Benthic Marine Habitats in Antarctica

Benthic habitats in Antarctica differ from those in other parts of the world in several important characterislies. Most of the Southern Ocean overlies the abyssal plain, where the sediments are primarily siliceous. Icc-rafted debris provides isolated patches of hard substratum but otherwise little is known of the biology of the deep-sea in Antarctica. Shallow WOller habitats are heavily influenced by icc, with typical intcrtidaJ habitats being almost devoid of life. Continental shelves are unusually deep arou nd Antarctica and the sediments are predominantly glacial-marine. Antarctica lacks typical fluvial habitats such as rivers. eSlu aries and has very few intertidal mudflats, and away from the immediate sublittoral the habitats suffer less physical and biological disturbance than the continental shelves of the Arctic.