Gobionotothen gibberifrons <1 year old, of the 1977, 1980, 1981, 1985, 1986, 1990 and 1995 cohorts, were sampled using nets, in various periods during summer (December to February) at South Georgia. Growth in standard length (Ls) was estimated using the exponential model. Among the seven cohorts, average growth rate varied between 0.33–2.1% Lsd−1, and predicted Ls for mid-January varied between 21.6–29.1 mm. Average growth rate was inversely related to mean date of sampling but was not significantly related to mean Ls. Mean sea surface temperatures were available for the 1981–95 cohorts. Average growth rate and predicted Ls for mid-January were both negatively conelated with mean December–January sea temperature, but were not significantly related to mean weekly sea surface temperature during the sampling periods. Greater average growth rate and greater Ls in cooler summers may be partly due to a large-scale pattern of environmental variability, indicated by sea temperature, that governs the timing and magnitude of the production cycle and food availability.

A small, inconspicuous lichen, Acarospora cf. badiofusca, was discovered colonizing iron-stained quartz mica schists on the lower slope of Manhaul Rock, a recently exposed nunatak on the McLeod Glacier, Signy Island, South Orkney Islands. Thallus colour ranged from rust on exposed rock surfaces to paler orange and green in shaded crevices. This study addressed the hypothesis that colour reflects element localization, and considered substance localization within lichen tissues and responses to stress. Electron microprobe analysis of specimens confirmed that Fe is localized principally in the outer rust-coloured part of the cortex, confirming that the colour reflects Fe localization. Oxalates, widely reported as contributing to tolerance mechanisms to environmental stress, were not detected using X-ray diffraction. The upper thallus surface consisted of sub-micron particulate phases containing Fe, Al and O, suggesting mixed oxide/hydroxide phases are present and play a role in photoprotection.

The harsh climatic conditions and low levels of human activity in Antarctica, relative to other regions, means few non-native species have established. However, the risk of introductions is becoming greater as human activity increases. Non-native microorganisms can be imported to Antarctica in association with fresh food, cargo and personal clothing, but the likelihood of their establishment is not well understood. In January 2015, a wooden packing crate, heavily contaminated with fungi, was imported by aircraft from Punta Arenas, Chile, to Rothera Research Station, Antarctica. Mucor racemosus Bull. and two strains of Trichoderma viridescens (A.S. Horne & H.S. Will.) Jaklitsch & Samuels were isolated from the wood. Measurements of hyphal extension rates indicated that all three strains were psychrotolerant and capable of growth at 4°C, with M. racemosus growing at 0°C. The imported fungi could grow at rates equivalent to, or faster than, species isolated from Antarctic soils, suggesting that low temperature may not be a limiting factor for establishment. It is recommended that wood heat-treatment standards, equivalent to those described in the International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures No. 15, are employed by national operators importing cargo into Antarctica, and that treated wood is adequately stored to prevent fungal contamination prior to transportation.

Management of human impacts in the Antarctic requires an effective system of monitoring to provide information about the process being managed and the effectiveness of management actions. Human impacts arise as a result of processes that originate in the region (endogenous) and those that originate outside the region (exogenous). A number of monitoring programmes have been established in both terrestrial and marine systems to measure impacts that arise as a result of endogenous process such as fishing, tourism and research. However, most of this monitoring is surveillance monitoring, which is not linked to a specific management objective, and does not produce quantitative metrics that can be assessed and compared to agreed targets. However, defining such target levels for the Antarctic, where the aim is to minimise human impacts, is a complex process. Although potential analogues for target setting exist in other parts of the world these are generally insufficiently precautionary to be applied in the Antarctic. The challenge for scientists and policymakers working in the Antarctic is to provide quantitative measures, with agreed trigger levels, and to develop appropriate monitoring schemes to manage human impacts in the future.

