In 2017, the SAMBR synthesized data about biodiversity in Arctic marine ecosystems around the circumpolar Arctic. SAMBR highlighted observed changes and relevant monitoring gaps using data compiled through 2015. In 2021 an update was provided on the status of seabirds in circumpolar Arctic using data from 2016–2019. Most changes reflect access to improved population estimates, orimproved data for monitoring trends,independent of recognized trends in population size.

Trends in kittiwake colonies 2001-2010, based on linear regression with year as the explanatory variable. Slope of the regression is red = negative trend, blue = positive trend; shaded circle = significant trend (at p<0.05), open circle = non-significant trend. Non-significant deviation from zero could imply a stable population, but in some cases was due to low sample size and low power. Provided with permission from Descamps et al. (in prep). STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/seabirds" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 135 - Figure 3.5.3 This figure is compiled from data from researchers working throughout circumpolar regions, primarily members of the Circumpolar Seabird Group, an EN of CAFF/seabirds. Dr. Sebastien Decamps conducted the analysis and produced the original figure; the full results will be available in an article in prep titled: “Descamps et al. in prep. Circumpolar dynamics of black-legged kittiwakes track large-scale environmental shifts and oceans' warming rate.” [expected submission spring 2016]. Colony population trends were analyzed using a linear regression with the year as explanatory variable. Based on slope of the regression (which cannot be exactly 0) colonies are either Declining (Slope of the regression <0) or Increasing (Slope of the regression >0). (Colonies may have had a negative but not significant slope, and could be stable but for some others, the slope is not significant due to small sample size / low power; thus we cannot say that all colonies with a non- significant slope are stable. The threshold was put at 5% to assess the significance of the trend.

Status of monitoring activities for each Focal Ecosystem Component (i.e., selected species groups) across each Arctic Marine Area as included in this report. STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/monitoring-status-and-advice" target="_blank">Key Findings</a> - Page 5 - Figure 1

EBSAs (Source: CBD 2016) and marine “areas of heightened ecological and cultural significance” (Source: AMAP/CAFF/SDWG, 2013). In 2013, the Arctic Council identified “Areas of heightened ecological and cultural significance” using the International Maritime Organization criteria for Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas (PSSAs), which are similar to the CBD Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs) criteria. The term “areas of heightened ecological and cultural significance” comes from Recommendation IIC of the Arctic Council’s 2009 Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment: ARCTIC PROTECTED AREAS - INDICATOR REPORT 2017

Distributions of all capelin species (light green) and Pacific capelin (Mallotus catervarius; dark green pattern) based on participation in research sampling, examination of museum voucher collections, the literature and molecular genetic analysis (Mecklenburg and Steinke 2015, Mecklenburg et al. 2016). Map shows the maximum distribution observed from point data and includes both common and rare locations STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/marine-fishes" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 117 - Figure 3.4.5

Assessment of monitoring implementation STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/marine-mammals" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 168 - Table 3.6.2

Figure 3.2.1a: Map of high throughput sequencing records from the Arctic Marine Areas. Figure 3.2.1b: Map of records of phytoplankton taxa using microscopy from the Arctic Marine Areas. STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/plankton" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 35 - Figure 3.2.1a and Figure 3.2.1b In terms of stations sampled, the greatest sampling effort of high-throughput sequencing in Arctic marine water columns, by far, has been in the Beaufort Sea/Amundsen Gulf region and around Svalbard. High through-put sequencing has also been used on samples from the Chukchi Sea, Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Baffin Bay, Hudson Bay, the Greenland Sea and Laptev Sea.

Sea ice provides a wide range of microhabitats for diverse biota including microbes, single-celled eukaryotes (labelled algae), multicellular meiofauna, larger under-ice fauna (represented by amphipods), as well as polar cod (Boreogadus saida). Modified from Bluhm et al. (2017). STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/sea-ice-biota" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 35 - Figure 3.1.1

A time series of cell abundances, as determined by microscopy, of major phytoplankton groups from 2002-2013 for four sites, two in an east-west transect in Amundsen Gulf, Beaufort Sea and two in an east-west transect in northern Baffin Bay. STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - <a href="https://arcticbiodiversity.is/findings/plankton" target="_blank">Chapter 3</a> - Page 73 - Figure 3.2.4 A time series of cell abundances, as determined by microscopy, of major phytoplankton groups from 2002-2013 for four sites, 2 in the Beaufort Sea and 2 in northern Baffin Bay. Cell abundances are given as cells per liter. On most sampling dates, there is data from surface water and from the subsurface chlorophyll maximum (Cmax in the spreadsheet). Some additional information is included in the column headings, such as the percent of light at the sample depth; however, this should not be included in the figure. You may or may not want to include a map element in this figure, and rough coordinates of the sampling sites are included. The second sheet of the excel file presents the same data but at a finer scale of taxonomic resolution. It is the first sheet that should be used.