil, volatile components, soluble components, oil globules and release of oil components post-ice breakup.

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Exposure types associated with this AEC include it being a significant source of release during ice breakup for fouling, soluble acute toxicity, volatilization and globule MOAs.

Offshore Pressure Ridge

Exposure components associated with this AEC sub-compartment include total oil, volatile components, soluble components and oil globules. As for VEC exposure to these components, there could be under ice transport to AEC and VEC, exposure of components to VECs as they are released, and oil entrapment within brine channel refuge areas.

3.4.2.2 Multi-year Ice

Exposure components associated with this AEC sub-compartment include total oil, volatile components, soluble components and oil globules. As for VEC exposure to these components, fouling possible, especially to unique ice algae communities, volatile and soluble exposure from released oil, chronic exposure from ingestion of oil globules, and oil entrapment within brine channel refuge areas.

3.4.3 Within Ice

Annual ice supports a greater abundance of life than does multi-year ice because it has more pores and brine channels for habitat (Kovacs et al. 2011 in Eamer et al. 2013). Fauna found within ice consist of invertebrates that are small enough to navigate the brine channels (e.g., crustaceans, nematodes, rotifers) (Bluhm et al. 2011 in Eamer et al. 2013). In addition, larval and juvenile stages of some bottom-dwelling marine worms and snails occur within the ice for weeks to months of their lives (Bluhm et al. 2011 in Eamer et al. 2013). Ice fauna are typically concentrated in the lower few centimeters of the ice (Marquardt et al. 2011 in Eamer et al. 2013), occurring in higher densities in land-fast ice than in pack ice (Bluhm et al. 2010 in Eamer et al. 2013).

Exposure components associated with this AEC sub-compartment include total oil in brine channels. As for VEC exposure to these components, there could be fouling of brine channel inhabitants, and bioavailability reduced until eventual release of components. Vertical transport of oil within ice, chromatographic separation of oil and biodegradation need better understanding.

3.5 Water-Water Interfaces

Invertebrates, fishes, marine associated birds and marine mammals all use particular habitat types associated with water-water interfaces (see associated reports for invertebrate/fish, marine-associated bird and marine mammal VECs).

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3.5.1 Surface Currents

Large scale circulation in the Study Area principally consists of the Beaufort Gyre, a mean annual clockwise motion in the western Arctic Ocean with a drift speed of 1–3 cm/s, and the Transpolar Drift, the movement of ice from the coast of Siberia eastward across the pole and into the North Atlantic by way of Fram Strait (see Figure 4.11 in Section 4.0). Ice velocities in the Transpolar Drift increase toward Fram Strait where the mean drift speed is 5–20 cm/s (Polyak et al. 2010).

The Arctic surface waters extend to a depth of about 45–50 m and are far less saline than the waters below. Generally, the surface waters of the Arctic Ocean circulate in a large clockwise rotational pattern moving from east to west around the polar ice cap. This rotating pattern (i.e., gyre) occurs as a result of the clockwise winds that typically occur in this region. Only surface waters are exchanged via ocean currents because towering submarine ridges prevent the exchange of very deep waters (University of Guelph 2014).

Known as the Beaufort Gyre, the Arctic current slowly swirls the surface waters of the Arctic Basin, turning the Polar Ice Cap along with it (one complete rotation about every 4 years). The other predominant current in the Arctic Ocean is called the Transpolar Drift Stream. It carries water and ice from Siberia, across the pole and down the east coast of Greenland, joining the East Greenland Current. This current flows in response to input from Siberian rivers and a predominantly westerly wind that pushes the Arctic surface water eastward into the Atlantic (University of Guelph 2014).

There is a smaller gyre within the Barents Sea (Barents Gyre) that flows in a counterclockwise direction with warmer Atlantic waters from the south mixing with colder Arctic waters in the north. The gyre’s movement occurs in response to a counterclockwise wind system that moves across the Barents Sea. The Barents Sea current is generally weak and variable, as are the equivalent gyres that occur in the Norwegian and Greenland Seas. The West Greenland Current dominates the waters off the coast of Greenland, south of the Davis Strait. As the West Greenland Current approaches the Davis Strait, it joins the Labrador Current and then continues northward into Baffin Bay where it cools down dramatically (University of Guelph 2014).

Exposure components associated with this AEC sub-compartment include total oil, volatile components, soluble components, weathered surface oil, emulsified surface oil and oil globules. Convergence zones re-concentrate surface oils, and weathering and emulsion production reduces availability. Potential types of exposure include fouling, volatile and soluble exposure, and chronic exposure from ingestion of oil globules.

More information on currents in the Study Area is provided in Section 3.7, Areas of Special Biological Significance.

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3.5.2 Estuarine Areas

Numerous freshwater systems empty into the marine system in the Study Area. The primary river systems, based on discharge, include the following:

• Yenisey River (discharges into the Kara Sea); • Lena River (discharges into the Laptev Sea); • Ob River (discharges into the Kara Sea); • MacKenzie River (discharges into the Beaufort Sea); • Pechora River (discharges into the Barents Sea); • Severnaya Dvina River (discharges into the White Sea); and • Kolyma River (discharges into the East Siberian Sea).

The extents of the brackish water areas at the rivers’ mouths vary considerably. See Figure 4.1, Section 4.0 for locations of these estuaries associated with the primary river systems in the Study Area.

Other rivers and their estuaries are also important to many of the VECs described in associated documents. These areas are noted in Section 3.7, Areas of Special Biological Significance.

3.5.3 Areas of Upwelling and Downwelling

Upwelling and downwelling describe mass movements of the ocean which affect both surface and deep currents. These movements are essential in stirring the ocean, delivering oxygen to depth, distributing heat, and bringing nutrients to the surface. Upwelling is the movement of cold, deep, often nutrient-rich water to the surface mixed layer, and downwelling is the movement of surface water to deeper depths. Upwelling occurs when surface waters diverge (move apart), enabling upward movement of water. Regions of upwelling have high productivity. Downwelling typically occurs when surface waters converge (come together), pushing the surface water downwards. Regions of downwelling have low productivity (Redmap 2014).

According to NOAA (2014), the major upwelling areas in the Study Area occur in coastal areas of Greenland (i.e., Baffin Bay, the Davis Strait, North Atlantic Ocean, and the Greenland Sea), Iceland (the Greenland Sea, the Norwegian Sea) and northern Scandinavia and western Russia (the Barents Sea) (Figure 3.1). Upwelling is almost always associated with polynyas and leads,

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as well as the shelf break. More locational information related to areas of upwelling in the Study Area is provided in Section 3.7, Areas of Special Biological Significance.

Exposure components associated with this AEC sub-compartment include total oil, volatile components, soluble components, and weathered oil globule components from surface or subsea releases. Potential types of exposure include fouling, volatile and soluble exposure, and chronic exposure from ingestion of oil globules.

Source: NOAA (2014).

Figure 3.1. Major Areas of Upwelling, including those within the Study Area.

3.6 Water-Sediment Interfaces

This AEC occurs throughout the Study Area. Note that suitable surficial sediment particle size data for the shorelines (including intertidal zone) and subtidal areas that occur within the Study Area were not found. According to Christopher Harrison, a research scientist at the Geological Survey of Canada (Natural Resources of Canada) who was primary author of the recently published Geological Map of the Arctic (Harrison et al. 2011), comprehensive particle size data for this area are not available. He says that the clastic rocks occurring at and near shore are likely to be sand grade or coarser, and that the surficial sediments in deeper areas will likely have more fine-grained components. However, he cannot recommend a source of more direct particle size data (C. Harrison, NRCan, pers. comm.). Therefore, based on Dr. Harrison’s opinion, the AEC ‘Subtidal Rock Environment’ and its sub-compartments as well as the ‘fine grain’ and ‘coarse grain’ sub-compartments associated with the AEC ‘Water-Sediment Interfaces’ have been removed from the AEC list (see Table 1.1).

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The revised sub-compartments of the Water-Sediment Interfaces AEC are as follow:

• Shorelines (including intertidal zone) • Shallow Subtidal (<10 m depth range) • Deep Subtidal o 10 to <100 m depth range o 100 to <1,000 m depth range o ≥1,000 m depth range

Marine organisms with the highest likelihood of exposure to contaminants in this AEC include particular invertebrates and fishes, marine-associated birds and marine mammals (see associated reports for invertebrate/fish, marine-associated bird and marine mammal VECs).

3.7 Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS)

There are numerous marine areas within the Study Area that have been documented as Areas of Special Biological Significance for invertebrates, fishes, marine-associated birds and marine mammals. A comprehensive report entitled “Identification of Arctic Marine Areas of Heightened Ecological and Cultural Significance: Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment (AMSA) IIc” was published in 2013. This report is henceforth referred to as AMAP/CAFF/SDWG (2013). The areas of ecological significance were identified by working groups associated with the Arctic Council’s Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) and Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF).

The specifics of Areas of Special Biological Significance are indicated in the last column of the VEC-AEC interaction spreadsheet included in the appendices of the reports prepared for each VEC group.

