Plant and animal range shifts and population changes
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Argentine Islands
The populations of two native Antarctic flowering plants increased rapidly between 1964 and 1990, coincident with the strong regional warming over the Antarctic Peninsula. The Antarctic pearlwort population increased 5-fold while the Antarctic hairgrass increased 25-fold. The unusually rapid increases are attributed to warmer summer temperatures and/or a longer growing season, which enhance the plant’s ability to reproduce.
Reference: Fowbert, J.A. and R.I.L. Smith, 1994. Rapid population increases in native vascular plants in the Argentine Islands, Antarctic Peninsula. Arctic and Alpine Research, 26, 3: 290-296.
