Diversity Patterns of Modern Arctic and Antarctic Bryozoans

• Main Author: Priska Schäfer
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bryozoa; Arctic Realm; Antarctic Realm; Biodiversity; Biogeography; Antarctic; Arctic; Arctic Ocean; Pacific; The Antarctic; Antarc*; North Atlantic
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.1028.5804; http://eprints.lib.hokudai.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2115/38438/1/p57-66-origin08.pdf

A comparison of Arctic Sea and Antarctic Sea bryozoan faunas (cheilostomes) was conducted by compiling comprehensive data sets from both realms [1, 2] and own additional collections from the European Sector of the Arctic Realm. The analysis documents the high endemism in Antarctic faunas also indicated by the high species/genera relationship compared to the extremely reduced endemism in the Arctic Realm. These different patterns are explained by the long-lasting geo-graphic isolation of the Antarctic continent due to tectonic break-up of the Gondwana continent in contrast to the Arctic Ocean, which since the Neogene became a transit system to promote migra-tion of bryozoan species between the North Atlantic and North Pacific oceans. Cluster analysis was applied to identify the biogeographic regions within the two polar realms.