Steve Coulson

Photo:- María Luisa Ávila Jiménez

Joined UNIS in November 2005 but conducted ecological fieldwork in Svalbard since 1991. Research interests include the biogeography of Arctic invertebrates focusing on the terrestrial invertebrate fauna of Svalbard, dispersal and colonisation of the Arctic by the invertebrate fauna, community structure and overwintering strategies. 

Arctic Bug GroupA checklist of the terrestrial invertebrate species can be found here:-

This list is compiled from over 500 references and will be updated as new articles appear.  The list currently largely describes the fauna of the west coast and few articles detail the invertebrate communities of the more remote and colder west coast. 

Avian vectors of invertebrate faunas (AVIFauna)

The first field season of the AVIFauna project was completed successfully with 10 days in Ny-Ålesund followed by 15 days in Barentsburg. With this project we aim to determine the role of birds in the colonization of Svalbard by the invertebrate fauna, concentrating on the microarthropods (mites and Collembola). The project is a collaboration between workers from Russia, Poland and Norway.

In this first season soil and nest samples were collected and extracted for the invertebrate communities. Next step is to identify, catalogue and quantify the animals collected. A long winter awaits us all.

Arrival in Ny-Ålesund was greated with largely excellent weather (1). Our Russian and Polish colleagues were introduced to the village and researchers working on the birds. They received an invite to lunch with the Russian ambassador to Norway and the Governor of Svalbard when these both arrived in the village one morning. After a successful ten days in Ny-Ålesund the team moved on to Barentsburg.

Fig. 1. AVIFauna field team 2011. Left to right, Torstein Solhøy, Darius Gwiazdowicz, Natalia Lebedeva, Steve Coulson, Hanne Eik Pilskog and Elena Melekhina. Picture Elena Melekhina.

On arrival at the Russian town the bird cliff was swiftly reconnoitered by Torstein and Darius (2) before deciding it was too wet to work under the cliffs. The following day, and in better weather, the opening samples were taken (3) and the first extractions commenced (4) in the garage of the biological station in Barentsburg.

Fig. 2. Surveying the Barentsburg bird cliffs in the rain.

Fig. 3. Preparing to ascend the slope.

Sorting the catches was undertaken in our hotel rooms in Barentsburg (5). After returning to Longyearbyen we organized the final extractions ensured all the records were complete. During the winter the samples will be scrutinized and the first manuscripts and reports written. Footnote Careful planning of the fieldwork had ensured arrival in Ny-Ålesund in time for the midsummer party (6a&b).

Fig. 5 Torstein sorting in his hotel room in Barentsburg.

Fig. 6a. Elena, Natalia and Torstein. Ny-Ålesund midsummer party.

Fig. 6b. Hanne and Kristen in costume.

AVIFauna project
This project addresses three key questions concerning dispersal to, and colonization of, Svalbard by the soil microarthropod community. The data gathered will have an importance to island biogeography theory in general and not only in polar areas. This is especially important in an era of rapid environmental change.
a) Are migrating birds a previously unrecognized important dispersal route for the soil fauna of Arctic regions?
b) Can soil microarthropods may live for extended periods under the plumage of birds?
c) Do colonising soil microarthropods first establish in the favourable ornithogenic soils (including nest substrates)?

The history of invertebrate colonization of the Arctic following the last glacial maxima is unclear. It is likely that few, if any, invertebrate species survived the glaciation in situ but that all re-invaded the Arctic during the recent Holocene, that is, the past 10,000 years. In the Svalbard archipelago today the total number of terrestrial and freshwater invertebrate species numbers some 1,100. However, since this list is only representative of two locations on the west coast the total number of species present is likely to be significantly greater. Of these 1,100 species, there are around 60 species of Collembola and many species of oribatid mite (exact number under current revision). Several routes by which the fauna could have arrived in Svalbard have been proposed, for example rafting, aerial plankton, with human traffic and birds. Evidence suggests that migrating birds moving to the Arctic from their overwintering grounds may transport soil microarthopods.