The following table (Table 3.1) provides a summary of the number of Areas of Special Biological Significance identified in sub-areas of the Study Area in AMAP/CAFF/SDWG (2013) for each VEC group.

A summary of the aspects of each ASBS that make it notable are presented for 13 of the 15 Study Area Sub-areas (AMAP/CAFF/SDWG 2013) in the following sections. No ASBSs were identified in Sub-areas ‘Lincoln Sea’ and ‘North Atlantic Ocean’ (Table 3.1). Note that some ASBSs are sub-divided into smaller areas.

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Table 3.1. Number of Areas of Special Biological Significance within the Study Area Sub-Areas by VEC Group.

VEC Group Study Area Sub-area Marine- Marine Invertebrates Fishes associated Birds Mammals Chukchi Sea 7 6 6 Beaufort Sea 1 3 4 5 Central Arctic Ocean 1 1 Canadian Arctic Archipelago 6 8 8 13 Baffin Bay 3 2 4 6 Davis Strait 3 3 3 3 Lincoln Sea North Atlantic Ocean Greenland Sea 1 8 6 Norwegian Sea 1 2 3 1 Barents Sea 4 9 7 White Sea 1 1 1 Kara Sea 3 9 7 Laptev Sea 1 5 4 East Siberian Sea 1 6 2 TOTAL 14 36 67 62

3.7.1 Chukchi Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.12 in Section 4.0)

3.7.1.1 Northeast Coastal Area (Alaska)-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 41,000 km2.

Nearshore Areas in NW Alaska

• Capelin (Mallotus villosus) spawning occurs during the summer along seaward beaches of barrier islands in the areas of Point Lay and Point Barrow.

Estuaries and Lagoons along Coast of Alaska

• Several estuaries and lagoons serve as nursery areas for juvenile whitefishes, and as migration corridors for juvenile and adult whitefishes (e.g., humpback whitefish [C. pidschian], broad whitefish [C. nasus], least cisco [C. sardinella], and Bering cisco [C. laurettae]). • Kasegaluk Lagoon is an important summer feeding and staging area for geese, and a known breeding and spring and autumn staging area for shorebirds (e.g., Dunlin [Calidris alpina]). • Beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) use these areas from late June/early July, primarily for molting.

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Coastal Waters along Alaska

• These waters serve as autumn molting areas for seaducks (e.g., King Eider [Somateria spectabilis], Spectacled Eider [S. fischeri]) and summer feeding areas and autumn staging areas for some shorebirds. • Seaducks and divers use this area as a migration corridor during autumn. These corridors are usually centered along the 20 m isobaths where the birds can dive to feed on either bottom living animals (seaducks) or fish (divers) (e.g., King Eider). • Large seabird breeding colonies occur in this area (e.g., Thick-billed Murre [Uria lomvia], Black-legged Kittiwake [Rissa tridactyla]). • Haul-out areas for large numbers of Pacific walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) occur here. • Gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) have primary benthic feeding grounds in offshore areas in the eastern Chukchi Sea.

Flaw Lead System along Alaskan Coast

• Predominant northerly winds during the winter open a lead system at the transition point between landfast and drifting ice. • This lead system is an important migratory route and feeding area during spring migration for Common Eider (Somateria mollissima) and King Eider. • Ledyard Bay north of Cape Lisburne is deemed as critical habitat for Spectacled Eider. • The lead system is used as a major migration corridor in spring (April–May) for large stocks of bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) and beluga whales heading north to eastern Beaufort to feed. These whales mate and give birth to young during this spring migration. • It is also a major migration corridor and feeding area for polar bear (Ursus maritimus) as they retreat northward in spring prior to ice break-up. • Later in the season, Pacific walrus move north from the Bering Strait toward feeding grounds in the northeastern Chukchi Sea.

3.7.1.2 Southeastern Chukchi Sea (Chukchi Bight, Kotzebue Sound Area)-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 60,000 km2.

Southern Chukchi Sea

• Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida) is a key species in the Chukchi Sea ecosystem. • Although poorly documented, there is likely a large migratory stock of Arctic cod that moves south in autumn to spawn in winter under the ice in the southern Chukchi Sea.

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Kotzebue Sound

• This area is potential spawning area for saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis) under the ice. • Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) are resident year-round, spawning along the north shore of Seward Peninsula and in Kotzebue Bay after the ice clears out in summer. • The estuaries serve as nursery areas for juvenile chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) and pink salmon (O. gorbuscha). • The estuaries and plumes of brackish water in shallow coastal waters and lagoons serve as nursery areas for juvenile whitefishes, and as migration corridors for juvenile and adult whitefishes. • Beluga whales feed here in early summer, and possibly use this area as calving grounds.

Cape Thompson and Cape Lisburne

• Large breeding colonies of seabirds (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake) occur here, representing the main seabird breeding colonies in the eastern Chukchi Sea.

Noatak River Delta

• This delta area is an important breeding area, and spring and autumn staging area for various shorebirds (e.g., Dunlin).

Coastal Sites in Southeastern Chukchi Sea

• These sites serve as breeding areas and autumn staging areas for migratory shorebirds (e.g., Dunlin).

Offshore Areas in Eastern Chukchi Sea

• Seaducks and divers use this area as a migration corridor during autumn. These corridors are usually centered along the 20 m isobaths where the birds can dive to feed on either bottom living animals (seaducks) or fish (divers) (e.g., King Eider). • Gray whales have primary benthic feeding grounds in offshore areas.

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Flaw Lead System along Alaskan Coast

• Predominant northerly winds during the winter open a lead system at the transition point between landfast and drifting ice. • The lead system serves as an important migratory route and feeding area during spring migration of seabirds, seaducks and phalaropes (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, King Eider). • The lead system is used as a major spring migration corridor (April–May) for large stocks of bowhead and beluga whales heading north to the eastern Beaufort to feed. The whales mate and give birth to young during this spring migration. • This lead system is also a major migration corridor and feeding area for polar bear as they retreat northward in spring prior to ice break-up. • Later in the season, Pacific walrus move north from the Bering Strait toward feeding grounds in the northeastern Chukchi Sea.

3.7.1.3 Northern Chukchi Peninsula-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 44,000 km2.

Waters off Northern Chukotka

• This area has walrus feeding and haul-out areas during late summer and autumn. • Leads along the northern coast of Chukotka provide a migration corridor in spring/early summer for bowhead and beluga whales. • Gray whales move northwest from Bering Strait to feeding grounds along Chukotka.

Kolyuchin Island

• Seabird breeding colonies (e.g., Thick-billed Murre) occur on this island.

Kolyuchin Bay

• This bay serves as a major staging area for geese prior to autumn migration.

Coastal Habitats in Northern and eastern Chukotka

• Spooned-bill Sandpiper (Eurynorhynchus pygmeus) have a limited breeding range along the coasts of the southwest Chukchi Sea, including coastal habitat along the eastern and northeastern Chukchi Peninsula. • The coastal habitats along Chukotka are also summer feeding and autumn migration areas for other shorebirds.

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• These coastal habitats are molting areas for some seaduck species (e.g., King Eider), particularly in relatively shallow and productive waters around Wrangel Island and along northern Chukotka.

3.7.1.4 South-Central Chukchi Sea (including Bering Strait region)-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 79,000 km2.

Bering Strait Region

• Seabird breeding colonies (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake) occur in this area. • Large numbers of bowhead whale, beluga whale and Pacific walrus move through the Strait in spring (late March–June), and depending on ice conditions, they may linger in the Strait region before proceeding north through the lead systems they use for spring migration.

Area North of Bering Strait

• The highly productive Anadyr-Bering shelf waters transport large amounts of zooplankton and small fish through the Bering Strait, continuing as a plume of rich waters through Hope Sea Valley in south and central Chukchi Sea. This plume area is an important feeding area for seabirds in late summer and early autumn (e.g., Black-legged Kittiwake). • Juvenile Thick-billed Murre and their male parents swim away from breeding colonies in the Chukchi Sea toward feeding areas, presumably in the south and central Chukchi Sea. This swimming migration is poorly documented but it represents an ecologically important and sensitive phase in the life history of Thick-billed Murre in the Chukchi Sea.

3.7.1.5 Wrangel/Herald Islands Area-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 42,000 km2.

Wrangel and Herald Islands

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• These islands are important to polar bears in spring and summer when they hunt seals in polynyas and leads in the pack ice, and they are also important for polar bear denning. • This area is important as feeding grounds and haul-out areas for Pacific walrus.

Coastal Waters in Southern Chukchi Sea and around Wrangel Island

• Kittlitz’s Murrelet (Brachyramphus breviostris) uses the coastal waters in the southern Chukchi Sea and around Wrangel Island as feeding habitats in summer and autumn after breeding. • Molting areas for seaducks (e.g., King Eider) are found in relatively shallow and productive waters around Wrangel Island. • These waters serve as summer feeding and autumn migration areas for large numbers of shorebirds.

