Challenges in coupling atmospheric electricity with biological systems

Ellard R. Hunting, James Matthews, Pablo Fernández de Arróyabe Hernáez, Sam J. England, Konstantinos Kourtidis, Kuang Koh, Keri Nicoll, R. Giles Harrison, Konstantine Manser, Colin Price, Snezana Dragovic, Michal Cifra, Anna Odzimek, Daniel Robert

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

34 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

The atmosphere is host to a complex electric environment, ranging from a global electric circuit generating fluctuating atmospheric electric fields to local lightning strikes and ions. While research on interactions of organisms with their electrical environment is deeply rooted in the aquatic environment, it has hitherto been confined to interactions with local electrical phenomena and organismal perception of electric fields. However, there is emerging evidence of coupling between large- and small-scale atmospheric electrical phenomena and various biological processes in terrestrial environments that even appear to be tied to continental waters. Here, we synthesize our current understanding of this connectivity, discussing how atmospheric electricity can affect various levels of biological organization across multiple ecosystems. We identify opportunities for research, highlighting its complexity and interdisciplinary nature and draw attention to both conceptual and technical challenges lying ahead of our future understanding of the relationship between atmospheric electricity and the organization and functioning of biological systems.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)45–58
JournalInternational Journal of Biometeorology
Volume65
Early online date14 Jul 2020
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2021

Funding

EH received financial support from the Swiss National Science Foundation, SNF (CRSK-2 190855). SD received financial support from the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia (project III43009). AO received funding from Poland Ministry of Science and Higher Education for statutory research of the Institute of Geophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences (Grant No 3841/E-41/S/2019). DR received financial support from the European Research Commission (ERC-ADG 743093), supporting EH, SJE, and KuK. KM is supported by the Natural Environment Research Council, DFT FRESH. MC received financial support from the Czech Science Foundation, GAČR (GA20-06873X). Acknowledgements This paper is based upon work from COST Action “Atmospheric Electricity Network: coupling with the Earth System, climate and biological systems (ELECTRONET),” supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology).

Keywords

  • Aerosols
  • Biometeorology
  • Ecosystem connectivity
  • Electromagnetics
  • Electroreception
  • Electrostatics
  • Ions
  • Lightning
  • Potential gradient
  • Radionuclides
  • Thunderstorm

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Ecology
  • Atmospheric Science
  • Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis

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