Antarctica Biome Project

Antarctica: Biome Project

Amiel AJ Rapacon, Biology Perod 2

Plants in Antarctica

Background

Antarctic Pearlwort

Antarctic Hair Grass

Mosses and liverworts

Antartica is specifically located at 82.8628° S, 135.0000° E

The average elevation is 8,202 feet

There are 2 main mountain ranges in Antarctica, The Ellsworth Mountains at an average elevation of 16,050 feet and the Transantarctic Mountains an average elevation of 14,856 feet

Climate/Abiotic Factors

Antarctica is often referred to as a Desert due to the lack of rainwater and precipitation

Antarctica is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent on Earth, with temperatures dipping as low as -80°C (-112°F) and winds reaching staggering speeds of up to 200 mph. In terms of percipitation, since it is a desert Antarctica recieves less than 6.5 inches of average percipitaton.

Antarctica only has 2 seasons that being Summer and Winer

In winter, Antarctica has an average temperature of -30 F. In contrast to the summertime, during winter there is almost no reminiscence of the sun and it goes months of darkness.

In Summer, Antarctica has an average temperature of 33-36 degress F. You can tell if it is summer if the sun is in the sky because during summer the sun is almost always in the sky which makes the days there longer.

Animals in Antarctica

Antarctic Krill

Interspecific Competition

Being that both the Leopard Seal and the Killer Whale are two of the most dominant predators in all of Antarctica, they are bound to compete for food at some point since they both hunt in the water and eat similar things

Emperor Penguin

Emperor Penguin Killer Whale Leopard Seal Blue Whale

Aptenodytes forsteri

Sources

The Blue Whale

Balaenoptera musculus intermedia

The emperor Penguins live around the coasts of the Antarctic continent where it can be one of the most desolate, coldest, windiest and downright grim places on the planet during winter season.

A few adaptations that the emperor penguin has to survive in the harsh conditions of antarctica is an increased ability to store oxygen which allows them to dive into the water for long period of time and hunt fish, the ability to tolerate low levels of oxygen in the body and the ability to tolerate the effects of pressure which both allow the penguin to dive super deep into the water and not experience repercussions

Mountain IQ, May 20, 2024, https://www.mountainiq.com/antarctica/

Polar Soils, May 20, 2024, https://polarsoils.blogspot.com/2016/08/what-biome-is-antarctica.html

Hurigurten Expeditons, May 21, 2024, https://www.hurtigruten.com/en-us/expeditions/stories/plants-in-antarctica/

Oceanwide Expeditions, May 21, 2024, https://oceanwide-expeditions.com/blog/the-plants-of-antarctica

Cool Antarctica, May 21, 2024, https://www.coolantarctica.com/

The Blue Whale also known as the Balaenoptera musculus intermedia are one of the largest animals to have ever lived on this Earth. These beasts also primarily reside in the water that surrounds Antarctica. To survive Antarctica an adaptation that blue whales have along with seals is a thick layer of blubber beneath their skin to help resist the cold

Antarctic Pearlwort

Predator-Prey Relationship

Colobanthus quitensis

Commensalism Relationship

Antarctic Krill

Killer Whale

Euphausia superba

Antarctic Hair Grass

Being around so many predators such as whales, pengins, and seals makes the Antarctic Krill have a tough life in Antarctica. They are frequently hunted due to them being rich in oil and other nutrients and also being a lot smaller which makes it hard to defend themselves which makes hunting easy for predators.

Orcinus Orca

A commensalism relationship in Antarctica between a male gentoo penguin and his egg. The egg benefits from his father for warmth and protection, but the adult male penguin gets nothing out of the relationship and could live without the egg.

Like the Antarctic Hair Grass, The Pearlwort can also photosynthesize through ther vasclar systems. This can help both tese platsstre nutrients tatmight be hard to come acroos by in Antarctica in their leafs, stems, ad roots.

An adaptation that the Pearlwort has made to survive is adapting to the harsh climate and winds of Antarctica and using it to helpthem pollinate.

These animals reside around the waters of Antarctica which make them prey to alot of predators like whales, seals, and penguins

To survive in Antarctica Antarctic Krill can shrink their bodies. This helps them to undergo long period of starvation because of the lack of food they get from being so small

The Killer Whale also known as the Orcinus orca are not only one of Antarctica's most formiddable predators but also in the entire world

The killer whale resides in the waters of Antarctica and often hunt in packs

The killer whale has a few key adaptations/features that help it survive in Antarctica. These include a thick layer of blubber for warmth, echolocation to locate prey, and fast swimming speeds to quickly hunt and kill their food.

Leopard Seals

Deschamsia antarctica.

Hydrurga leptonyx.

Mutualism Relationship

These seals are the second largest predators in antarctica only one being bigger is the killer whale.

They usually inhabit the pack ice that surrounds Antarctica

Adaptations in leopard seals are for predatory feeding seen in the long curved canine teeth, in the lobed rear teeth used for filter feeding krill out of the water. These adaptations allow the seal to quickly eat their prey quickly so that they don't get disrupted.

They primarily grow in the Antarctic Peninsula in small concentrated tufts throughout rocky areas.

A way that these plants are to survive in the antarctica is by having a compex and deep root system achored within their habitats. This allows them to endure abuse from animals like seals and high wind speeds.

This plants differs from other plants in Antarctica such as mosses is that it is able to photosynthesize through their vascular system.

The fungi and algae benefit each other because the Fungi protect the algae from drying out and supply it with water, meanwhile the algae does photosynthesis which provides carbohydrates to the fungi. This relationship means that they are formed into a single plant-like form called lichens allowing them to live in very harsh environments.

Parasitism Relationship

• To survive in Antarctica, lice stroll on the surface of their hosts which are usually warm-blooded. While on the surface they feed on the skin particles and hair of the hosts they can also suck blood for their host. This benefits them because it gives them food and shelter in the harsh climates of Antarctica while it hurts the host usually seals because it can irritate them.

Intraspecific Competition

• Intraspecific commpetetion occurs in Antarctica between the emperor penguin species, when they compete for nesting areas. This becomes intense because members of the same species share the same resources/land and there isn't enough to go around

Mosses/Liverworts

Marchantiophyta

In Antarctica there are about 100 species of mosses and about 25 to 30 species of liverworts.

In opposition to the Antarctic Hair Grass and Pearlwort, these plants can't photosynthesize through their vascularsystem which doesn't allow them te ability to live in the dry parts of Antarctica.

These plants can still survive by living in the damp and wet areas of Antartica. They have adapted to survive there by developing tightly packed stems that shoot to minimise water loss. This helps protect the photosystem from damage during growing season.

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