Leads and Polynyas around Wrangel and Herald Islands

• These leads and polynyas are used for spring feeding by seabirds prior to their breeding on the islands (e.g., Thick-billed Murre).

3.7.1.6 Chukchi Shelf (Northern and Central Parts)-ASBS #6

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 103,000 km2.

Marginal Ice Zone in Northern Chukchi Sea

• The drifting pack ice and ice edge zone is a main feeding area for Ivory Gull (Pagophila eburnean), Ross’s Gull (Rhodostethia rosea) and Black Guillemot in late summer and autumn after breeding. • Concentrations of feeding polar bear occur in the marginal ice zone of northern Chukchi Sea in late summer and autumn.

Hanna Shoal

• This shallow area located in the northeastern Chukchi Sea northwest of Barrow is an important feeding ground for Pacific walrus during late summer and autumn, as well as for gray whales during some years.

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3.7.2 Beaufort Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.13 in Section 4.0)

3.7.2.1 Amundsen Gulf Area-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 94,000 km2.

Cape Bathurst Polynya

• This polynya is an important spring staging and feeding area for seabirds and seaducks (e.g., King Eider). • It is also an important feeding ground for beluga whales, bowhead whales, polar bear and ringed seals (Pusa hispida). Polar bear move into the inner part of Amundsen Gulf in autumn to access bays with fast ice that are prime breeding habitat for ringed seals. • Polar bear use this area as a migration corridor and breeding area as well.

Banks Island Shorelead

• This flaw lead system extends from the Cape Bathurst Polynya, lying over relatively shallow water and serving as an important spring staging and feeding area for seaducks (e.g. King Eider in the spring). • It is also an important feeding area for beluga whales, bearded seals (Erignathus barbatus), ringed seals and polar bear.

3.7.2.2 Mackenzie Estuary and Shelf-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 82,000 km2.

Herlinvaux/Mackenzie Lake

• In winter, a floating lake forms off the Mackenzie Delta by the Mackenzie River water being dammed by the stamukhi ice zone (globally unique). Stamukha is a grounded accumulation of sea ice rubble that typically develops along the boundary between fast ice and drifting pack ice (i.e., pressure ridge). This lake is possibly an important winter habitat area for anadromous and /or amphidromous fishes.

Shallow Bay, Beluga Bay and Kugmallit Bay

• These three bays that form the inner part of the Mackenzie estuary are important nursery areas for juvenile anadromous/amphidromous coregonid whitefishes, and seasonal feeding areas for adult fishes (e.g., Arctic cisco [Coregonus autumnalis],

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least cisco, broad whitefish, lake whitefish [Coregonus clupeaformis] and inconnu [Stenodus nelma]). • This area also has important feeding, brood rearing, and molting areas for various seabirds, seaducks and geese. • This area also has important molting, feeding and migration areas for beluga whales, and important feeding areas for ringed seals.

Kugmallit Corridor

• This corridor, which extends north across the shelf from Kugmallit Bay, includes a deep trough where upwelling occurs and there is influence from plumes of freshwater from the Mackenzie River. • This area has a high food supply for benthos. • This corridor is important to ringed seals for migration and feeding.

Mackenzie Trough

• This is a deep trough with upwelling and influence from the plumes of freshwater from the Mackenzie River. • This area has high benthic diversity and production. • This trough is important to bowhead whale, beluga whale and ringed seal migration, as well as to polar bear feeding and breeding.

Mackenzie Shorelead

• This shorelead is located off the fast ice on the eastern Mackenzie Shelf, and is typically connected to the Cape Bathurst Polynya. • It is an important spring staging and feeding area for seaducks (e.g., King Eider). • The shallow areas are used by seaducks in late summer for brood rearing and moulting.

Outer Mackenzie Shelf

• This shelf area is characterized by upwelling. • It has high benthic diversity and production. • Marine fish aggregations often occur here. • This area is important to polar bear, beluga whales and bowhead whales for feeding and migration.

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Husky Lakes

• This area is a unique brackish water transitional area from fresh to marine waters. • It is important for lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) spawning, nursing and feeding, and for herring spawning. • It serves as a seabird and seaduck migration and feeding area. • Important are for ringed seal and beluga whale aggregations.

Liverpool Bay

• This is an area of upwelling. • The Anderson River estuary is a nursery area for juvenile coregonid whitefishes. • There is seabird and seaduck feeding, nesting and staging in this area. • The Anderson River estuary serves as molting and staging area for ducks and geese. • This area is important as a polar bear feeding and nursery area, and as a bowhead whale migration and feeding area.

3.7.2.3 Northeast Alaska and Yukon Coasts and Shelves-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 19,000 km2.

Coastal Areas and Lagoons

• This area is characterized by the presence of a freshwater corridor in summer that is used as a migration and feeding corridor by various fish species including Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus), Arctic cisco and Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma). • It is a post-breeding feeding and molting areas for waterfowl, and a post-breeding feeding and staging area for shorebirds (e.g., Dunlin).

Herschel Island and Adjacent Waters

• This is one of only two sites in the western Canadian Arctic where Black Guillemot breed. • It also has feeding and molting areas for waterfowl. • Capelin spawning occurs in this area.

Shelf Areas

• The narrow and relatively shallow Beaufort Shelf west of the Mackenzie Trough is an important feeding area for bowhead whale in early autumn.

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3.7.2.4 North Alaskan Coast and Shelf-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 33,000 km2.

Colville and Sagavanirktok River Deltas and Estuaries

• The Colville River delta is important winter habitat for coregonid whitefishes, especially Arctic ciscoes and least ciscoes. • Both estuaries serve as important summer feeding and migration habitat for coregonid whitefishes and Dolly Varden. • The deltas provide summer nesting, feeding, brood rearing and molting habitat for geese. • They also serve as post-breeding feeding and staging areas for shorebirds (e.g., Dunlin).

Simpson Lagoon and Stefansson Sound

• The lagoons provides a summer feeding area and migration corridor for anadromous and amphidromous whitefishes and Dolly Varden. • A very special hard-bottomed habitat known as the Boulder Patch occurs here. It is characterized by kelp beds and associated fauna, unique for the mostly soft-bottomed Beaufort Shelf. • The barrier islands bounding the lagoons provide breeding and brood rearing habitat for seabirds. • The lagoon provides molting habitat for seaducks.

Elson Lagoon and Dease Inlet

• Dease Inlet is a summer feeding area for amphidromous coregonid whitefishes such as least cisco and humpback whitefish. • This area is important autumn feeding, staging and migration areas for seabirds, seaducks and shorebirds. • It is also an important feeding area for bowhead whale in autumn.

Shoreline and Barrier Islands

• This area is an important polar bear denning area. • The offshore shallow waters are important to ringed seals as a winter breeding area.

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3.7.2.5 Offshore Pack Ice-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 131,000 km2. • Bowhead and beluga whales migrate east toward the Amundsen Gulf and the Cape Bathurst Polynya through leads in the offshore pack ice in May and June, returning along this same corridor in the autumn.

3.7.3 Central Arctic Ocean Sub-area (Figure 4.14 in Section 4.0)

3.7.3.1 Pack Ice-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 3,659,000 km2. • The drifting pack ice of the Central Arctic Ocean is a globally unique environment characterized by low primary productivity by specially adapted ice algae and phytoplankton in the water column below the ice. • In addition to the ice algae, the sea-ice biota contains an endemic fauna component including sea-ice amphipods that live in association with the ice. • The sea-ice (i.e., sympagic) fauna includes forms that live permanently in association with sea ice (i.e., autochthonous species) (e.g., amphipods Gammarus wilkitzkii and Apherusa glacialis). These two amphipods are dominant species in Arctic sea ice habitats, particularly in multi-year ice. • Other autochthonous species include some copepods. • Ice amphipods are important prey for polar cod, Arctic cod, and ringed seals. • Ice amphipods also support, either directly or indirectly, other species that live in ice-covered waters such as polar bear, Ivory Gull and Ross’s Gull. • Beaufort Gyre system in the Canada Basin plays a role in the maintenance of the sea-ice biota through its influence on multi-year ice dynamics. • The area north of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago is of special importance as the area with heaviest ice conditions in the Arctic. • Ivory Gull and Ross’s Gull also use this habitat for foraging during the post-breeding period in late summer and autumn. After breeding, these birds move to the periphery of the pack ice where they feed on Arctic cod, amphipods and the remains of polar bear kills. • Pack ice of the Nansen Basin might be an important post-breeding area for Ivory Gull. • Polar bears use peripheral areas of the pack ice as part of their summer feeding habitat.

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3.7.3.2 Chukchi Plateau (Chukchi Rise Area)-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 196,000 km2. • Polar cod (Arctogadus glacialis) is an important pelagic fish in the slope waters and the deeper waters beyond the shelf break. There is some suggestion that polar cod may undertake a winter migration, possibly to spawn over the Chukchi Rise.