This project aims to describe and quantify the role of avian phoresy in the dispersal and colonization of high latitudes by soil invertebrates which are not normally considered to be phoretic, primarily oribatid mites and Collembola. It is widely accepted that that these soil dwelling creatures may accidentally attach themselves to birds and so may be spread to new localities during foraging of their inadvertent host or, perhaps more importantly, during bird migration events. It was hence generally assumed however that the incidence of these miocroarthropods on birds was low since the soil animals would try and leave the ‘host’ at the first opportunity and return to their ‘normal’ habitat. However, new work published during the last four years indicates that these invertebrates are often very common on the birds. Indeed, there is evidence that they may complete whole lifecycles on the birds. While remaining controversial, this theory does have some substance. Conditions under the feathers and close to the skin would seem to be ideal for these soil organisms being warm, protected and with a ample food supply in the form of dead organic matter (sloughed skin flakes) and fungal hyphae, both of which form the natural food types for these microarthropods in the soil. Nonetheless, to date there has been no concerted effort to determine the importance of this dispersal to the creation of Arctic soil microarthropod diversity.

Meet the team

Anastasia A. Taskaeva; Institute of Biology Komi Science Center, Russia
Arne Fjellberg, Norway.
Darius J. Gwiazdowicz, University of Life Sciences, Poznan, Poland
Dmitry I. Vodolazhsky; Southern Scientific Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia
Elena Melekhina; Institute of biology Komi Science Center, Russia
Geir Wing Gabrielsen; Norwegian Polar Institute, Norway
Maarten J.J.E. Loonen; Arctic Centre, University of Groningen, Netherlands
Natalia V. Lebedeva; Southern Scientific Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia
Steve J. Coulson; University Centre in Svalbard, Norway
Torstein Solhøy; University of Bergen, Norway

Invertebrate fauna of Svalbard Workshop, March 2011

Terrestrial invertebrate fauna of Svalbard.

The aphid (bladlus) Acyrthosiphon svalbardicum on Dryas octopetala, Blomstrandhalvøya, Kongsfjord.

 

Sites where invertebrate fauna has been studied. The fauna  of the east coast, Nordaustlandet and the interior are for the main part unknown.

 

The current known terrestrial fauna consists of over 1,200 species. However, the fauna has only been described in detail from the Longyearbyen region and Ny-Ålesund. There have been almost no studies published from the east coast or Nordaustlandet. With very different wind and current dirrections influencing where immigrating species originate from and a harsher climate it is likely that the invertebrate community of this region is unlike that of the west coast.

 

 

 

 

The collembolan Onychiurus arcticus under stones. Stuphallet, Kongsfjord.

                                                                                  Apamea maillardi, Fjortendejulibre, Krossfjord.

Dipteran on Dryas octopetala, Sassendalen.

The soil oribatid mite, Ameronothrus lineatus.

Biodiversity and biogeography of the invertebrate fauna of the Arctic. 

This forms the basic theme of my research.  It also forms the basis of the PhD project of María Luisa Ávila Jiménez.  Here we are describing and mapping the current fauna of Svalbard.  While there are over 1,100 invertebrate species recognized from Svalbard (Coulson 2007) this fauna is poorly understood.  We will also investigate dispersal to Svalbard using a range of genetic techniques in the new UNIS DNA lab.  Sub-projects will include wintering ecophysiology, local biogeography and identification and description of new species

Coulson, S.J. & Refseth, D. (2004) The terrestrial and freshwater invertebrate fauna of Svalbard (and Jan Mayen), pp57-122 in A catalogue of the terrestrial and marine animals of Svalbard (eds. Prestrud, P. Strøm H. & Goldman H.). Skrifter 201. Norwegian Polar Institute, Tromsø.

Coulson, S.J. 2007 The terrestrial and freshwater invertebrate fauna of the High Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. Zootaxa 1448; 41-58.

Coulson, S.J. 2007 On the occurrence of Oryzaephilus mercator on Svalbard, Norway. Norwegian Journal of Entomology. 54, 21-22.

