News Finding: This suggests that marine top predators are important in climate regulation, although they are mostly left out of climate models, Nevitt said.
Paper Finding: Our results imply that marine top predators play a critical role in maintaining both ocean health and global climate.
News Context: "The data are really striking," said Gabrielle Nevitt, professor of neurobiology, physiology and behavior at UC Davis and co-author on the paper with graduate student Matthew Savoca. This suggests that marine top predators are important in climate regulation, although they are mostly left out of climate models, Nevitt said. "In addition to studying how these marine top predators are responding to climate change, our data suggest that more attention should be focused on how ecological systems, themselves, impact climate.
Paper Context: This study demonstrates that dimethyl sulfide, a chemical cue involved in global climate regulation, mediates a tritrophic mutualistic interaction between marine apex predators and primary producers. Our results imply that marine top predators play a critical role in maintaining both ocean health and global climate. Our results highlight the need for more collaboration and discussion between micro-and macroscale biologists working on global issues in the Southern Ocean.