Abstract Based on the Baltic Earth Assessment Reports of this thematic issue in Earth
System Dynamics and recent peer-reviewed literature, current knowledge of the effects of …

Benthic–pelagic coupling is manifested as the exchange of energy, mass, or nutrients
between benthic and pelagic habitats. It plays a prominent role in aquatic ecosystems, and it …

Climate change has multiple effects on Baltic Sea species, communities and ecosystem
functioning through changes in physical and biogeochemical environmental characteristics …

Hypoxia has occurred intermittently over the Holocene in the Baltic Sea, but the recent
expansion from less than 10 000 km 2 before 1950 to> 60 000 km 2 since 2000 is mainly …

The occurrence of regime shifts in marine ecosystems has important implications for
environmental legislation that requires setting reference levels and targets of quantitative …

Benthic animals profoundly influence the cycling and storage of carbon and other elements
in marine systems, particularly in coastal sediments. Recent climate change has altered the …

Scattering alters the path of photons, but ultimately their removal from the water column
occurs by absorption by one of four components: water itself, coloured dissolved organic …

Following earlier regional assessment studies, such as the Assessment of Climate Change
for the Baltic Sea Basin and the North Sea Region Climate Change Assessment, knowledge …

Nutrient loading and climate change affect coastal ecosystems worldwide. Unravelling the
combined effects of these pressures on benthic macrofauna is essential for understanding …

Seafloor ecosystems play pivotal roles in biogeochemical cycling, but hypoxia (O 2< 2 mg l−
1) is changing the way they contribute to ecosystem function on a global scale. A major …