Antarctica is one of eight terrestrial ecozones. The ecozone includes Antarctica and several island groups in the southern Atlantic and Indian Oceans. The continent of Antarctica is so cold and dry that it has supported virtually no vascular plants for millions of years, and its flora presently consists of around 250 lichens, 100 mosses, 25-30 liverworts, and around 700 terrestrial and aquatic algal species, which live on the areas of exposed rock and soil around the shore of the continent. Antarctica's two flowering plant species, the Antarctic hair grass (Deschampsia antarctica) and Antarctic pearlwort (Colobanthus quitensis), are found on the northern and western parts of the Antarctic Peninsula. Antarctica is also home to a diversity of animal life, including penguins, seals, and whales. Ecozone is a classification system of the world first proposed by Miklos Udvardy under the name biogeographical realms for conservation purposes. ... The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest ocean, covering approximately one-fifth of the Earths surface. ... Divisions Non-seed-bearing plants Equisetophyta Lycopodiophyta Psilotophyta Pteridophyta Superdivision Spermatophyta Pinophyta Cycadophyta Ginkgophyta Gnetophyta Magnoliophyta The vascular plants are those plants that have specialized cells for conducting water and sap within their tissues, including the flowering plants, conifers and other gymnosperms, but not mosses, algae, and the like (nonvascular... Lichenes from Ernst Haeckels Artforms of Nature, 1904 Crustose and foliose lichens on a wall A foliose lichen on basalt. ... Subclasses Sphagnidae Andreaeidae Tetraphidae Polytrichidae Archidiidae Buxbaumiidae Bryidae Mosses are small, soft plants that are typically 1-10 cm tall, occasionally more. ... Orders Haplomitriales Sphaerocarpales Marchantiales Metzgeriales Monocleales Jungermanniales Takakiales Liverworts are non-vascular plants, also called hepatics (scientific name Hepaticophyta). ... A seaweed (Laurencia) up close: the branches are multicellular and only about 1 mm thick. ... Binomial name Deschampsia antarctica Deschampsia antarctica (Antarctic hair grass) is one of two flowering plants native to Antarctica, the other being Colobanthus quitensis (Antarctic pearlwort). ... Binomial name Colobanthus quitensis (Humboldt, Bonpland & Kunth) Bartling Colobanthus quitensis (Antarctic pearlwort) is one of the two flowering plants found in the Antarctic region, along with Deschampsia antarctica (Antarctic hair grass). ... Antarctic Peninsula map Booth Island and Mount Scott flank the narrow Lemaire Channel on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula. ... Modern Genera Aptenodytes Eudyptes Eudyptula Megadyptes Pygoscelis Spheniscus For extinct genera, see Systematics Penguins (order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are an order of aquatic, flightless birds living exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Families Odobenidae Otariidae Phocidae A Pacific walrus A leopard seal on Kerguelen Pinnipeds (fin-feet, lit. ... A Fin whale The term whale is ambiguous: it can refer to all cetaceans, to just the larger ones, or only to members of particular families within the order Cetacea. ...

Several Antarctic island groups are considered part of the Antarctica ecozone, including South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, South Orkney Islands, the South Shetland Islands, Bouvet Island, the Crozet Islands, Prince Edward Islands, Heard Island, the Kerguelen Islands, and the McDonald Islands. These islands have a somewhat milder climate than Antarctica proper, and support a greater diversity of tundra plants, although they are all too windy and cold to support trees. Motto: Leo Terram Propriam Protegat (Latin: Let the Lion protect his own land or May the Lion protect his own land) Official language English Capital Grytviken Commissioner Alan Huckle Area  - Total  - % water not ranked 3,903 km² - Population  - Total (2006 E)  - Density not ranked ~20 n/a; Currency GBP Time... The South Orkney Islands (Spanish: Islas Orcadas) are a group of sub-antarctic islands situated at latitudes 60°50 to 60°83 S, and longitudes 44°25 to 46°25 W in the Southern Ocean. ... The South Shetland Islands or Iles Shetland du Sud or Islas Shetland del Sur or New South Britain or New South Shetland or Shetland Islands or South Shetlands or Sydshetland or Süd-Shetland Inseln are a chain of islands in the Southern Ocean lying about 120 kilometres northward of... Orthographic projection centred over the Iles Crozet The Crozet Islands (French: ÃŽles Crozet or officially Archipel Crozet) are a sub-antarctic archipelago of small islands in the southern Indian Ocean, part of the French Southern Territories. ... Orthographic projection centered on the Prince Edward Islands Map of Prince Edward Islands The Prince Edward Islands are two small islands in the sub-antarctic Indian Ocean that are politically part of South Africa. ... Heard Island, from NASA World Wind Heard Island and the McDonald Islands are uninhabited, barren islands located in the Southern Ocean at 53°6S, 72°31E, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. ... Basic data Administrative status: district Country: French Southern and Antarctic Lands Capital: Port-aux-Français Population: ca. ... Heard Island, from NASA World Wind Heard Island and the McDonald Islands are uninhabited, barren islands located in the Southern Ocean at 53°6S, 72°31E, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. ... I lIke Cheese In physical geography, tundra is an area where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. ...