We isolated 32 yeasts from King George Island, which we then identified and characterized. Twenty-six belonged to Basidiomycota among the genera Naganishia, Holtermaniella, Vishniacozyma, Phenoliferia, Mrakia and Cystobasidium, and only six were Ascomycota of the genera Metschnikowia and Debaryomyces. Thirteen were psychrophiles, while 19 were psychrotolerant. Certain isolates exhibited a high tolerance to NaCl (3.5 M), while most tolerated Ni2+, Zn2+ and Li+. Cu2+ and Cd2+, however, inhibited the growth of most of the isolates. We assessed a bioprospecting of extracellular enzymes and their ability to biodegrade or bioaccumulate textile dyes. β-Glucosidases (59%) and esterases (53%) were the main extracellular enzymes detected. A minor proportion of the yeasts produced pectinases and xylanases; only psychrophiles produced proteases. Vishniacozyma, Naganishia, Phenoliferia and Mrakia were the richest genera in terms of enzyme production. Greater than 70% of the isolates decolourized solid medium supplemented with various dyes at 4°C and 20°C. Isolates belonging to the genera Vishniacozyma, Cystobasidium, Mrakia and Phenoliferia seem to have potential for textile dye bio-decolourization. The results demonstrated that yeasts collected from the Maritime Antarctic are a potential source of new enzymes of biotechnological interest, and that certain isolates could potentially be considered in the design of textile wastewater decolourizations.

Deschampsia antarctica Desv. (Poaceae) grows in coastal habitats in the Maritime Antarctic where it is often exposed to sea spray. Salt crystals have been observed on the surface of leaves in plants treated with high NaCl. We investigated if D. antarctica is a salt tolerant species that allows sodium ions to diffuse into the root where a salt overly sensitive (SOS) system extrudes Na+ from root cells and facilitates its movement through the xylem up to the leaves. Leaf epidermis, physiological parameters and sodium transporters in D. antarctica plants exposed to NaCl were studied over 21 days. Epidermal scanning electron microscopy showed trichome induction in the leaves of salt treated plants. In addition, salt treated plants showed increased sodium and proline levels with a concomitant increased expression of SOS genes (1 and 3). These results indicate that Na+ is taken up by the roots of D. antarctica and transported to the leaves. The sodium flux may be controlled by SOS1 activity. Up-regulation of the SOS1 gene may be involved in the increased sodium levels observed in the leaves of salt treated plants. Trichomes may also be involved in sodium exudation through the leaves under saline conditions.

Williams et al. (2006) reported asterozoans preserved in Late Miocene volcanic tuffs of the James Ross Island Volcanic Group. The material, from the north-west of James Ross Island at 64°01.9′S 58°20.07′W, was sourced from the newly named Asterozoan Buttress locality, and represented reconnaissance collecting. The volcaniclastic sediments in which the fossils are found are fine- to medium-grained volcanic sandstones with planar, laterally continuous beds 0.5–8 cm thick containing decimetre-scale ripple cross-lamination. In the absence of part and counterpart rock slabs, Williams et al. (2006) hypothesised that the fossils represented the external moulds of starfish or brittlestars pinioned by rapid sedimentation of volcanic tuffs. They noted that these tuffs represented a potential untapped source of fossil material for interpreting Neogene marine shelf environments on the northern Antarctic Peninsula. New fossil material collected at Asterozoan Buttress in February 2007 (by Anna Nelson) includes part and counterpart rock slabs, and demonstrates that the asterozoans are resting traces of animals, referable to the ichnogenus Asteriacites, and not external moulds of entombed animals (Fig. 1a & d). We reinterpret the ‘detached’ arm and ‘current-entrainment’ specimens of Williams et al. (2006, fig. 5c & d) as representing a possible scull mark and movement of the asterozoan across the sediment surface respectively (see Bell 2004, text-fig. 11 for comparison).

The most recent reports about the family Ammotheidae of pycnogonids from Southern Ocean waters are those of Munilla (2000, 2001, Scotia Sea), Pushkin (1993, various zones), Bamber (1995, Falkland Islands and South Shetland Islands) and Child (1994, various zones) who also provide historical background. Some species from Livingston Island and surrounding waters (South Shetland Islands, Drake Passage, Bransfield Strait) have been documented previously, mainly by Gordon (1932), Fry & Hedgpeth (1969), Pushkin (1993) and the papers of Child and Bamber mentioned above. Keys to this genus are given in Clark (1977) and Child (1994).

