The Underside of the Ice

In this photo you can see a core of Arctic sea ice collected by Canadian Museum of Nature scientist Michel Poulin. Michel studies algae which live on the underside of Arctic sea ice. This algae and associated microscopic life form what is referred to as the "sympagic ecosystem". Sympagic organisms live in within channels in the ice itself, or at the water interface immediately below the ice, and are a crucial food source for many marine invertebrates and Arctic cod. They are highly specialized but cover a wide taxonomic range, from bacteria and simple algae to vertebrates.