Antarctic islands rich in biodiversity
1 December 2008
The first inventory of life on the land and sea in an Antarctic region reveals a wealth of diversity and challenges the long-held view that biodiversity decreases the closer you get to the poles.
Antarctica appears to be a frozen, barren wilderness, but if you look a little closer, you may be surprised.
Science writer and broadcaster Richard Hollingham talks to scientists at the British Antarctic Survey in Cambridge about a study that catalogued both land and marine life in the South Orkney Islands.
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These islands, just off the Antarctic Peninsula, have been studied for a century, which means there is an abundance of data on the animals living there. David Barnes and Katrin Linse tell Richard about the variety of animals they catalogued.
The inventory will be a useful benchmark for researchers to monitor how Antarctic land and sea animals respond to coming environmental change.
Keywords:
Antarctic,
Biodiversity,
Environmental change,
Oceans,
Polar,
Southern Ocean,
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