3.7.3.3 Chukchi Shelf (Northern and Central Parts)-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 103,000 km2.

Marginal Ice Zone in Northern Chukchi Sea

Hanna Shoal

3.7.3.4 Wrangel/Herald Islands Area-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 42,000 km2.

Wrangel and Herald Islands

• These islands serve as breeding, molting and staging area for various goose species. • Large breeding colonies of seabirds occur on west and east coasts of Wrangel Island and on the smaller Herald Island (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake and Black Guillemot [Cepphus grylle]). • These islands are important to polar bears in spring and summer when they hunt seals in polynyas and leads in the pack ice, and they are also important for polar bear denning. • This area is important as feeding grounds and haul-out areas for Pacific walrus.

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Coastal Waters in Southern Chukchi Sea and around Wrangel Island

• Kittlitz’s Murrelet [Brachyramphus breviostris] uses the coastal waters in the southern Chukchi Sea and around Wrangel Island as feeding habitats in summer and autumn after breeding. • Molting areas for seaducks (e.g., King Eider) are found in relatively shallow and productive waters around Wrangel Island. • These waters serve as summer feeding and autumn migration areas for large numbers of shorebirds.

Leads and Polynyas around Wrangel and Herald Islands

• These leads and polynyas are used for spring feeding by seabirds prior to their breeding on the islands (e.g., Thick-billed Murre).

3.7.3.5 Arctic Basin Multi-year Pack Ice-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 530,000 km2. • This is the source of the thickest multi-year ice in the Arctic Ocean. • It is unique habitat whose community structure is not well known. • It is believed to be particularly important for long-lived (6+ years) autochthonous amphipods (e.g., Gammarus wilkitzkii) and the mat-forming centric diatom Melosira arctica typically associated with under-ice communities. • It is also likely to be core habitat for a variety of ice-adapted heterotrophic microbes and zooplankton. • The edge of multi-year ice is important summer refuge for polar bears.

3.7.3.6 Svalbard Archipelago-ASBS #6

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 150,000 km2. • A separate stock or stock component of Arctic cod occurs here. • There are large numbers of seabirds occurring here during the summer, some for the purpose of breeding. • It has important molting areas for seaducks (e.g., Common Eider, King Eider) and geese. • The Whalers Bay polynya located north of Svalbard is a potential wintering area for narwhal and bowhead whales. It is also an important feeding area for bowhead whales and blue whales. Beluga whales use the area for wintering. • Walrus winter in leads and polynyas occurring along northern and eastern Svalbard. Walrus also use this area in summer for feeding and haul-out. • Ringed seals breed here on the fast ice. • Denning areas for polar bear also occur in this area.

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3.7.3.7 Franz Josef Land-ASBS #7

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 117,000 km2. • Seabird breeding colonies occur here (e.g., Ivory Gull). • Polynyas in the area are used as staging areas for seabirds prior to breeding. • Polynyas in this area serve as wintering habitat for walrus and bowhead whale, and perhaps narwhal. • Narwhal occur in this area in summer. • Walrus also use this area for feeding and haul-out.

3.7.3.8 Northwestern Laptev Sea (including polynyas north and northeast of Severnaya Zemlya)-ASBS #8

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 91,000 km2. • There are Dovekie, Ivory Gull and Black Guillemot breeding colonies in this area. These seabirds make extensive use of polynyas off Severnaya Zemlya where they arrive as early as April. • These three seabird species use the oceanic areas in the northwest Laptev Sea along the ice edge and shelf break as foraging areas in late summer and autumn. • It is an important post-breeding staging area for Ivory Gull populations originating from Greenland to Severnaya Zemlya. • There is a high abundance of beluga whale in the summer for feeding purposes. Beluga migrate into the Laptev Sea mainly north of Severnaya Zemlya in spring, likely using polynyas and leads north and east of the archipelago. • Narwhal occurrence in this area is also likely.

3.7.3.9 Great Siberian Polynya System-ASBS #9

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 135,000 km2. • There is a major lead polynya system off the fast ice edge north and west of New Siberian Islands. • The polynya system is a major spring staging and migration area for seabirds and seaducks (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, King Eider). • Overlying relatively productive shallows, this area serves as primary winter habitat for walrus. The walrus reside here year-round, using the area for feeding in the summer.

3.7.3.10 Ice Zone on the Northern Shelf-ASBS #10

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 27,000 km2. • This is an area of feeding during post-breeding by various seabirds (e.g., Ivory Gull, Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake).

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• Beluga whales feed here in late summer and autumn before returning south toward wintering areas in the Bering Strait. • The pack ice and ice edge zone over the shelf serve as feeding areas for ringed seals and Pacific walrus in late summer and autumn.

3.7.4 Canadian Arctic Archipelago Sub-area (Figure 4.15 in Section 4.0)

3.7.4.1 Amundsen Gulf Area-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 94,000 km2.

Cape Bathurst Polynya

• This polynya is an important spring staging and feeding area for seabirds and seaducks (e.g., King Eider). • It is also an important feeding ground for beluga whales, bowhead whales, polar bear and ringed seals. Polar bear move into the inner part of Amundsen Gulf in autumn to access bays with fast ice that are prime breeding habitat for ringed seals. • Polar bear use this area as a migration corridor and breeding area as well.

Franklin and Darnley Bays

• Large aggregations of Arctic cod have been observed throughout winter under fast ice over relatively deep water in outer Franklin Bay. • Pearce Point, an important upwelling area, has aggregations of Arctic char and capelin. • The Horton River area of Franklin Bay is also an area of upwelling and is often characterized by aggregations of Arctic char. • Pacific herring aggregate in Hornaday River area of Darnley Bay. • Cape Perry is home to the only colony of Thick-billed Murre in the western Arctic, as well as one of only two western Arctic Black Guillemot colonies. • Pearce Point also has aggregations of bowhead whales. • The Horton River area of Franklin Bay also serves as an important migration and feeding pathway for beluga and bowhead whales, and polar bears.

De Salis and Thesiger Bays

• These bays occur along southern Banks Island. • De Salis Bay includes an area of upwelling, and Thesiger Bay is characterized by the presence of a flaw lead polynya. • Both bays serve as migration and feeding corridors for Arctic char. • Thesiger Bay is also known for capelin occurrence.

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• A variety of seabirds and seaducks aggregate in De Salis Bay to feed and nest. • Bowhead whales, beluga whales, and various seals feed, nurse and migrate in De Salis Bay. • Beluga whales, polar bear, ringed seals and bearded seals aggregate on the feeding grounds in Thesiger Bay.

3.7.4.2 Western Victoria Island Inlets-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 34,000 km2.

Prince Albert Sound

• The estuary of the Kagloryuak River and coastlines of the sound are important migration and feeding areas for Arctic char during the summer. • This area serves as a feeding area for seaducks and seabirds. • It is also prime breeding habitat for ringed seals and bearded seals.

Minto Inlet and Walker Bay

• This area is important for feeding and as a migration corridor for Arctic char. • It also serves as a feeding area for seaducks and seabirds. • It includes prime breeding habitat for ringed seals and bearded seals, and polar bears sometimes use this area to nurse and rear cubs.

Union and Dolphin Strait

• This area includes a recurrent polynya. • This is an important feeding area and migration corridor for Arctic char. • It is also a very important spring staging and feeding area for various birds during migration. • Fast ice at the western entrance to the strait is prime breeding habitat for ringed seal, and a winter and spring feeding area for polar bear.

3.7.4.3 Viscount Melville Sound-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 59,000 km2. • This area is primarily characterized by the late summer presence of feeding beluga in deep offshore basin. • It is also an important feeding and rearing area for polar bear.

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3.7.4.4 Coronation Gulf/Queen Maud Gulf-Coasts and Inlets-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 21,000 km2.

Bathurst Inlet

• This inlet, which is influenced by the Burnside River and has a depth range of 100–200 m, is characterized by a polynya. • It serves as important summer habitat for marine fish communities, particularly Arctic char. • Seabird colonies occur on small islands near the mouth of the inlet where they feed. • It also serves as important summer habitat for ringed seal.

Queen Maud Gulf Coastline

• The waters along this coastline are relatively shallow (i.e., <100 m). • This area is heavily influenced by freshwater inputs from four major rivers: (1) the Armak River, (2) the Ellice River, (3) the Perry River, and (4) the Simpson River. • There is enhanced primary productivity due to the riverine input. • This area is an important feeding ground and migration corridor for Arctic char. • Ringed seal occur throughout the area.

Chantrey Inlet

• This is a shallow, protected, enclosed ecosystem that is influenced by the Black River, resulting in low salinities and high productivity. • It serves as migration and feeding habitat for Arctic char. • This area is prime ringed seal summer habitat.

3.7.4.5 King William and Southern Victoria Islands-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 35,000 km2.

King William Island

• The strong tidal currents on the west side of King William Island result in tidal mixing zones. • These currents enhance productivity of the area and provide a high food supply for the benthos, resulting in increased benthic diversity and production. • Ringed seal and polar bear aggregate in this area to feed.

