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Contrasting Sensitivity of Marine Biota to UV-B Radiation Between Southern and Northern Hemispheres

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Abstract

The asymmetries between hemispheres in stratospheric ozone concentration and atmospheric aerosols, leading to differences in incident ultraviolet B (UV-B) radiation, were examined in order to resolve the differential forcing of adaptation and selection of marine organisms under elevated UV-B radiation. This analysis was based on a meta-analysis including 2,060 experimental assessments of responses of marine organisms from the Northern and Southern Hemispheres to UV-B. Stratospheric ozone concentration in spring and summer decreased by 11.0 % in the Southern and 2.7 % in the Northern between 1970 and 2012, indicating higher UV-B incidence on the Southern Hemisphere. The ratio of studies on UV-B radiation impacts performed in the Southern against the Northern Hemisphere was 0.34 indicating higher research effort in the Northern Hemisphere. Responses of marine biota to UV-B indicated significantly more resistance of marine organisms tested from the Southern Hemisphere (P < 0.01) to UV-B radiation. Marine plants (angiosperm, macroalgae and microalgae) showed no significant differences in UV-B sensitivity between hemispheres, but the family Ulvaceae, showed significantly more resistance to UV-B for organisms tested from the Southern Hemisphere (P < 0.005). Echinodermata tested from the Southern Hemisphere were more resistant to UV-B (P < 0.005), as well as early stages of marine organisms (P < 0.001). Responses at the molecular and cellular level and demographic levels showed lower UV-B effects in the organisms tested from the Southern Hemisphere. The results obtained suggest that marine organisms from the Southern Hemisphere tend to be more resistant to UV-B radiation than those in the Northern Hemisphere.

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Acknowledgments

This research is a contribution to the LINCGlobal programme (CSIC-PUC) and was partially funded by the Malaspina-2010 project of the CONSOLIDER programme (ref. CSD2008-00077) and the project Stress-X (ref. CTM2012-32603) of the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. LINCGlobal, CSIC-PUC, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Alameda 340, Santiago, Chile

    Susana Agustí, Moira Llabrés, Beatriz Carreja, Miriam Fernández & Carlos M. Duarte

  2. IMEDEA, CSIC-UIB, Miquel Marqués 21, 07190, Esporles, Mallorca, Spain

    Susana Agustí, Moira Llabrés, Beatriz Carreja & Carlos M. Duarte

  3. The UWA Oceans Institute and School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, 6009, Australia

    Susana Agustí & Carlos M. Duarte

  4. ECIM, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Alameda 340, Santiago, Chile

    Miriam Fernández

  5. Faculty of Marine Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, P. O. Box 80207, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia

    Carlos M. Duarte

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  1. Susana Agustí
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Correspondence to Susana Agustí.

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Communicated by Wayne S. Gardner

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Agustí, S., Llabrés, M., Carreja, B. et al. Contrasting Sensitivity of Marine Biota to UV-B Radiation Between Southern and Northern Hemispheres. Estuaries and Coasts 38, 1126–1133 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-014-9790-9

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