Coastal polynyas, which form around the Antarctic coast due to persistent katabatic winds, play an important role in enhancing air-sea interaction. This paper discusses how thermal imagery from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) can be used to track the direction of katabatic winds, and hence facilitate research into air-sea interaction.

Marine-geophysical evidence on sea-floor morphology and shallow acoustic stratigraphy are used to examine the substrate around the location at which Sir Ernest Shackleton's ship Endurance sank in 1915 and on the continental slope-shelf sedimentary system above this site in the western Weddell Sea. Few signs of turbidity-current and mass-wasting activity are found near or upslope of the wreck site, and any such activity was probably linked to full-glacial higher-energy conditions when ice last advanced across the continental shelf. The wreck is well below the maximum depth of iceberg keels and will not have been damaged by ice-keel ploughing. The wreck has probably been draped by only a few centimetres of fine-grained sediment since it sank in 1915. Severe modern sea-ice conditions hamper access to the wreck site. Accessing and investigating the wreck of Endurance in the Weddell Sea therefore represents a significant challenge. An ice-breaking research vessel is required, and even this would not guarantee that the site could be reached. Heavy sea-ice cover at the wreck site, similar to that encountered by Agulhus II during the Weddell Sea Expedition 2019, would also make the launch and recovery of autonomous underwater vehicles and remotely operated vehicles deployed to investigate the Endurance wreck problematic.

During January and February 2004, data on presence and distribution of killer whales (Orcinus orca) and other cetaceans were collected by helicopter surveys along the coastline of Terra Nova Bay and adjacent localities (western Ross Sea, Antarctica). A total of 37 sightings of killer whale, of both B and C types, were recorded as well as 17 sightings of Antarctic minke whales (Balaenoptera bonaerensis), nine of Balaenoptera spp., two of Arnoux’s beaked whale (Berardius arnuxii) and four of undetermined species. The type C killer whale was the most abundant, with 23 sightings, whereas we recorded type B only twice. Group size ranged between 1 and 30 animals, with an average of eight individuals. Seventeen killer whales were photo-identified and 13 resightings occurred during the study period. Killer whales showed a differential pattern in partitioning the study area. Their encounter rate was significantly higher (t-test = 2.6045, P < 0.05) in the northern area extending from Edmonson Point to the Campbell Glacier Tongue (encounter rate, ER = 0.031), compared to the southern area from Mario Zucchelli Station to the Drygalski Ice Tongue (ER = 0.003).

The incubation-limitation hypothesis suggests that clutch size in some birds is limited by incubation capacity. However, this remains disputed amongst ornithologists. This study aimed to test whether incubation capacity limits the maximum clutch size to two eggs in south polar skuas (Catharacta maccormicki Saunders) by comparing the egg and nest temperatures as well as hatchability between two-egg and three-egg clutches. Although the vast majority of clutches contained one or two eggs, four naturally occurring three-egg clutches were found at Barton Peninsula, King George Island over three breeding seasons (2004–2005, 2005–2006 and 2006–2007). Regardless of clutch size, all incubating parents exhibited two discernible brood patches. The mean egg and nest temperatures of the three-egg clutches were significantly lower than were those of the two-egg clutches. The accumulated time that egg temperature decreased below 30°C in three-egg clutches was approximately eight times longer than that in two-egg clutches. The hatchability of natural one-egg (89.5%) and two-egg clutches (95.4%) were significantly higher than that of the three-egg clutches, which was zero. Our results suggest that the maximum clutch size in south polar skuas is probably restricted by incubation capacity.

The Antarctic oscillation (AAO) has been characterized by a persistently positive trend in summer (December–January–February, DJF) during the last 50 years. Thus, the question has arisen of whether the trend is unusual. By investigating five reconstructed historical AAO time series for the past 500 years, recurrences of similar and even stronger trends have been found, indicating that the recent DJF AAO trend is not unprecedented in a historical perspective. To estimate the possible roles played by greenhouse gases or/and ozone, an analysis for DJF AAO trends during the 1969–98 period was conducted using three multiple model ensembles derived from the projects of ‘The twentieth-century climate in coupled models’ (20C3M) and ‘Pre-industrial control experiment models’ (PICTL) of the fourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC AR4). The results show that the ozone depletion over Antarctica and global warming may play significant roles in the strengthening trend. Combining the simulations and reconstructions we emphasize that the AAO trend related to global warming may get much stronger when enhanced by low-frequency natural variability.

