Life at the Poles: adaptations in extreme environments

Adaptations of living things to cold extreme conditions have produced some of the most unusual life on Earth. Polar environments are both the coldest and most seasonal on the planet. The very short summers are highly productive and many charismatic migratory animals exploit the abundance of food. Obvious examples are great whales and penguins, many of which depend on krill for a large proportion of their diet. Krill is the superabundant shrimp in the middle of the pelagic food web that can form superswarms of billions or rarely even trillions of individuals. The main topics covered in this module are: Marine Adaptations, covering subjects such as why giant sea spiders exist at low temperatures and how the low temperature allows the only fish on Earth that lack red blood cells and haemoglobin to exist; Polar Genes and Genomes with issues like why are there so many antifreeze genes in Antarctic fishes and why do Antarctic marine species have a different cellular response to animals from warmer environments; Terrestrial Environments - how do springtails and mites survive temperatures below -30°C and how is climate change altering the likelihood of alien species invading the continent; Higher Predators, where many iconic species depend on food supplies that are being markedly affected by climate change; and the Past History of Antarctica, including information about the large-eyed dinosaurs that flourished in coastal Antarctic forests 80 million years ago. This course will give insights into how life has evolved to thrive in a part of the world about which Captain Scott said “Great God! this is an awful place”