What fossils were found in Antarctica?

Animal fossils They include ankylosaurs (the armoured dinosaurs), mosasaurs and plesiosaurs (both marine reptilian groups). Seymour Island, just off the Antarctic Peninsula, is one of the most important fossil sites on Earth.

Why are there few dinosaur fossils in Antarctica?

Very few fossils have been discovered in Antarctica because 98 percent of the continent is covered year-round by ice. Just a few of the islands along the Antarctic Peninsula and the tops of the Transantarctic Mountains are free of ice at times during the year.

What was Antarctica like in the Cretaceous period?

Antarctica was ice free during the Cretaceous Period, lasting from 145 to 66 million years ago. That long ago may seem unfamiliar but we know it because it was the last age of the dinosaurs before an asteroid hit the earth and ended their time on this planet. During this time period there were forests at both poles.

When did Antarctica move to the South Pole?

Around 450 million years ago parts of Antarctica were actually north of the equator, and the continent only arrived at its present position at the South Pole within the last 70 million years or so.

What wildlife is in Antarctica?

Antarctic animals – The most abundant and best known animals from the southern continent, penguins, whales seals, albatrosses, other seabirds and a range of invertebrates you may have not heard of such as krill which form the basis of the Antarctic food web.

Why are fossils of tropical plants and animals found in Antarctica?

Antarctica’s formerly balmy climate The fossil plants are indicative that the area had a warm climate without extended periods of winter temperatures below freezing, along with adequate moisture in the air for growth.

When did Antarctica reach the South Pole?

17 January 1912
Scott left his base camp with his team to the Pole on 1 November 1911. He finally reached the South Pole on 17 January 1912, disappointed to learn that Amundsen had beaten him to it. The tortuous return journey was faced with stoicism and dignity.

How did Antarctica move to the South Pole?

After breakup from Gondwana (the southern part of the supercontinent Pangea), the Antarctic plate began moving the continent of Antarctica south to its present isolated location causing the continent to develop a much colder climate. The Antarctic Plate is bounded almost entirely by extensional mid-ocean ridge systems.

Why is Antarctica at the South Pole?

Continental drift is causing Antarctica to slowly shift its position on Earth. Like the rest of the Earth’s landmass, Antarctica is affected by ‘continental drift’, and is propelled across the face of our planet by the roiling motion of convective currents deep within the Earth.

Why penguins only live in the South Pole?

That’s because penguins, which are plentiful along the Antarctic coasts—particularly the Antarctic Peninsula and the Ross Sea—are considered coastal animals, not land dwellers. So, despite what you may see in cartoons and other popular media, there are no penguins at the South Pole.

What is the geography of Antarctica like?

The geography of Antarctica is dominated by its south polar location and, thus, by ice. The Antarctic continent, located in the Earth’s southern hemisphere, is centered asymmetrically around the South Pole and largely south of the Antarctic Circle.

What would Antarctica look like without any ice?

Without any ice, Antarctica would emerge as a giant peninsula and archipelago of mountainous islands, known as Lesser Antarctica, and a single large landmass about the size of Australia, known as Greater Antarctica. These regions have different geologies. Greater Antarctica, or East Antarctica, is composed of older, igneous and metamorphic rock s.

What continent is Antarctica in the southern hemisphere?

Antarctica. It contains the geographic South Pole and is situated in the Antarctic region of the Southern Hemisphere, almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle, and is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. At 14,000,000 square kilometres (5,400,000 square miles), it is the fifth-largest continent.

Why does it snow so much in Antarctica?

The extra snowfall that began 10,000 years ago has been slowly accumulating on the ice sheet and compacting into solid ice over millennia, thickening the ice in East Antarctica and the interior of West Antarctica by an average of 0.7 inches (1.7 centimeters) per year.