Climate change affects marine animals on Antarctica's seabed
Monday, September 26, 2011 - 09:00
in Earth & Climate
A rapid increase in the frequency of icebergs pounding the shallow seafloor around the West Antarctic Peninsula as a result of shrinking winter sea ice has caused the life expectancy of a tiny marine creature (bryozoans) to halve over the last 12 years. This is the first evidence of regional climate warming affecting marine animals living on the Southern Ocean seabed. The results are published this month in the journal Nature Climate Change and are being presented this week at the World Conference on Marine Biodiversity (WCMB) in Aberdeen.