The Southern Ocean surrounds Antarctica and has a unique ecology. It has a circumpolar coastline of around 18,000 km and covers an area twice the size of the United States. The Antarctic continental shelf is unusually deep due to isostatic depression and ice scour. The Antarctic icepack grows seasonally to a maximum of around 18.8 million square km in September. The benthic ecology of Antarctica is unusual in that there are no predatory fish, crabs, lobsters, sharks or rays. The top predators are slow moving invertebrates like sea stars and ribbon worms. Dense populations of suspension feeding invertebrates create habitat for other fauna. Climate change poses a serious threat to

1. TROUBLE IN THE FRIGID WATERS
Climate Change and the Antarctic

3. Antarctica

4. The Southern ocean
 The Southern Ocean has the unique distinction of being a
large circumpolar body of water totally encircling the
continent of Antarctica; this ring of water lies between 60
degrees south latitude and the coast of Antarctica and
encompasses 360 degrees of longitude
 20.327 million sq km - slightly more than twice the size of
the US
 Coastline - 17,968 km
 The Southern Ocean is deep, 4,000 to 5,000 m over most
of its extent with only limited areas of shallow water;
Much is deep seafloor with generally unknown fauna.
 he Antarctic continental shelf is generally narrow and
unusually deep, its edge lying at depths of 400 to 800 m
(the global mean is 133 m)
 Continental shelf is unusually deep due to isostatic
depression and ice scour.
 The Antarctic icepack grows from an average minimum
of 2.6 million sq km in March to about 18.8 million sq km in
September, better than a sixfold increase in area

5. Unique – Giant pycnogonids

6. Unique – Giant nermerteans
Parbolasia corrugatus

8. Benthic Ecology of the Antartic
 A critical feature: absence of
durophagous predators – fish and
decapod – no brachyuran crabs, lobsters,
sharks, or rays, low diversity of skates, and
only 2 common clades of teleosteans
(nototheniods and liparids).

9.  Wedell seals eat mostly free
swimming prey – no
equivalent to the walrus or
gray whales of the Arctic.
 Functionally Paleozoic with
slow moving invertebrate top
predators including asteroids
and nemerteans
 And dense and large areas of
epifaunal suspension feeders
populations.
 Functionally archaic does not
mean the organisms are not
as evolved.

10. Bentos gemeinschaft
Antarctic sponges and ascidians from the sea floor during the current 29th Antarctic expedition of RV Polarstern East of the
Westantarctic Peninsula. Photo: Julian Gutt/Dieter Piepenburg, Alfred-Wegener-Institut/IP…Ö
A paradise for animals. The dense biotic community of Antarctic sponges creates habitats for diverse other fauna.
Photo: A. Starmans, W. Dimmler; Alfred-Wegener-Institut

11. REFERENCES
 Alfred Wegener Institut fuer Polar und
Meeresforschung
http://www.awi.de/en/news/images_vid
eo_audio/image_galleries/picture_gallery
_antarctic_benthos/
 Ice shelf picture:
http://www.swisseduc.ch/glaciers/earth_i
cy_planet/glaciers08- en.html?id=5)
 http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/
animals/mammals/weddell-seal/
 Wikipedia -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antarctic