The Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) is experiencing the most rapid warming of any marine ecosystem on Earth and is thus an ideal place to investigate the interactions between climate change and marine ecosystem response. The productivity of the WAP is supported in part by microbial activity and therefore an understanding of microbial processes is essential to understanding biogeochemical cycling in this region. Marine viruses are a source of mortality and disease of ecologically and economically important marine species from plankton to vertebrates, yet aside from a few estimates of viral abundance there is no information about viral ecology in Antarctic waters. This study will compare the temporal variation of total virus abundance, viral diversity, virioplankton composition and the frequency of infected cells in the microbial assemblage with variations in biological, chemical and physical parameters over two summer field seasons in the Palmer Basin. It will be the first temporal examination of virus-induced mortality and virus diversity in this globally important region. During the proposed research, the post doctoral fellow will collaborate closely with members of the Palmer Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program. The interactions will be mutually beneficial. The proposed research will address an unknown factor in the plankton ecology and biogeochemistry in the WAP, while the post doctoral fellow will gain valuable experience working with an experienced research team, learn new methods, and conduct new and exciting research in microbial oceanography. In addition to the research, the fellow will participate in the outreach activities of the Palmer LTER program and the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