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Southern Victoria Island Coastline

• The nearshore Arctic char migratory and feeding corridor in this area has been deemed an Ecologically and Biologically Significant Area (EBSA) by Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

3.7.4.6 Lancaster Sound and Adjacent Inlets-ASBS #6

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 84,000 km2.

Eclipse Sound-Navy Board

• This area has been declared an EBSA based on importance to birds and marine mammals. • There are colonies of Thick-billed Murre and Black-legged Kittiwake that feed 30–60 km offshore. • Northern Fulmar (Fulmaris glacialis) use this area for staging purposes. • The relatively deep water (maximum of 200 m) surrounding Bylot Island and its connection to Lancaster Sound serve as important migration routes and summer feeding areas for beluga whales and narwhal. • This area is also used by killer whales (Orcinus orca), ringed seals, and harp seals (Pagophilus groenlandicus).

Lancaster Sound

• This area is characterized by a recurrent polynya and its associated ice edge habitats. • All life stages of Arctic cod are abundant. • More than 1,000,000 seabirds and seaducks use this area for nesting, breeding and feeding (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, Northern Fulmar, Black Guillemot). • It is a major migration corridor for bowhead whale, narwhal (Monodon Monoceros), beluga whale, killer whale and seals. • This area has the highest density of polar bears in the world. • Walrus also use this area for haul-out.

Admiralty Inlet

• This inlet is characterized by local nutrient enrichment and high productivity. • It is extensively used by seabirds, and marine mammals (e.g., bowhead whale, narwhal, beluga whale, ringed seal, harp seal). • The marine mammals feed almost exclusively on fish in this area.

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3.7.4.7 Prince Regent Inlet and Gulf of Boothia-ASBS #7

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 94,000 km2.

Prince Regent Inlet

• This area is characterized by strong currents and a recurrent polynya in Bellot Strait. • Arctic char use the nearshore waters in this area. • It is an important feeding area and migration route for seabirds (e.g., Black-legged Kittiwake, Northern Fulmar, King Eider). • It is also an important feeding area, migration route and/or nursery ground for marine mammals (e.g., bowhead whale, narwhal, beluga whale).

Gulf of Boothia

• Arctic char use the nearshore waters in this area. • It is an important migration corridor and feeding ground for narwhal and bowhead whale. • This area also serves as a bowhead whale nursery area, as well as an area for polar bear denning, feeding and nursery.

3.7.4.8 Peel Sound-ASBS #8

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 24,000 km2. • This area is characterized by a highly productive polynya, and high benthic diversity and production. • In addition to beluga whale occurrence, this area has the largest Canadian summering aggregation of narwhal.

3.7.4.9 Wellington Channel-ASBS #9

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 13,000 km2. • A polynya in this area is maintained by strong currents. • The largest known nesting population of Ross’s Gull in Canadian Arctic occurs here. • This area is an important haul-out and wintering ground for walrus.

3.7.4.10 Cardigan Strait-Hell Gate-ASBS #10

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 6,000 km2. • A polynya in this area is maintained by strong currents. It is frozen during October and November with open water reappearing in December through to July. It is not usually ice-free due to ice flowing south from Norwegian Bay.

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• Several major seabird colonies occur here, resulting in feeding, breeding and nesting (e.g., Black Guillemot, Northern Fulmar). • There is year-round use of this area by walrus as a haul-out and feeding area. • During the summer, this area is used by beluga whales, killer whales, and seals.

3.7.4.11 Northern Archipelago/Norwegian Bay-ASBS #11

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 197,000 km2.

Archipelago Multi-year Pack Ice

• This constitutes the largest remaining island pack ice refugium in the world. • Under-ice communities are abundant. • Seabirds nest and forage here, particularly Ivory Gull. • Polar bear aggregate here for denning, feeding and rearing of young.

Norwegian Bay

• This is a regionally important area for a number of marine mammals. • It is an important feeding and rearing area for the most genetically differentiated polar bear population in the world.

3.7.4.12 Ellesmere Island ASBS #12

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 44,000 km2.

Ellesmere Island Ice Shelves

• The largest and most significant glaciers flow from Ellesmere Island into fjords as ice shelves. • The area is relatively shallow (<200 m) and covered by >90 % old multi-year ice which likely supports unique under-ice communities.

Nansen-Eureka-Greely Fjord

• This complex separates Ellesmere and Axel Heiberg islands. • Shallow sills of the fjords inhibit water transport, creating unique water masses that support unique fish communities and aggregations of polar bear and ringed seal.

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3.7.4.13 Northern Foxe Basin-ASBS #13

Fury and Hecla Strait

• This area is important as a migratory corridor for bowhead whales, beluga whales, killer whales and narwhal. • Given the high proportion of juveniles and calf occurrence, the eastern mouth of the Fury and Hecla Strait appears to be an important nursery area for bowhead whales. • Polar bear denning sites occur in this area.

Iglooik Island

• This area is characterized by the Fury and Hecla polynya. • Arctic char and other marine fishes use this area for migration. • The area is an important migration corridor and feeding area for various marine mammals (e.g., bowhead, beluga, killer, narwhal). • The Iglooik Island area also includes walrus haul-out areas and polar bear denning sites.

Rowley Island

• Sea ice-edge habitat is an important feature of this area. • The area is an important migration corridor and feeding area for various marine mammals (e.g., bowhead, beluga, killer, narwhal). • It is also year-round walrus habitat, providing haul-out sites, calving areas and feeding grounds.

3.7.5 Baffin Bay Sub-area (Figure 4.16 in Section 4.0)

3.7.5.1 North Water-Northern Baffin Bay-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 127,000 km2.

North Water Polynya (Canadian Side)

• This is the largest and most productive polynya in the Canadian Arctic. • This area is characterized by a tremendous marine-associated bird resource. There is breeding by Black-legged Kittiwake, Thick-billed Murre, Ivory Gull, Black Guillemot and Dovekie (Alle alle). Most of these species feed here during the summer, and some use this area for overwintering. • This polynya has the most species of marine mammals than any other polynya in the Canadian Arctic. Beluga whales occur in summer and winter, bowhead whales and

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narwhal occur in summer, ringed seals, bearded seals and harp seals all occur year-round, polar bear are present in winter and spring, and walrus use this area for migration and haul-out.

North Water Polynya (Greenland Side)

• The characteristics are the same as for the Canadian side of the polynya.

Eastern Jones Sound

• There is a recurrent polynya in the vicinity of Coburg Island which is separate from North Water Polynya until May or June. • Breeding marine-associated birds in this area include Black-legged Kittiwake, Thick-billed Murre, Northern Fulmar, Ivory Gull and Black Guillemot. • This is one of the few known Atlantic Puffin [Fratercula arctica] breeding sites in Nunavut. • This area serves as summer habitat for walrus, beluga whales and ringed seals. • It is also an important maternity area for polar bear.

Northern Baffin Bay

• Significant aggregations of sea pens occur in this area.

3.7.5.2 Eastern Baffin Island Coast and Shelf-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 137,000 km2.

Baffin Island Coastline

• The coastline is characterized by the presence of deep-sea troughs with coldwater corals, and a floe edge. • It serves as a migration pathway for marine and anadromous fishes. • There are key seabird colonies along Baffin Island coastline (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, Black Guillemot, and perhaps Atlantic Puffin). The largest Canadian colonies of Northern Fulmar occur here. • This area is an important feeding and nursery area for bowhead whales. • It serves as a migration pathway for bowhead whales and narwhal. • Traditional Ecological Knowledge states that dolphins, killer whales and minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) migrate through this area. • Ringed seals use the fjords and coastal areas. • Walrus have haul-out sites along the coastline. • It is an important feeding, denning and nursery area for polar bear.

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Baffin Bay Shelf Break

• There are aggregations of corals, sponges and marine fishes along the shelf break. • Bowhead whales, narwhal and seals use this area for migration and feeding.

3.7.5.3 Melville Bay-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 15,000 km2. • This is a migration corridor for seabirds (e.g., Thick-billed Murre). • This area provides critical habitat for narwhal in summer, and polar bear in winter and spring. The polar bear forage along the ice edge and in the drift ice. • It is an important breeding area for ringed seals.

3.7.5.4 Northwest Greenland Shelf-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 43,000 km2. • It is an important migration corridor, breeding area, and staging area for seabirds. • The shelf and ice shear zone serves as critical habitat for whales. It is used as a migration corridor by beluga whales and narwhal. • Polar bear occur here.

3.7.5.5 Central Baffin Bay and Mouth of UUmmannaq Fjord-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 89,000 km2. • It is an important migration corridor, breeding area, and staging area for seabirds. • The pack ice and leads are especially important for certain species, including wintering narwhal found within the 500–1,500 m isobaths where they appear to use the Greenland halibut [Reinhardtius hippoglossoides] stock. • It is critical habitat in autumn and winter for migrating and wintering narwhal and beluga whales. • Walrus use this area for wintering. • Migrating bowhead whales are in the area during the spring. • Polar bears occur here from October–June.

3.7.5.6 Ellesmere Island-ASBS #6

Princes Maria Bay

• It is an important to walrus for feeding and haul-out sites. • It is also a feeding ground for various seal species and narwhal.