A normal mode approach is used to model the behaviour of a linearly-damped, elastic, ice beam floating on a fluid foundation and subjected to a random distributed loading. As an example, two loading regimes are considered to act on the Erebus Glacier Tongue, McMurdo Sound: broad bandwidth (‘white noise’) loading, and an ocean wave-type pressure distribution beneath the tongue. For white noise input, the root mean square (rms) deflexion is found to good accuracy within the first few modes, but the rms bending moment increases with the number of modes included in the summation due to the unlimited frequency content of the forcing. Solutions for the rms deflexion and bending moments quickly converge to their mathematical limit after six modes when the forcing is due to ocean waves. A local maximum in rms bending moment near the end of the beam confirms that waves may be important as a mechanism for iceberg calving.

Biotic communities in Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems are relatively simple and often lack higher trophic levels (e.g. predators); thus, it is often assumed that species’ distributions are mainly affected by abiotic factors such as climatic conditions, which change with increasing latitude, altitude and/or distance from the coast. However, it is becoming increasingly apparent that factors other than geographical gradients affect the distribution of organisms with low dispersal capability such as the terrestrial arthropods. In Victoria Land (East Antarctica) the distribution of springtail (Collembola) and mite (Acari) species vary at scales that range from a few square centimetres to regional and continental. Different species show different scales of variation that relate to factors such as local geological and glaciological history, and biotic interactions, but only weakly with latitudinal/altitudinal gradients. Here, we review the relevant literature and outline more appropriate sampling designs as well as suitable modelling techniques (e.g. linear mixed models and eigenvector mapping), that will more adequately address and identify the range of factors responsible for the distribution of terrestrial arthropods in Antarctica.

A fem, Elaphoglossum hybridum (Bory) Brack., has been cultured from mineral sediment in cryoconite holes in the ice cap of Signy Island, South Orkney Islands. Its provenance, mode of transport to its Maritime Antarctic destination and the significance of viable exotic propagules as potential colonists are discussed.

The polar cusp ionosphere is an important part of near-Earth space which is best monitored by ground-based observations made in the remote polar regions. Antarctica seems certain to play a key role in its future exploration. The region is characterized by the direct entry of solar wind particles along magnetic field lines projecting to the dayside magnetopause (outer boundary of the magnetosphere). Thus the polar cusp ionosphere provides a splendid window for examining processes transferring solar wind mass and momentum to the magnetosphere. The review will emphasize this aspect of polar cusp ionosphere research, an area where the pace of recent work has been rapid. New results highlight the relevance of both the interplanetary magnetic field direction and changes in solar wind pressure for dynamic effects in the polar cusp ionosphere. These phenomena include surges in plasma flow, auroral activity, magnetic impulses and field-aligned (Birkeland) currents. Among the theoretical advances emerging just this past year are ones for the origin of plasma transport in the dayside polar ionosphere and for the source of the dayside Region 1 and cusp Birkeland currents.

Krill consumption by natural predators represents a critical link between surveys and models of standing krill biomass and the design of a sustainable krill fishery for the Scotia Sea. Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) is a significant component of diet for penguins breeding in this region and, consequently, uncertainties regarding penguin population abundances contribute to uncertainties in krill predation estimates. We use a comprehensive database of Antarctic penguin abundances to identify 14 breeding colonies that contribute most significantly to uncertainty regarding the total number of pygoscelid penguins breeding in this region. We find that a high quality survey of Zavodovski Island alone would decrease uncertainty in total population by 24.8%, whereas high quality surveys of all 14 “high-influence” locations would decrease uncertainty by almost 72%. Updated population estimates at these sites should be considered top priority for future fieldwork in the region. Our results are based on a robust quantitative method for assessing data priorities in estimating krill consumption that is easily extended to other groups of krill predators.