2
R. K. DELL
I. INTRODUCTION
The writer has twice previously prepared short reviews of Antarctic
marine biology. The first (Dell, 1952) was written during what can now
be recognized as an interregnum between two major periods of biological
endeavour in the Antarctic. The main line of British oceanographic
interest had already turned to other fields and active biological investigation by the Discovery Investigations had in fact ceased. The great
international assault on the Antarctic stimulated by the International
Geophysical Year (IGY) was about to commence.
The second review (Dell, 1965) was written when it was still too
soon to assess what biological results had in fact been achieved. For
various reasons, there is often a significant time lag between biological
field work and the publication of results. I n 1964 many of the biological
results that had been achieved had not been published and even some
that had been published had not reached the Southern Hemisphere.
I n the last few years publication has begun to catch up, and a wealth
of material is becoming available. The year 1965 did not seem to be
a very propitious period in which to assess progress. The present period
may be little better, but at least it is now obvious that no time in the
immediate future will provide the kind of hiatus during which reviews
seem best attempted. Major papers on Antarctic marine biology will
be appearing regularly over the next decade.
The writer has kept files on Antarctic biology for many years. A
major review of literature in preparation for this contribution was
carried out throughout 1970 and the major part was written during the
first half of 1971. It has not proved possible to set an absolute deadline
beyond which reference to material could not be included. All literature
which has been received in New Zealand up to the beginning of May
1971 has been included. Because of postal inconsistencies there will
undoubtedly be anomalies in the treatment of literature produced
during the last six months.
The aim has been to give some account of the work carried out to
date on Antarctic benthic plants and animals. The area included in the
Antarctic has been very definitely circumscribed to cover the Antarctic
region defined herein as the shores of the Antarctic Continent, the South
Shetlands, South Orkneys, the South Sandwich Islands and South
Georgia together with Bouvet Island. The Subantarctic has been excluded, and such islands as Kerguelen, Heard and Macquarie have been
considered basically Subantarctic. Consideration of Subantarctic
biology raises many other problems since the biota cannot be so readily
circumscribed, and involves much closer relationships with associated
R. K. DELL
I. INTRODUCTION
The writer has twice previously prepared short reviews of Antarctic
marine biology. The first (Dell, 1952) was written during what can now
be recognized as an interregnum between two major periods of biological
endeavour in the Antarctic. The main line of British oceanographic
interest had already turned to other fields and active biological investigation by the Discovery Investigations had in fact ceased. The great
international assault on the Antarctic stimulated by the International
Geophysical Year (IGY) was about to commence.
The second review (Dell, 1965) was written when it was still too
soon to assess what biological results had in fact been achieved. For
various reasons, there is often a significant time lag between biological
field work and the publication of results. I n 1964 many of the biological
results that had been achieved had not been published and even some
that had been published had not reached the Southern Hemisphere.
I n the last few years publication has begun to catch up, and a wealth
of material is becoming available. The year 1965 did not seem to be
a very propitious period in which to assess progress. The present period
may be little better, but at least it is now obvious that no time in the
immediate future will provide the kind of hiatus during which reviews
seem best attempted. Major papers on Antarctic marine biology will
be appearing regularly over the next decade.
The writer has kept files on Antarctic biology for many years. A
major review of literature in preparation for this contribution was
carried out throughout 1970 and the major part was written during the
first half of 1971. It has not proved possible to set an absolute deadline
beyond which reference to material could not be included. All literature
which has been received in New Zealand up to the beginning of May
1971 has been included. Because of postal inconsistencies there will
undoubtedly be anomalies in the treatment of literature produced
during the last six months.
The aim has been to give some account of the work carried out to
date on Antarctic benthic plants and animals. The area included in the
Antarctic has been very definitely circumscribed to cover the Antarctic
region defined herein as the shores of the Antarctic Continent, the South
Shetlands, South Orkneys, the South Sandwich Islands and South
Georgia together with Bouvet Island. The Subantarctic has been excluded, and such islands as Kerguelen, Heard and Macquarie have been
considered basically Subantarctic. Consideration of Subantarctic
biology raises many other problems since the biota cannot be so readily
circumscribed, and involves much closer relationships with associated