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3.7.5.7 Lancaster Sound and Adjacent Inlets-ASBS #7

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 84,000 km2.

Eclipse Sound-Navy Board

• This area has been declared an EBSA based on importance to birds and marine mammals. • There are colonies of Thick-billed Murre and Black-legged Kittiwake that feed 30–60 km offshore. • Northern Fulmar [Fulmaris glacialis] use this area for staging purposes. • The relatively deep water (maximum of 200 m) surrounding Bylot Island and its connection to Lancaster Sound serve as important migration routes and summer feeding areas for beluga whales and narwhal. • This area is also used by killer whales [Orcinus orca], ringed seals, and harp seals [Pagophilus groenlandicus].

Lancaster Sound

• This area is characterized by a recurrent polynya and its associated ice edge habitats. • All life stages of Arctic cod are abundant. • More than 1,000,000 seabirds and seaducks use this area for nesting, breeding and feeding (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, Northern Fulmar, Black Guillemot). • It is a major migration corridor for bowhead whale, narwhal [Monodon monoceros], beluga whale, killer whale and seals. • This area has the highest density of polar bears in the world. • Walrus also use this area for haul-out.

Admiralty Inlet

3.7.6 Davis Strait Sub-area (Figure 4.17 in Section 4.0)

3.7.6.1 Eastern Baffin Island Coast and Shelf-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 137,000 km2.

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Baffin Island Coastline

• The coastline is characterized by the presence of deep-sea troughs with coldwater corals, and a floe edge. • It serves as a migration pathway for marine and anadromous fishes. • There are key seabird colonies along Baffin Island coastline (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, Black Guillemot, and perhaps Atlantic Puffin). The largest Canadian colonies of Northern Fulmar occur here. • This area is an important feeding and nursery area for bowhead whales. • It serves as a migration pathway for bowhead whales and narwhal. • Traditional Ecological Knowledge states that dolphins, killer whales and minke whales migrate through this area. • Ringed seals use the fjords and coastal areas. • Walrus have haul-out sites along the coastline. • It is an important feeding, denning and nursery area for polar bear.

Baffin Bay Shelf Break

• There are aggregations of corals, sponges and marine fishes along the shelf break. • Bowhead whales, narwhal and seals use this area for migration and feeding.

3.7.6.2 Southern Baffin Bay-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 30,000 km2. • This oceanographic area is characterized by a break between the warmer southern Labrador Current and the cold Arctic outflow. • There are several species of coldwater corals, including black corals (Antipatharians). • This is known habitat for Greenland halibut. • It is an overwintering area for narwhal and bowhead whales.

3.7.6.3 Disko Bay and Store Hellefiske Banke-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 101,000 km2. • A tide-induced upwelling forms the basis for high biological spring production. • Capelin and sandlance [Ammodytes sp.], important prey for seabirds and mammals, occur here. • The high productivity is reflected by the rich commercial fisheries for Greenland halibut, snow crab [Chionoecetes opilio], shrimps and scallops. • Capelin are known to spawn in this area. • It is a foraging and breeding area for seabirds and marine mammals.

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• Seaducks molt between July and September (Jul–Sep) in coastal areas and fjords (primarily King Eider). The area within the 50 m isobaths is critical staging and wintering habitat for King Eider. • This is part of the wintering area for Ivory Gull. • It is critical habitat for walrus in winter. In late winter (Feb–May), they forage within the 100 m isobaths. • During the winter, beluga whales rely entirely on the ice edge and marginal ice zone. Beluga whales are abundant on the banks between November and May. • It is summer and autumn foraging grounds for harbor porpoise [Phocoena phocoena] and a range of baleen whales (e.g., blue [Balaenoptera musculus], sei [B. borealis], minke, fin [B. physalus], humpback). It appears that the portion off the shelf break is most important to baleen whales. • It is the main spring (Mar–Jun) staging area for bowhead whales. Female bowheads without calves foraging and stage in this area. It may be a mating area for bowhead whales. • Narwhal are abundant in the deeper basins during November–May. They winter in the dense pack ice and in the coastal areas. • This area is a significant winter/spring area (including whelping grounds) for bearded seals.

3.7.7 Greenland Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.18 in Section 4.0)

3.7.7.1 Northwest Iceland-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 11,000 km2. • Seabird breeding colonies occur here (e.g., Common Murre [Uria aalge], Thick-billed Murre). • Marine-associated bird staging and migration also occurs in this area.

3.7.7.2 Denmark Strait-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 33,000 km2. • A portion of this ASBS occurs within the North Atlantic Ocean Sub-area. • This strait serves as a migration corridor for various seabirds (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Ivory Gull). • It also serves as a wintering area for Ivory Gull. • This ASBS is also important as a summer feeding are for North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis), as well as a feeding area for hooded seals.

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3.7.7.3 North Iceland-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 20,000 km2. • This ASBS has bird breeding colonies (e.g., Common Murre, Thick-billed Murre). • Its intertidal areas are important feeding and staging areas for shorebirds. • It is a stopover area for migrating Red Knot (Calidris canutus) and Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres).

3.7.7.4 Northeast Water Polynya-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 161,000 km2. • Breeding colonies of Black-legged Kittiwake and Northern Fulmar occur along the coastline. • There is also a breeding colony for Ivory Gull. • Bowhead whales frequent the area in the summer. • This area provides important habitat for walrus. • Narwhal and polar bears also use this area.

3.7.7.5 Scoresby Sund Fjord/Blosseville Coast-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 70,000 km2. • In addition to a polynya that occurs close to the mouth of the fjord, leads are also present between the landfast ice and the drift ice. • The polynya is important marine-associated bird habitat in spring and summer (e.g., Common Eider, King Eider). • Breeding colonies for Thick-billed Murre and Ivory Gull occur in this area. • This ASBS serves as a summering area for narwhal and a foraging area for bowhead whales. • Polar bear also use this area.

3.7.7.6 Sirius Water/Young Sund Polynya-ASBS #6

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 24,000 km2. • It is an important area for marine-associated birds, walrus, polar bear, and bowhead whales.

3.7.7.7 Sea Ice in Western Greenland Sea-ASBS #7

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 262,000 km2. • It is an important area for seabirds (e.g., Thick-billed Murre) and marine mammals (e.g., harp seals, hooded seals, polar bears).

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3.7.7.8 Southeastern Greenland and Denmark Strait-ASBS #8

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 130,000 km2. • A portion of this ASBS occurs within the North Atlantic Ocean Sub-area. • This area is an important capelin feeding and migration area. • This area includes Greenland halibut and Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) fishing grounds. • It is important to seabirds for breeding, foraging and staging. • Critical habitat for the North Atlantic right whale occurs here. • Numerous toothed whales occur here (e.g., sperm whale [Physeter macrocephalus], northern bottlenose whale [Hyperoodon ampullatus]). • Numerous baleen whales occur here (e.g., blue whale, fin whale, sei whale). • This is a summering area for narwhal and a wintering area for walrus. • Hooded seals molt here during June–September. • Polar bear maternity dens occur in this area.

3.7.7.9 Jan Mayen Island-ASBS #9

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 12,000 km2. • This area serves as important feeding and breeding habitat for seabirds.

3.7.7.10 Svalbard Archipelago-ASBS #10

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3.7.8 Norwegian Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.19 in Section 4.0)

3.7.8.1 Lofoten Area-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 73,000 km2. • The largest known Lophelia pertusa reef (coral) occurs in this area. • This is an important spawning area for Atlantic cod and Greenland halibut. • This is an important area for seabirds. • It is also important as a feeding area for whales (e.g., sperm whale), and as a breeding area for harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) and grey seals.

3.7.8.2 Jan Mayen Island-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 12,000 km2. • This area serves as important feeding and breeding habitat for seabirds.

3.7.8.3 Norwegian and Murman Coasts-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 130,000 km2. • Capelin spawning grounds occur in this ASBS. • This area has breeding colonies of various seabirds (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake). • It serves as a wintering area for some seabirds and seaducks (e.g., King Eider, Steller’s Eider).

3.7.9 Barents Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.20 in Section 4.0)

3.7.9.1 Pechora Sea (off Russia – SE Barents)-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 263,000 km2. • Arctic cod are widely distributed in the northern and eastern Barents Sea. This area includes the main Arctic cod stock spawning area where fish aggregate under the ice in winter (Jan–Feb). • Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) spawn also spawn in this area. • It is an important feeding area for several species of coregonid whitefishes. • The coastal waters are important for migrating Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). • There are important molting and staging areas for geese and many shorebirds in this area. • The shallow areas along the coast serve as important molting and staging areas for seaducks (e.g., King Eider), and as a staging area for Thick-billed Murre. • The rich benthos that occurs in this area supports seaducks.

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• This is an important breeding area for ringed seals. The young seals feed on Arctic cod. • The rich benthos that occurs in this area supports walrus. It is the main wintering area for walrus, and has the main haul-outs for walrus in summer.

