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Zooplankton storage lipids play an important role during reproduction, food scarcity, ontogeny and diapause, as shown by studies in various oceanic regions. While triacylglycerols, the primary storage lipid of terrestrial animals, are found in almost all zooplankton species, wax esters are the dominant storage lipid in many deep-living and polar zooplankton taxa. Phospholipids and diacylglycerol ethers are the unique storage lipids used by polar euphausiids and pteropods, respectively. In zooplankton with large stores of wax esters, triacylglycerols are more rapidly turned over and used for short-term energy needs, while wax esters serve as long-term energy deposits. Zooplankton groups found in polar, westerlies, upwelling and coastal biomes are characterized by accumulation of large lipid stores. In contrast, zooplankton from the trades/tropical biomes is mainly composed of omnivorous species with only small lipid reserves. Diapausing copepods, which enter deep water after feeding on phytoplankton during spring/summer blooms or at the end of upwelling periods, are characterized by large oil sacs filled with wax esters. The thermal expansion and compressibility of wax esters may allow diapausing copepods and other deep-water zooplankton to be neutrally buoyant in cold deep waters, and they can thus avoid spending energy to remain at these depths. Lipid droplets are often noted in zooplankton ovaries, and a portion of these droplets can be transferred to developing oocytes. In addition to lipid droplets, zooplankton eggs have yolks with lipovitellin, a lipoprotein with approximately equal amounts of protein and lipid. The lipovitellin lipid is predominantly phosphatidylcholine, so during reproduction females must convert a portion of their storage lipid into this phospholipid. Developing embryos use their lipovitellin and lipid droplets for energy and materials until feeding begins. The various functions storage lipids serve during the different life history stages of zooplankton are very complex and still not fully understood and hence offer a multitude of fascinating research perspectives.

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Distribution and movement patterns of Antarctic blue whales Balaenoptera musculus intermedia at large temporal and spatial scales are still poorly understood. The objective of this study was to explore spatio-temporal distribution patterns of Antarctic blue whales in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean, using passive acoustic monitoring data. Multi-year data were collected between 2008 and 2013 by 11 recorders deployed in the Weddell Sea and along the Greenwich meridian. Antarctic blue whale Z-calls were detected via spectrogram cross-correlation. A Blue Whale Index was developed to quantify the proportion of time during which acoustic energy from Antarctic blue whales dominated over background noise. Our results show that Antarctic blue whales were acoustically present year-round, with most call detections between January and April. During austral summer, the number of detected calls peaked synchronously throughout the study area in most years, and hence, no directed meridional movement pattern was detectable. During austral winter, vocalizations were recorded at latitudes as high as 69°S, with sea ice cover exceeding 90%, suggesting that some Antarctic blue whales overwinter in Antarctic waters. Polynyas likely serve as an important habitat for baleen whales during austral winter, providing food and reliable access to open water for breathing. Overall, our results support increasing evidence of a complex and non-obligatory migratory behavior of Antarctic blue whales, potentially involving temporally and spatially dynamic migration routes and destinations, as well as variable timing of migration to and from the feeding grounds.