The most well-known symbol of Antarctica is the penguin. There are only two species of penguins which breed on the mainland – Emperor and Adelie. Five other species, viz. Gentoo, Chinstrap, King, Rockhopper and Macaroni breed on sub-Antarctic islands. During the harsh polar winter only the largest, the Emperor, continues to live in Antarctica; all other penguins migrate northwars to nearby islands.
Four species of seals, viz. Ross, Weddell, Crabeater and Leopard are found in the coastal Antarctic waters; which are mammals who have gone back to the sea. Among these, Leopard seal is a ferocious predator and hunts all penguins and other seals. Ross seal is the only one which stays round-the-year on the continental shores. Three more species of seals, viz. Elephant, Fur and Kerguelen, are found in the Southern Ocean, mostly on sub-Antarctic islands.
Six species of large whales, which again are mammals, commonly come to the Southern Ocean for feeding during the polar summer; these are Blue, Fin, Right, Sei, Minke and Humpback. Of these, the Blue whale is the largest, about 25 m long and weighing `90 tons. There are five smaller species of toothed whales in Antarctic waters – Sperm, Killer, Bottlenose, Fourtooth and Hourglass. Of these, Killer whale is the most powerful hunter of the icy waters; it is around 7 m long and weighs approximately 8 tons. It is awfully ferocious, hunts all seals and penguins and even attacks human beings.
About 43 species of migratory birds breed in Antarctica during the short polar summer. These nest on the land but mostly feed in the sea. Of these, most prominent are 24 species of petrels and prions; which have tubular nose, web bed feet, dense plumage and subdermal fat. Yet another conspicuous migratory bird is the skua, similar to gulls, but a very aggressive and territorial predator. It hunts petrels and penguins.
These base of the food-chain in Antarctic waters is the Antarctic Krill, which is the most abundant animal in the world. It is a thumb-sized prawn-like crustacean; found in swarms of millions in the icy waters. It feeds on the algae growing below pack ice. Most of the penguins, seals, whales migratory birds survive on krill. Now even man has taken to fishing for krill on a large scale.
More than 200 species of insects are found on Antarctic land and in meltwater ponds. These are mites, springtails, midges, metazoa, tardigrades and worms. The largest of these is a wingless midge of 1.5 cm length. In addition to these, about 60 species of parasites are found in the feathers and nests of birds and furs of seals.
Only two flowering plants are found in Antarctica – one is a grass and the other a cushion-forming bush; both are confined to the milder climate of the Antarctic Peninsula. However, mosses, lichens, algae are widely spread over the continent. These are reported up to 86 South Latitude in these Trans-Antarctic Mountains, just 400 km away from the South Pole and are found even up to an altitude of ~1980 m. About 150 species of mosses, 280 species of lichens and 700 species of algae have been reported from Antarctica. These plants survive by higher concentration of pigments and ability to dehydrate below -10 C.
