Diaspores and phyto-remains accidentally transported to the Antarctic Station during three expeditions

Maria Lityńska-Zając,Małgorzata Korczak-Abshire,Katarzyna Chwedorzewska,Anna Augustyniuk-Kram,Maria Olech

doi:10.1007/s10531-012-0371-6

Abstract

The aim of the project was to assess the size and species range of alien plant diaspores and phyto-remains transported into the Polish Antarctic Station during three Antarctic expeditions. Our study clearly demonstrates that many diaspores can be quite easily unintentionally transported in good conditions to the Antarctic. In the analyzed material there were present diaspores of invasive species. All identified species belong to 20 families. The most abundant were Asteraceae and Poaceae species. The most interesting finding was the presence of caryopses of Poa annua, the first alien angiosperm species which already established a stable breeding population in the Antarctic. Base on our results, we can predict that risk of establishment of anther alien plant species in the vicinity of “Arctowski” Station is very high.

Highlights

Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems are noted for their relative simplicity and are characterized by low diversity, as well as an extremely low contribution of some families, or even lack ofM
The aim of the project was to assess the size and species range of alien plant diaspores and phyto-remains transported into the Polish Antarctic Station during three Antarctic expeditions
Two angiosperms thrive in harsh conditions of the maritime Antarctica climate: Deschampsia antarctica and Colobanthus quitensis

Summary

Introduction

Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems are noted for their relative simplicity and are characterized by low diversity, as well as an extremely low contribution of some families, or even lack ofM. Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems are noted for their relative simplicity and are characterized by low diversity, as well as an extremely low contribution of some families, or even lack of. Antarctic tundra are predominantly cryptogamic (lichens, mosses, algae and liverworts) (Bednarek-Ochyra et al 2000; Chwedorzewska et al 2004, Ochyra et al 2008; Olech 2004) and characterized by the poverty of flowering plants. Relatively simple community structure, and the general life history features of the native biota make Antarctic ecosystems very vulnerable to the impacts of introduced species (Convey 1996; Frenot et al 2005; Terauds et al 2012), those that have sufficient genetic or phenotypic plasticity to enable them to adapt to the polar environment (Hughes et al 2010a)

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