3.7.9.2 Norwegian and Murman Coasts-ASBS #2

3.7.9.3 Bear Island-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 10,000 km2. • This area has large mixed seabird breeding colonies as well as staging areas for geese.

3.7.9.4 Svalbard Archipelago-ASBS #4

3.7.9.5 Franz Josef Land-ASBS #5

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• Narwhal occur in this area in summer. • Walrus also use this area for feeding and haul-out.

3.7.9.6 Western and Central Barents Sea-ASBS #6

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 139,000 km2. • This area is a wintering location for capelin. • The polar front and ice edge zone is an important feeding area in summer for seabirds. • It is also an important wintering area for seabirds, particularly Thick-billed Murre. • It is an important part of the swimming migration route of Thick-billed Murre. • Polar bears concentrate in this ASBS in spring and early summer.

3.7.9.7 Northern Barents Sea (Marginal Ice Zone)-ASBS #7

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 228,000 km2. • This area is a feeding area for polar bears in late summer/autumn.

3.7.9.8 Western Novaya Zemlya-ASBS #8

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 101,000 km2. • Large seabird colonies occur here (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake). • Thick-billed Murre use this area for swimming migration southwards to the Pechora Sea region. • The system of shore leads and drift ice along the west coast of the peninsula is perhaps a spring migration route for beluga whales and walrus.

3.7.9.9 Northeastern Novaya Zemlya-ASBS #9

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 18,000 km2. • Seabird breeding colonies occur along the northern tip of Novaya Zemlya (e.g., Black-legged Kittiwake, Thick-billed Murre). • Polynyas provide important spring staging areas for seabirds prior to breeding.

3.7.10 White Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.21 in Section 4.0)

3.7.10.1 Entrance and Northern White Sea-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 20,000 km2. • This ASBS is an important molting and wintering area for seaducks (e.g., Common Eider, King Eider, Steller’s Eider [Polysticta stelleri]).

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• It also has whelping and molting areas for harp seals on the pack ice in late winter (Feb–Apr). • Beluga overwinter here.

3.7.10.2 White Sea-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 32,000 km2. • Herring are known to spawn in this ASBS. • Seabird breeding colonies occur in this area. • It serves as an important molting and wintering area for Common Eider. • It has staging habitat for ducks, geese and swans. • Beluga whales use this area during the summer for feeding, and may overwinter in the leads and polynyas in this area.

3.7.11 Kara Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.22 in Section 4.0)

3.7.11.1 Baydaratskaya Inlet-Western Yamal-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 124,000 km2. • A spawning area for codfish navaga (Eleginus navaga) occurs under the ice in winter. • The fast ice zone is potentially spawning area for Arctic cod. • Herring spawn on the shallow sandy bottoms in coastal waters during May–July. • Leads and polynyas form spring migration and staging habitat for seaducks (e.g., King Eider). • In late summer and autumn, productive shallow water areas serve as important staging areas for seaducks on their way from breeding areas in western Siberia to wintering areas further west and south. • The fast ice zone provides breeding habitat for ringed seals. • Leads and polynyas serve as a walrus and beluga whale migration area on their way from wintering areas in Pechora Sea to summer feeding areas in the Kara Sea. • Walrus use the shallow productive waters for feeding.

3.7.11.2 Northeastern Novaya Zemlya-ASBS #2

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3.7.11.3 Western Novaya Zemlya-ASBS #3

3.7.11.4 Northern Kara Sea (Marginal Ice Zone)-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 86,000 km2. • The ice zone edge is a feeding area for seabirds (e.g., Ivory Gull, Black-legged Kittiwake, Black Guillemot). • Ivory Gull aggregate to breed on islands in this area. • The drift ice in the northern Kara Sea is a migration area for beluga whales in spring and early summer during movement north and east toward the Laptev Sea. • The ice edge zone serves as a feeding area for polar bears in summer and autumn.

3.7.11.5 Northeastern Kara Sea Islands-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 73,000 km2. • Ivory Gull colonies occur in this area. • Walrus rookeries occur here as well.

3.7.11.6 Ob River Estuary-ASBS #6

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 52,000 km2. • This is a major estuary, about 1,000 km in length. • Large stocks of coregonid whitefishes as well as Siberian sturgeon (Acipenser baerii) have feeding and nursery areas here. • This area has molting and feeding areas for ducks, geese and swans. • The Ob River delta is a molting and autumn staging area for ducks, geese and shorebirds. • Beluga whales aggregate here in the summer.

3.7.11.7 Yenisey River Estuary-ASBS #7

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 34,000 km2. • Large stocks of coregonid whitefishes as well as Siberian sturgeon have feeding and nursery areas here.

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• This area has molting and feeding areas for ducks, geese and swans. • Beluga whales aggregate here in the summer.

3.7.11.8 Pyasina River Estuary-ASBS #8

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 12,000 km2. • The Pyasina River estuary serves as a molting and feeding area for ducks, geese and shorebirds.

3.7.11.9 Vilkitskij Strait-ASBS #9

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 9,000 km2. • Ivory Gull breeding occurs in this ASBS. • This area id used as a migration corridor by beluga whale in autumn on their way back from the Laptev Sea.

3.7.11.10 Western Severnaya Zemlya-ASBS #10

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 52,000 km2. • The largest Ivory Gull breeding colonies in the world occur in this area. These colonies are dependent on the western Severnaya Zemlya flaw polynya in spring and early summer. • The fast ice edge and polynya serve as feeding areas for polar bear.

3.7.12 Laptev Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.23 in Section 4.0)

3.7.12.1 Northwestern Laptev Sea (including polynyas north and northeast of Severnaya Zemlya)-ASBS #1

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3.7.12.2 Northeast Taymir and Preobrazheniya Island-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 19,000 km2. • Breeding colonies for Black-legged Kittiwake and Thick-billed Murre occur here. • Haul-outs and important summer feeding grounds for walrus also occur here.

3.7.12.3 Great Siberian Polynya System-ASBS #3

3.7.12.4 New Siberian Islands-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 84,000 km2. • Seabird breeding colonies (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, Black Guillemot) occur here. • The shallow waters are important feeding and molting areas for various seaducks (e.g., King Eider). • This are is important to walrus for haul-outs and summer feeding.

3.7.12.5 Deltas and Estuaries of the Khatanga, Anabar, Lena and Yana Rivers-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 22,000 km2. • These estuaries serve as nursery and feeding areas for several species of coregonid whitefishes and the Lena stock of Siberian sturgeon. • Arctic cod is the most important marine fish species in the Laptev Sea. They feed in the open parts of the sea, and winter and spawn in the coastal zone. • Anabar Bay is possibly a primary spawning ground for Arctic cod. • The deltas of these four rivers are important habitats for feeding, molting and staging of seaducks and shorebirds. • Marine-associated bird species using this area include King Eider, Spectacled Eider, Steller’s Eider, as well as numerous ducks, geese, swans and shorebirds.

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3.7.13 East Siberian Sea Sub-area (Figure 4.24 in Section 4.0)

3.7.13.1 New Siberian Islands-ASBS #1

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 84,000 km2. • The shallow waters around these islands are important feeding and molting areas for various seaducks (e.g., King Eider).

3.7.13.2 Great Siberian Polynya System-ASBS #2

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 136,000 km2. • This polynya system is an important spring staging area and feeding area for seabirds and seaducks (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, King Eider). • The polynya and shallow waters around the islands are year-round habitat for Laptev walrus.

3.7.13.3 De Long Islands-ASBS #3

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 51,000 km2. • Seabird colonies (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, Black Guillemot) occur here.

3.7.13.4 Indigirka and Kolyma Deltas and Estuaries-ASBS #4

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 13,000 km2. • The estuaries are nursery and feeding areas for amphidromous and anadromous whitefishes, and Siberian sturgeon. • This area provides important feeding, molting and staging areas for seaducks (e.g., King Eider, Spectacled Eider, Steller’s Eider), geese, swans and shorebirds.

3.7.13.5 Chaun Bay-ASBS #5

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 33,000 km2. • This is an area of feeding, molting and staging by seaducks and shorebirds. • Seabird colonies (e.g., Thick-billed Murre, Black-legged Kittiwake, Black Guillemot) also occur in this ASBS.

3.7.13.6 Wrangel/Herald Islands Area-ASBS #6

• This ASBS has an approximate area of 42,000 km2.

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Wrangel and Herald Islands

Coastal Waters in Southern Chukchi Sea and around Wrangel Island

Leads and Polynyas around Wrangel and Herald Islands

• These leads and polynyas are used for spring feeding by seabirds prior to their breeding on the islands (e.g., Thick-billed Murre).

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4.0 Arctic Environmental Compartment Figures

This section includes all GIS-related figures showing the Arctic Environmental Compartments occurring within the Study Area. Reference to all of these figures is made in Section 3.0.

Figure 4.1. Study Area (north of Arctic Circle) and Associated Sub-areas.

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Figure 4.2. Study Area Bathymetry (100 m, 200 m and 1,000 m isobaths).

