Scientists are closely watching Antarctica's ice sheets as human-driven global warming melts the continent. But few studies have focused on what's happening to ice-free areas — the places that penguins, seals, plants, and microbes call home.
Australian researchers this week took a closer look at the rocky outcrops, cliff faces, and mountaintops sprinkled throughout Antarctica. They found these isolated habitats will experience significant changes as ice shelves and glaciers melt due to warming air and water temperatures.
SEE ALSO:Plastic pollution in the ocean is officially everywhere, even AntarcticaPermanent ice-free areas, which now cover about 1 percent of the continent, could grow by 6,600 square miles — a 25-percent increase — during this century, according to their study published this week in the journal Nature.
An ice-free area at Mt. Siple, Marie Byrd Land, West Antarctica. An Adélie penguin colony is visible in the foreground.Credit: Peter Ryan/Australian Antarctic DivisionThe report is the first quantitative assessment of how climate change will affect Antarctica's ice-free areas in the 21st century.
Antarctic habitats, which today are separated by miles and miles of ice, will increasingly merge in coming decades, expanding areas for native species to grow but also creating new opportunities for invasive species to spread, researchers found.
While more competitive natives could survive and thrive, others may be driven to extinction.
Some Antarctic mosses, for example, could grow faster as temperatures rise. Antarctica's two flowering plant species may continue their southerly expansion. But newcomers, such as the invasive annual meadowgrass Poa annua, could snuff out natives as they spread across newly ice-free areas.
Projected Antarctic ice melt this century.Credit: Lee et al. (2017) Nature"Will this increase in habitat availability benefit the plants and animals that live there? It will definitely provide new opportunities for some native plants and animals to expand their range and colonize new areas," Jasmine Lee, the report's lead author, wrote in a post on The Conversation with coauthors Justine Shaw and Richard Fuller.
"However, the potential benefits seem likely to be outweighed by the negatives," the scientists wrote. "The joining-up of habitat patches could allow species that have been isolated for much of their evolutionary past to meet suddenly."
This merging may eventually lead to the loss of many plant and animal species in the coming centuries and the "homogenization" of Antarctica's ecosystems.
An ice-free cliff in Marie Byrd Land, West Antarctica.Credit: Jasmine Lee/Australian Antarctic DivisionLee and her coauthors said the study highlights the need for scientists and tourists alike to take extra precautions when visiting the continent. Bags, shoes, clothes, and field equipment can all carry non-native seeds, microbes, and insects if they're not properly cleaned and inspected before arrival.
"We call for protection of ice-free areas that will remain intact in a changing climate, and for the Antarctic scientific and tourism communities to pinpoint key areas where greater biosecurity and monitoring for invasive species may be needed," the researchers said.
TopicsArtificial Intelligence
(责任编辑：休閑)
Two states took big steps this week to get rid of the tampon tax
AOC obliterates claim that fighting climate change is 'elitist' in stirring speech
The Emoji Challenge has inspired a fierce group chat competition
'PEN15' is a hilariously painful reminder that middle school matteredOlympics official on Rio's green diving pool: 'Chemistry is not an exact science'Nate Parker is finally thinking about the woman who accused him of rape
Nate Parker is getting a crash course in male privilege after, in his own words, not thinking about
...[详细]Google's Stadia turns Chrome into your video game console
Can Stadia succeed where others have failed?Google's first entry into the world of mainstream gaming
...[详细]Robert Downey Jr. sparks 'Avengers' battle over who has the best 'stache
Robert Downey Jr. mustache Twitter a very important question. The Iron Manhimself assembled an elite
...[详细]Jaunt turns old gas cars into electric vehicles for road adventures
Those old-school SUVs and four-wheel-drive adventure cars are great — except for all the waste
...[详细]Pole vaulter claims his penis is not to blame
Following the cringeworthy moment in which pole vaulter Hiroki Ogita's penis grazed the bar and he f
...[详细]Dan Levy announces 'Schitt's Creek' to end with sixth and final season
It's the end of an era, fellow fans of Schitt's Creek. Co-creators Daniel and Eugene Levy announced
...[详细]Jaunt turns old gas cars into electric vehicles for road adventures
Those old-school SUVs and four-wheel-drive adventure cars are great — except for all the waste
...[详细]5 bizarre facts about Elizabeth Holmes 'The Inventor' left out
Here at Mashable, the Elizabeth Holmes obsession could not be stronger. We've read the book, listene
...[详细]Samsung Galaxy Note7 teardown reveals the magic behind the phone's iris scanner
Samsung's Galaxy Note7 is touted by many reviewers as one of the best, if not the best, smartphones
...[详细]Why is Fox News so quiet about Jeanine Pirro's anti
Jeanine Pirro is making trouble for her employer, that much is clear.The host of Justice with Judge
...[详细]Here's George Takei chilling in zero gravity for the 'Star Trek' anniversary
Jaunt turns old gas cars into electric vehicles for road adventures