The poles
The polar regions are arguably the most inhospitable places on the planet.
Organisms must survive sub-zero temperatures, biting winds and months of
darkness. Yet life does exist at the poles. Lichen grows on rocky outcrops,
and even flowering plants put down roots where they can. There is a greater
biodiversity in the oceans around the poles than on land. Tiny plants and
animals live within sea ice and on the underside of ice floes, forming
an important part of the food chain. When sea ice warms and melts, a biological
soup pours from the ice into the sea.
The Arctic and Antarctic are very different environments for life. The Arctic is a frozen ocean surrounded by land - Greenland, Russia and Canada. Antarctica is a large continent surrounded by the Southern Ocean.
The International Polar Year 2007-2008 (IPY) will be a major scientific activity over the period March 2007 to March 2009. The Natural Environment Research Council is coordinating UK research activities.
This funding initiative is looking at some key questions:
- How do extreme (very cold and often very dry) environments support life?
- What is the influence of arctic environments on the climate, seas, and wildlife in the UK?
- What will be the causes and consequences of future changes in the arctic environment?
The Arctic
The Arctic is home to several well-known species of animals such as snowy owls, foxes, polar bears, walruses and whales. Scientists predict climate change will affect the Arctic more than other natural ecosystems: Alaska and Siberia are two of the fastest-warming regions on the planet. Computer models predict there will be no Arctic sea ice in the summer by the end of this century - some models say as early as 2060. This is a serious threat to biodiversity.
Antarctica
Few Antarctic plants and animals live on land. The communities that do are ecologically simple, and often seem to cling on at the edge of existence. But in the sea, biological communities are rich and diverse. Here, the temperatures are low but stable, with distinctly seasonal winter ice cover and summer plankton blooms.
In the Antarctic, the scientific biodiversity challenges are to:
- identify the diverse forms of life
- investigate how organisms - from bacteria to fungi, fish and clams - respond or adapt to major environmental changes, and how well they might survive in a warmer environment.