Four tundra ecoregions are recognized: I lIke Cheese In physical geography, tundra is an area where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. ... An ecoregion is a relatively large area of land or water that contains a geographically distinct assemblage of natural communities. ...

Millions of years ago, Antarctica was warmer and wetter, and supported the Antarctic flora, including forests of podocarps and southern beech. Antarctica was also part of the ancient supercontinent of Gondwanaland, which gradually broke up by continental drift starting 110 million years ago. The separation of South America from Antarctica 30-35 million years ago allowed the Antarctic Circumpolar Current to form, which isolated Antarctica climatically and caused it to become much colder. The Antarctic flora subsequently died out in Antarctica, but is still an important component of the flora of southern Neotropic (South America) and Australasia, which were also former parts of Gondwana. I lIke Cheese In physical geography, tundra is an area where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. ... Antarctic Peninsula map Booth Island and Mount Scott flank the narrow Lemaire Channel on the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula. ... East Antarctica, also called Greater Antarctica, (80° S 80° E) is one of the two major regions of Antarctica, lying on the Indian Ocean side of the Transantarctic Mountains and comprising Coats Land, Queen Maud Land, Enderby Land, Mac. ... Motto: Leo Terram Propriam Protegat (Latin: Let the Lion protect his own land or May the Lion protect his own land) Official language English Capital Grytviken Commissioner Alan Huckle Area  - Total  - % water not ranked 3,903 km² - Population  - Total (2006 E)  - Density not ranked ~20 n/a; Currency GBP Time... The South Orkney Islands (Spanish: Islas Orcadas) are a group of sub-antarctic islands situated at latitudes 60°50 to 60°83 S, and longitudes 44°25 to 46°25 W in the Southern Ocean. ... The South Shetland Islands or Iles Shetland du Sud or Islas Shetland del Sur or New South Britain or New South Shetland or Shetland Islands or South Shetlands or Sydshetland or Süd-Shetland Inseln are a chain of islands in the Southern Ocean lying about 120 kilometres northward of... Orthographic projection centred over the Iles Crozet The Crozet Islands (French: ÃŽles Crozet or officially Archipel Crozet) are a sub-antarctic archipelago of small islands in the southern Indian Ocean, part of the French Southern Territories. ... Orthographic projection centered on the Prince Edward Islands Map of Prince Edward Islands The Prince Edward Islands are two small islands in the sub-antarctic Indian Ocean that are politically part of South Africa. ... Heard Island, from NASA World Wind Heard Island and the McDonald Islands are uninhabited, barren islands located in the Southern Ocean at 53°6S, 72°31E, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. ... Basic data Administrative status: district Country: French Southern and Antarctic Lands Capital: Port-aux-Français Population: ca. ... Heard Island, from NASA World Wind Heard Island and the McDonald Islands are uninhabited, barren islands located in the Southern Ocean at 53°6S, 72°31E, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. ... Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale Minke whale... Genera Acmopyle Afrocarpus Dacrycarpus Dacrydium Falcatifolium Halocarpus Lagarostrobos Lepidothamnus Manoao Microcachrys Microstrobos Nageia Parasitaxus Phyllocladus Podocarpus Prumnopitys Retrophyllum Saxegothaea Sundacarpus A large family of mainly Southern Hemisphere conifers, with 18-19 genera and about 170-200 species of evergreen trees and shrubs. ... Species   Nothofagus alpina - Rauli Beech   Nothofagus antarctica - Antarctic Beech   Nothofagus betuloides - Magallanes Beech   Nothofagus cunninghamii - Myrtle Beech   Nothofagus dombeyi - Coigüe Beech   Nothofagus fusca - Red Beech   Nothofagus gunnii - Tanglefoot Beech   Nothofagus menziesii - Silver Beech   Nothofagus moorei - Negrohead Beech   Nothofagus obliqua - Roble Beech   Nothofagus pumilio - Lenga Beech   Nothofagus solanderi - Black Beech... This article is about the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana. ... Continental drift, first proposed as a theory by Alfred Wegener in 1912, is the movement of the Earths continents relative to each other. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... The Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) is an ocean current that flows from west to east around Antarctica. ... The Neotropic ecozone is a terrestrial ecoregion which includes South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... The Australasia Ecozone The Australasian ecozone – is an ecological region that is coincident, but not synonymous (by some definitions), with the geographic region of Australasia. ...

