We hear a lot of news about how fast the largest glaciers are melting and breaking down. They are home to flora and fauna that are dying due to global warming. We tell you who is under threat.
What plants live on Antarctic glaciers
In Antarctica, all flora is two species of flowering plants: Colobanthus quitensis and Antarctic meadows.
Also in Antarctica there are mosses, lichens, microscopic fungi, algae. The poverty of the local flora is associated with harsh weather conditions – all of Antarctica is located in the Antarctic desert zone.
The flora of Antarctica includes:
• Flowering plants – 2 species,
• Mosses – 70-100 species,
• Liver mosses – 25-30 species,
• Lichens – 250-300 species,
• Algae (aquatic and terrestrial) – about 700 species.
There is a large percentage of endemics, as the mainland has been isolated for a long time. Endemic mosses include Grimmia antarctici, Schistidium antarctici, and Sarconeurum glaciale.
Fauna of Antarctica
• Temporomandibular
In Antarctica, the species of collembolans Cryptopygus antarcticus lives, these are such small arthropods. They live between mosses and lichens, where they feed on detritus. In general, 17 species of collembolans from 13 genera of 4 families live here. More than half of them are local endemics.
• Insects
First species: Belgica antarctica are black, wingless belling mosquitoes. These endemics of Antarctica are considered to be the largest truly terrestrial species that do not leave the earth’s surface.
• Birds
Two types of penguins nest on the mainland itself: the emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) and the Adélie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae). Other birds include several species of petrels, Antarctic and snowy, as well as two species of skuas.
• Mammals
There are no completely land mammals in Antarctica. From semi-aquatic land animals of this class, seals come ashore: Weddell, crabeater seals, leopard seals, Ross, elephant seals. Cruciform dolphins also live.
What is growing and who lives in the Arctic
Dwarf shrubs, grasses, grasses, lichens and mosses grow in the Arctic. Due to low summer temperatures, there is a small variety of species and small size of plants. There are also no trees here, but there are shrubs reaching two meters in height, and sedges, mosses and lichens form a thick litter.
The Arctic is home to a number of unique animals: musk ox, wild reindeer, bighorn sheep, polar bear.
Musk ox
The herbivorous inhabitants of the tundra include the Arctic hare, lemming, musk ox and wild reindeer. They are food for arctic fox and wolf.
The polar bear is also a predator; it prefers to hunt sea animals from the ice. Many species of birds and marine life are endemic to the colder regions. In addition, wolverines, ermines and long-tailed ground squirrels live in the Arctic.
Polar bear
Who is in danger now
• Arctic
Climate change threatens many Arctic animals with complete extinction.
Polar bears are in the greatest danger, since when the area of sea ice decreases, animals are forced to move to the coast, where their food supply is less. For a population of adult males, mortality from starvation can rise from 3-6% to 28-48% if the length of the summer season increases from 120 to 180 days.
In addition, the female’s chances of meeting a mate during the breeding season also depend on the extent of sea ice and its fragmentation. Males search for females in their footsteps, and, according to scientists, if the efficiency of searches due to dispersal of the population on the ice decreases four times faster than its area, the success of mating will decrease from 99% to 72%.
Since 2012, the US government has taken increased measures to conserve bearded seals and latakhs. Due to global warming in the Arctic, ice began to disappear rather quickly. Along with it, bearded seals can disappear.
Just like polar bears, Arctic foxes have to leave their historically established habitat and, due to warming, go further and further north. Climate change is also directly affecting lemmings: these rodents are decreasing, which also affects the well-being of Arctic foxes.
The whole life of walruses depends on the sea and ice, on which they raise their young, rest between feedings and simply communicate with each other. Since the ice becomes less during summer periods, a huge number of walruses move to the coastline in late summer and early autumn. But animals are at much greater risk on land than at sea.
Arctic seals, like bearded seals, spend their whole lives mainly on ice. With climate change, the amount of Arctic ice began to decline sharply. Ringed seals, like many other inhabitants of the Arctic, needed the protection of the US federal authorities.
• Antarctica
Fin whales are now considered endangered species in Antarctica. The initial population of fin whales is estimated at about 400 thousand southern and 70 thousand northern fin whales. Intensive hunting has reduced their population to only 5 thousand individuals. And although fin whales are more common than blue whales, they are considered extremely rare and endangered animals. Today, according to various estimates, there are 15 thousand in the Southern Hemisphere, and 40 thousand in the Northern Hemisphere.
The sei whale is still under threat of extinction. This species has become important for the fishery following a sharp decline in the numbers of blue whales and fin whales. The fishing was completely banned in 1986.
At present, despite the measures taken for protection, the blue whale is very rare – the total number does not exceed 10 thousand individuals.
The main threat to whales is an anthropogenic factor: due to climatic changes, the habitual way of life of whales is disrupted, and pollution of the seas also affects. The slow natural reproduction of blue whales also significantly hinders the growth of their population.
How climate change occurs
Climate change in the Arctic began 600 years ago. In the pre-industrial period, the climate was warmer due to changes in the speed of the Earth’s rotation and the nature of atmospheric circulation.
Overall, according to research, temperatures in the Arctic are rising twice as fast as in the rest of the world. This could lead to the extinction of many plant and animal species in the region.
The ice of the Arctic is of great importance for the Earth’s climate system. The ice cap reflects the sun’s rays and thus prevents the planet from overheating. In addition, Arctic ice plays a large role in the systems of water circulation in the oceans.
The sensitivity of sea ice to rising temperatures has resulted in the area of summer Arctic sea ice being cut in half over the past 40 years. The affected region is 25 times the size of the UK. An international team of scientists has even created an AI that predicts the rate of ice melting in the Arctic.
The Antarctic Peninsula is one of the regions of the planet where warming occurs most rapidly. Over the past 50 years, temperatures have risen by almost 3 ° C. As noted by the head of WMO, Petteri Taalas, monitoring temperature readings in Antarctica is very important, since this region has one of the fastest warming on Earth.
