Characterizing vulnerability of northern freshwater ecosystems to climate variation and airborne pollution

加拿大北部偏远的富含水资源的地貌提供了重要的野生动物栖息地，维持了土著和当地北部社区的生存，但极易受到气候变化的影响。北部偏远淡水绿洲的气候变化威胁到了极度濒危的呼啸鹤的保护工作。呼啸鹤是北美最高的鸟类，也是世界上最稀有的鸟类之一。由于种群数量少和湿地栖息地的要求，百叫鹤几乎灭绝(1941年有16只)。唯一活跃的鸣鹤繁殖区是联合国教科文组织世界遗产伍德布法罗国家公园(WBNP)的国际重要拉姆萨尔湿地。鸣鹤在浅水池附近筑巢，那里提供了首选的食物、筑巢材料和探测捕食者的远视线。在干旱的年份，池塘的缩减会增加鸟巢的捕食量，减少食物供应，从而减少白头鹤的产量。在多雨的年份，水位上升会淹没鸟巢，降低孵化成功率。自1966年以来，已经记录了筑巢成功和筑巢位置，但池塘的水文和生态条件在空间和时间上的变化仍然完全未知。污染物的长途运输也引起了人们的关注。人为颗粒物(微塑料、微纤维)是一类新出现的令人担忧的污染物，西北地区的淡水鸟类的浓度已被证明与加拿大南部的鸟类相当。此外，养殖区可能在耶洛奈夫金矿产生的有毒砷的远场遗留排放范围内，汞是一个令人担忧的问题，因为整个加拿大北部的沉积量仍接近峰值水平。拟议的研究将通过将系统的景观尺度当代水生态测量与沉积物岩心分析的长期记录结合起来，提高对调节加拿大北部水生生态系统的自然和人为过程的了解。短期目标是表征水资源对气候变化和污染物沉积的脆弱性，这是极度濒危的呼叫鹤最后的自然繁殖栖息地。我将努力将研究转变为机构领导的长期监测计划，让当地和土著人民发挥有意义的作用，就像我在其他地方所实现的那样。这些发现将为WBNP行动计划以及联邦和地方机构保护极度濒危的呼叫鹤种群的战略提供依据。这项研究将直接促进教科文组织2017年关于WBNP的报告中的建议16：“继续密切监测WBNP生态系统内的整个已使用和潜在的高头鹤筑巢区域，以便能够应对可能不断变化的管理要求”，并为教科文组织即将作出的关于WBNP的世界遗产地位的决定提供信息。将为至少2名博士、4名硕士和17名理科学生以及1名博士后提供环境评估热门技能的多学科培训。

Remote water-rich landscapes in northern Canada provide important wildlife habitat and sustain Indigenous and local northern communities yet are highly vulnerable to climate change. Climate-driven changes at a remote northern freshwater oasis threaten conservation efforts for the critically endangered Whooping Crane, North America's tallest bird and one of the world's rarest birds. Due to its small population and wetland habitat requirements, Whooping Crane nearly went extinct (16 in 1941). The only active Whooping Crane breeding area is a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in Wood Buffalo National Park (WBNP), a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Whooping Crane nest near shallow ponds that provide preferred food, nest material and long sight lines to detect predators. In dry years, drawdown of ponds reduces Whooping Crane production by increasing nest predation and reducing food supply. In wet years, water-level rise inundates nests, reducing hatching success. Nesting success and nest locations have been recorded since 1966 but variation over space and time in hydrological and ecological conditions of the ponds remains completely unknown. Long-distance transport of contaminants also raises concern. Anthropogenic particles (microplastics, microfibers) are an emerging class of contaminants of concern, and freshwater birds in NWT have been shown to have comparable concentrations to birds in southern Canada. Also, the breeding area may be within reach of far-field legacy emissions of toxic arsenic from gold mines at Yellowknife and mercury is a concern because deposition remains near peak levels across northern Canada. The proposed research will improve understanding of natural and human-caused processes regulating aquatic ecosystems in northern Canada by integrating systematic landscape-scale contemporary hydro-ecological measurements with long term records from analysis of sediment cores. The short-term goal is to characterize water resource vulnerability to climate change and contaminant deposition at the last remaining natural breeding habitat for the critically endangered Whooping Crane. I will strive to transition the research to an agency-led long-term monitoring program that involves local and Indigenous people in meaningful roles, as I've achieved elsewhere. Findings will inform the WBNP Action Plan and strategies by federal and local agencies to conserve the critically endangered Whooping Crane population. The research will contribute directly to Recommendation 16 from the 2017 Report by UNESCO on WBNP: "Continue to closely monitor the entire used and potential nesting area of the Whooping Crane within the Greater WBNP Ecosystem so as to be able to respond to possibly changing management requirements" and inform pending decisions at UNESCO on WBNP's World Heritage Status. Multidisciplinary training in sought-after skills for environmental assessment will be provided to at least 2 PhD, 4 MSc and 17 BSc students, and 1 postdoc.