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Figure 4.3. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 1980, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads.

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Figure 4.4. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 1990, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads.

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Figure 4.5. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2000, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads.

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Figure 4.6. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2005, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads.

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Figure 4.7. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2008, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads.

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Figure 4.8. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2010, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads.

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Figure 4.9. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2011, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads.

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Figure 4.10. Maximum Extents of Annual Ice and Multi-year Ice, 2014, and Locations of Polynyas and Leads.

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Figure 4.11. Surface Current Patterns in the Study Area.

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ASBS #1: Northeast Coastal Area (Alaska); ASBS #2: Southeastern Chukchi Sea (Chukchi Bight, Kotzebue Sound Area); ASBS #3: Northern Chukchi Peninsula; ASBS #4: South-Central Chukchi Sea (including Bering Strait Region); ASBS #5: Wrangel/Herald Islands Area; ASBS #6: Chukchi Shelf (Northern and Central Parts).

Figure 4.12. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Chukchi Sea Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Amundsen Gulf Area; ASBS #2: Mackenzie Estuary and Shelf; ASBS #3: Northeastern Alaska and Yukon Coasts and Shelves; ASBS #4: North Alaska Coast and Shelf; ASBS #5: Offshore Pack Ice.

Figure 4.13. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Beaufort Sea Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Drifting Pack Ice; ASBS #2: Chukchi Plateau (Chukchi Rise Area); ASBS #3: Chukchi Shelf (Northern and Central Parts); ASBS #4: Wrangel/Herald Islands Area; ASBS #5: Arctic Basin Multi-year Pack Ice; ASBS #6: Svalbard Archipelago; ASBS #7: Franz Josef Land; ASBS #8: Northwestern Laptev Sea (including Polynyas North and East of Severnaya Zemlya); ASBS #9: Great Siberian Polynya System; ASBS #10: Ice Zone on the Northern Shelf.

Figure 4.14. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Central Arctic Ocean Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Amundsen Gulf Area; ASBS #2: Western Victoria Island Inlets; ASBS #3: Viscount Melville Sound; ASBS #4: Coronation Gulf/Queen Maud Gulf-Coasts and Inlets; ASBS #5: King William and Southern Victoria Islands; ASBS #6: Lancaster Sound and Adjacent Inlets; ASBS #7: Prince Regent Inlet and Gulf of Boothia; ASBS #8: Peel Sound; ASBS #9: Wellington Channel; ASBS #10: Cardigan Strait-Hell Gate; ASBS #11: Northern Archipelago/Norwegian Bay; ASBS #12: Ellesmere Island; ASBS #13: Northern Foxe Basin.

Figure 4.15. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: North Water-Northern Baffin Bay; ASBS #2: Eastern Baffin Island Coast and Shelf; ASBS #3: Melville Bay; ASBS #4: Northwest Greenland Shelf; ASBS #5: Central Baffin Bay and Mouth of UUmmannaq Fjord; ASBS #6: Ellesmere Island; ASBS #7: Lancaster Sound and Adjacent Inlets.

Figure 4.16. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Baffin Bay Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Eastern Baffin Island Coast and Shelf; ASBS #2: Southern Baffin Bay; ASBS #3: Disko Bay and Store Hellefiske Banke.

Figure 4.17. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Davis Strait Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Northwest Iceland; ASBS #2: Denmark Strait; ASBS #3: North Iceland; ASBS #4: Northeast Water Polynya; ASBS #5: Scoresby Sund Fjord/Blosseville Coast; ASBS #6: Sirius Water/Young Sund Polynya; ASBS #7: Sea Ice in Western Greenland Sea; ASBS #8: Southeastern Greenland and Denmark Strait; ASBS #9: Jan Mayen Island; ASBS #10: Svalbard Archipelago.

Figure 4.18. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Greenland Sea Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Lofoten Area; ASBS #2: Jan Mayen Island; ASBS #3: Norwegian and Murman Coasts.

Figure 4.19. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Norwegian Sea Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Pechora Sea; ASBS #2: Norwegian and Murman Coasts; ASBS #3: Bear Island; ASBS #4: Svalbard Archipelago; ASBS #5: Franz Josef Land; ASBS #6: Western and Central Barents Sea; ASBS #7: Northern Barents Sea (Marginal Ice Zone); ASBS #8: Western Novaya Zemlya; ASBS #9: Northeastern Novaya Zemlya.

Figure 4.20. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Barents Sea Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Entrance and Northern White Sea; ASBS #2: White Sea.

Figure 4.21. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the White Sea Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Baydaratskaya Inlet-Western Yamal; ASBS #2: Northeastern Novaya Zemlya; ASBS #3: Western Novaya Zemlya; ASBS #4: Northern Kara Sea; ASBS #5: Northeastern Kara Sea Islands; ASBS #6: Ob River Estuary; ASBS #7: Yenisey River Estuary; ASBS #8: Pyasina River Estuary; ASBS #9: Vilkitskij Strait; ASBS #10: Western Severnaya Zemlya.

Figure 4.22. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Kara Sea Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: Northwestern Laptev Sea (including polynyas north and northeast of Severnaya Zemlya); ASBS #2: Northeast Taymir and Preobrazheniya Island; ASBS #3: Great Siberian Polynya System; ASBS #4: New Siberian Islands; ASBS #5: Deltas and Estuaries of the Khatanga, Anabar, Lena and Yana Rivers.

Figure 4.23. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the Laptev Sea Sub-area.

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ASBS #1: New Siberian Islands; ASBS #2: Great Siberian Polynya System; ASBS #3: De Long Islands; ASBS #4: Indigirka and Kolyma Deltas and Estuaries; ASBS #5: Chaun Bay; ASBS #6: Wrangel/Herald Islands Area.

Figure 4.24. Locations of Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS) in the East Siberian Sea Sub-area.

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5.0 References

AMAP/CAFF/SDWG. 2013. Identification of Arctic marine areas of heightened ecological and cultural significance: Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment (AMSA) IIc. 116 p. Bradstreet, M.S.W. and W.E. Cross. 1982. Trophic relationships at high Arctic ice edges. Arctic 35(1): 1-12. Cunliffe, M., A. Engel, S. Frka, B. Gašparović, C. Guitart, J.C. Murrell, M. Salter, C. Stolle, R. Upstill-Goddard and O. Wurl. 2013. Sea surface microlayers: A unified physicochemical and biological perspective of the air-ocean interface. Progress in Oceanography 109: 104- 116. Eamer, J., G.M. Donaldson, A.J. Gaston, K.N. Kosobokova, K.F Larusson, I.A. Melnikov, J.D. Reist, E. Richardson, L. Staples and C.H. von Quillfeldt. 2013. Life linked to ice: A guide to sea-ice-associated biodiversity in this time of rapid change. CAFF Assessment Series No. 10. Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna, Iceland. ISBN: 978-9935-431-25-7. Harrison, C., M.R. St-Onge, O.V. Petrov, S.I. Strelnikov, B.G. Lopatin, F.H. Wilson, S. Tella, D. Paul, T. Lynds, S.P. Shokalsky, C.K. Hults, S. Bergman, H.F. Jepsen and A. Solli. 2011. Geological Survey of Canada Map 2159A – Geological Map of the Arctic. Hebert, P.D.N. 2013. The Encyclopedia of Earth website. Available at http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/150195/ Martin, S. 2001. Polynyas. Encyclopedia of Ocean Science website. Available at http://polar.ocean.washington.edu/PAPERS/Polynya_encyclo.pdf NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). 2014. NOAA Arctic theme page website. Available at http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/ice-rubble-pressure.html NSIDC (National Snow & Ice Data Center). 2014a. NSIDC website. Available at http://nsidc.org/cryosphere/seaice/characteristics/multiyear.html NSIDC (National Snow & Ice Data Center). 2014b. NSIDC website. Available at http://nsidc.org/cryosphere/seaice/characteristics/leads.html Polyak, L., R.B. Alley, J.T. Andrews, J. Brigham-Grette, T.M. Cronin, D.A. Darby, A.S. Dyke, J.J. Fitzpatrick, S. Funder, M. Holland, A.E. Jennings, G.H. Miller, M. O’Regan, J. Savelle, M. Serreze, K. St. John, J.W.C. White and E. Wolff. 2010. History of sea ice in the Arctic. Quaternary Science Reviews 29: 1757-1778. Redmap. 2014. Redmap website. Available at http://www.redmap.org.au/article/upwelling- and-downwelling-in-the-ocean/ Shuchman, R.A., R.G. Onstott, O.M. Johannessen, S. Sandven and J.A. Johannessen. 2004. Processes at the ice edge – the Arctic. Chapter 18. Pages 373-296 In: Synthetic Aperture Radar – Marine Users Manual. University of Guelph. 2014. University of Guelph website. Available at http://www.aquatic.uoguelph.ca/oceans/ArticOceanWeb/Currents/maincur.htm Wadhams, P. and N. Toberg. 2012. Changing characteristics of arctic pressure ridges. Polar Science 6: 71-77.

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