Antarctic krill is the keystone species of the ecosystem of the Southern Ocean, and is an important food organism for whales, seals, Leopard Seals, fur seals, Crabeater Seals, squid, icefish, penguins, albatrosses and many other birds. The ocean there is so full of phytoplankton because around the ice continent water rises from the depths to the light flooded surface, bringing nutrients from all oceans back to the photic zone. Binomial name Euphausia superba Dana, 1850 The Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba ) is a species of krill found in the Antarctic waters of the Southern Ocean. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A Fin whale The term whale is ambiguous: it can refer to all cetaceans, to just the larger ones, or only to members of particular families within the order Cetacea. ... subfamilies Otariidae Phocidae Odobenidae Pinnipeds are large marine mammals belonging to the Pinnipedia, a family (sometimes a suborder or superfamily, depending on the classification scheme) of the order Carnivora. ... Binomial name Hydrurga leptonyx (Blainville, 1820) The Leopard Seal (Hydrurga leptonyx) is one of the true seals belonging to the family Phocidae. ... Genera Callorhinus Arctocephalus Fur seals make up one of the two distinct groups of mammals called seals. Both the fur seals and the true seals are members of the Pinnipedia, which is usually regarded as a suborder of the order Carnivora but sometimes as an independent order. ... Binomial name Lobodon carcinophagus Hombron & Jacquinot, 1842 The Crabeater Seal, Lobodon carcinophagus, is one of the most remarkable, though least known, of the mammals of the world. ... SQUIDs, or Superconducting Quantum Interference Devices, are used to measure extremely small magnetic fields; they are currently the most sensitive such devices (magnetometers) known, with noise levels as low as 3 fT·Hz−½. While a typical fridge magnet is ~0. ... Species Chaenocephalus aceratus (16 more) The icefishes (or white-blooded fishes) are a family (Channichthyidae) of perciform fish found in the cold waters around Antarctica and southern South America. ... Modern Genera Aptenodytes Eudyptes Eudyptula Megadyptes Pygoscelis Spheniscus For extinct genera, see Systematics Penguins (order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae) are an order of aquatic, flightless birds living exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. ... Genera Diomedea Thalassarche Phoebastria Phoebetria Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds allied to the procellarids, storm-petrels and diving-petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). ... Orders Many - see section below. ... A nutrient is either element or compound necessary for or contributing to an organisms metabolism, growth, or other functioning. ... The photic zone is the depth of the water, whether in a lake or an ocean, that is exposed to sufficient sunlight for photosynthesis to occur. ...

Ecozones are global divisions which have their own characteristic interplay of climatic factors, morphodynamics, soil-forming processes, living conditions for plants and animals, and production potentials for agriculture and forestry. ... The Afrotropic Ecozone is Africa south of the Sahara Desert. ... The Australasia Ecozone The Australasian ecozone – is an ecological region that is coincident, but not synonymous (by some definitions), with the geographic region of Australasia. ... The Indomalaya Ecozone was previously called the Oriental region. ... The Nearctic is one of the eight terrestrial ecozones dividing the Earths land surface. ... The Neotropic ecozone is a terrestrial ecoregion which includes South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. ... Oceania is the smallest of the worlds terrestrial ecozones, and unique in not including any continental land mass. ... The Palearctic or Palaearctic is one of the eight ecozones dividing the Earth surface (see map). ... In ecology, a biome is a major regional group of distinctive plant and animal communities best adapted to the regions physical natural environment, latitude, altitude, and terrain. ... Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, also known as tropical wet forests and tropical rainforests, are a tropical and subtropical forest biome. ... Trinidad and Tobago dry forest on Chacachacare showing the dry-season deciduous nature of the vegetation The tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest biome, also known as tropical dry forest, is located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. ... Tropical and subtropical coniferous forests are a biome located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. ... Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests are a temperate and humid biome. ... Pine forests are an example of a temperate coniferous forests Temperate coniferous forests are a terrestrial biome found in temperate regions of the world with warm summers and cool winters and adequate rainfall to sustain a forest. ... The taiga is found throughout the high northern latitudes, just below the tundra, and just above the steppes. ... Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands are a grassland biome located in semi-arid to semi-humid climate regions of subtropical and tropical latitudes. ... Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands is a group of biomes in which the climate is temperate to semi-arid. ... Flooded grasslands and savannas are a biome, generally located at subtropical and tropical latitudes, where flooding is very frequent. ... Montane grasslands and shrublands is a biome defined by the World Wildlife Fund. ... I lIke Cheese In physical geography, tundra is an area where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. ... Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and shrub is a temperate biome, characterized by hot, dry == Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and shrub eco-regions occur in the worlds five mediterranean climate zones, on the west coast of continents in the mid-latitudes: the Mediterranean Basin, California, Central Chile, Southwest Australia, the Cape Province... Deserts and xeric shrublands is a biome characterized by a dry climate. ... Above and below water view at the edge of the mangal. ...

External links

• Map of the ecozones
• Life in the Freezer, a BBC television series on life on and around Antarctica
• Biodiversity at Ardley Island, South Shetland archipelago, Antarctica