Rafting by five phyla on man-made flotsam in the Southern Ocean

In just 4 decades, marine litter has become abundant in northern oceans and seas and is increasing on even remote Southern Ocean island shores. The Southern Ocean was thought to be protected from rafting organisms by its freezing sea surface temperatures. Here we report on an assemblage of animals a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine ecology. Progress series (Halstenbek) 2003-11, Vol.262, p.289-291
Main Authors: Barnes, David K. A., Fraser, Keiron P. P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
Antarctic regions
Areal geology. Maps
Biological and medical sciences
Biological taxonomies
Buoyancy
Earth sciences
Earth, ocean, space
Ectoprocta
Exact sciences and technology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Geologic maps, cartography
Marine
Marine debris
Micropora brevissima
Oceans
Rafting
Sea transportation
Sea water ecosystems
Seas
Synecology
Taxa
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Summary:In just 4 decades, marine litter has become abundant in northern oceans and seas and is increasing on even remote Southern Ocean island shores. The Southern Ocean was thought to be protected from rafting organisms by its freezing sea surface temperatures. Here we report on an assemblage of animals attached to a piece of plastic that was washed ashore on Adelaide Island, Antarctic Peninsula (68° S). The band of plastic was positively buoyant. At least 10 species belonging to 5 phyla were present on the plastic and the size of some indicated that it had been afloat for more than a year. Clearly it is possible for a range of animals to survive and grow in such an environment, and so exotic species could enter or leave the Southern Ocean.
ISSN:0171-8630
1616-1599
DOI:10.3354/meps262289