Ávila-Jiménez, M. L., Fjellberg, A. & Coulson, S.J. (2008) First record of Folsomia bisetosella Fjellberg, 2005 (Hexapoda: Collembola) from High Arctic islands. Norwegian Journal of Entomology 55, 129–130.

Coulson S.J. (2009) Association of the soil mite Diapterobates notatus (Acari, Oribatidae) with Cynomya mortuorum (Linnaeus, 1761) (Calliphoridae, Calliphorinae): implications for the dispersal of oribatid mites. International Journal of Acarology 35;175-177

Invertebrate colonisation of Svalbard.

It is hypothesized that the invertebrate fauna on the cold east coast of Svalbard will be influenced by immigration pathways from the east and north east with the prevailing winds and ocean currents in contrast to the south and south westerly currents and winds that dominate the mild west coast.  There are extremely few records of the invertebrate fauna from the east coast, almost all coming from the vicinity of Longyearbyen, Ny-Ålesund and a few from Hornsund and it is expected that the east coast / Nordaustlandet community will include new species (Fjellberg 1997).  This project will aim to detail the invertebrate communities on the east coast, including several localities on Nordaustlandet and Edgeøya.  Data will be used to propose the source populations for the faunas and better improve our knowledge of the invertebrate fauna of Svalbard.  Samples will be preserved for genetic analysis.  Collaboration with the botanists investigating similar problems in plant dispersal (Dr. Inger Alsos) will enable the genetic work to proceed. 

Kinnvika Station, Nordaustlandet, August '07

Maria Luisa Ávila Jiménez (Malu) pooting for invertebrates.

Leaving Kinnvika August 21st '07

This project also involves publishing and updating the species records for Svalbard.  To this end collaboration has been initiated with various taxonomists in Europe and North America. 

The invertebrate community infesting seabirds and their nests.

There is little known about the invertebrate fauna of sea bird nests and almost nothing from the Arctic.  During July 2007 and an opportunity arose to sample the nests of kittiwakes, glaucous gulls and eiders in Kongsfjord and Krossfjord with Geir Wing Gabrielsen (NPI) and examine adult birds for the tick Ixodes uriae (Fig 11) which, prior to 2007, was not known from Spitsbergen.  During this week an UNIS student acted as a field assistant and was involved in all aspects of the work. I returned to work with Gabrielsen and his group in July 2008 and have collected a number of ticks which will be used as the basis for a project to determine winter cold hardiness.  In addition, masters projects linked between UNIS and NPI are foreseen investigating the influence of pollutant load on the immune system of the seabirds and the consequent effects on parasite load.

Sampling kittiwake nests in Kongsfjord, July '07

Gry Gasbjerg and Geir Wing Gabrielsen examine a kittiwake for invertebrates. July '07

Initial results published in:-

Coulson S.J., Monson F., Moe B. and Gabrielsen G.W. (2009) The invertebrate fauna of High Arctic seabird nests: the microarthropod community inhabiting nests on Spitsbergen, Svalbard. Polar Biology 32;1041-1046.

Coulson, S.J., Lorentzen, E., Strøm, H. Gabrielsen G.W. (2009) The parasitic tick Ixodes uriae (Acari: Ixodidae) on seabirds from Spitsbergen, Svalbard. Polar Research. 28;399-402

This project will be further developed by masters student Hanne Pilskog during summer 2010.

The microbial diversity of Svalbard

ARCFAC V group on steps of the NERC station in Ny-Ålesund, August ’07. Right to left: Prof Bill Sloan University of Glasgow; Prof Jessica Green University of California Merced, Dr. Steve Coulson UNIS, Prof Tom Curtis University of Newcastle,Dr Lise Øvreås University of Bergen.

Sampling in Krossfjord, August 2007

Sampling in Kongsfjord, August 2007.

Visualising the microbes, Marine Lab, Ny-Ålesund.

The diversity and formation of microbial communities is largely unexplored. There is evidence that polar soils in general, and Ny-Ålesund soils in particular, could be some of the most diverse microbial communities on the planet. The study aims to describe this diversity and unpick the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon, in particular the role of: growth, death, evolution and immigration.