This review considers the current status, and highlights existing knowledge gaps, on Antarctic terrestrial and freshwater biological responses to climate change. Climate change is considered to be one of the major drivers of future ecosystem change in Antarctica. Understanding the biological responses, and associated shifts in biodiversity patterns, biotic interactions and processes, that are likely to occur under continued climate change is fundamental for predicting its consequences for the functioning of Antarctic ecosystems. However, quantifying changes in species abundance, biodiversity, community composition and biotic interactions, and how these are influenced by variations in a multitude of environmental variables, is challenging. All biological groups in the Antarctic terrestrial and freshwater domains currently show low species richness at higher latitudes, indicating that there should be scope for lower-latitude species to expand their distributions southwards under warming conditions. The northern, ‘trailing edge’ or lower altitudinal limits may also shift southwards or upwards, respectively. However, to date, only one report exists of increased diversity within field experimental warming studies, and none exist from the few available long-term monitoring sites. Similarly, while notable plant-cover expansions have been recorded at some localized sites, no clear large-scale vegetation response has been documented within recognized Antarctic biological regions, while organisms living within the vegetation show highly variable responses. There are still many knowledge gaps on this matter for various biological groups across and within Antarctic regions. While it is frequently posited that the potential for climate change-driven range expansion and biodiversity shifts is substantial, the biological responses reported to date indicate that current levels of climate change have not (yet) resulted in large-scale changes in abundance and biodiversity patterns across Antarctica.

Census counts of Pygoscelis penguins on the Antarctic Peninsula and Scotia Arc are conducted both regularly around field stations and opportunistically from ships with the goal of assessing the breeding abundances and trends of these indicator species. Regional trends and abundances are often more policy-relevant than population-specific metrics, but survey patterns in the area have not been planned to optimize regional inference. We evaluated the ability of several monitoring schemes to describe regional trends and abundances of Pygoscelis penguins. Using a ‘pseudo-true’ time series as a starting point, we simulated time series of ‘observed’ census data for the period of 2000–2024. We then fit a hierarchical Bayesian population model to each dataset to assess how well each monitoring scheme recovered the known regional trends and abundances. Simulations were repeated across combinations of survey efforts, variances in inter-population abundances and census uncertainties. We found that implementing structured monitoring schemes would improve our ability to recover regional trends and abundances compared to the actual distribution of surveys conducted during the 2000–2024 period. For scenarios characterized by low variance in abundance such as the gentoo penguins on the central-west Antarctic Peninsula, we could recover trend and abundance estimates with considerably less survey effort if we deployed a monitoring scheme that cycled through all populations at an equal interval. For scenarios characterized by high variance in abundance such as the Adélie penguins on the north-east Antarctic Peninsula, surveys were optimized by splitting effort between satellite monitoring of the largest populations and cycling through the other populations. These findings are strongly influenced by the rapid increase in uncertainty regarding population abundance in the seasons after a census count, highlighting the importance of prioritizing sites where abundances are highly uncertain due to long intervals since the last survey.

Although polar fungi Pseudogymnoascus spp. are known to produce specialized metabolites (SMs) with wide-ranging potential for the pharmaceuticals industry, there is limited knowledge on the biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) involved. Therefore, this study aims to search for BGCs based on the whole-genome sequences (WGSs) of Antarctic Pseudogymnoascus griseus (strain AKSP4) and Arctic Pseudogymnoascus australis (strain HNDR4) that were sequenced with the Illumina NovaSeq6000 platform and assembled de novo. The genome size produced for P. griseus (strain AKSP4) was 35.6 Mb with 2172 contigs, whereas the genome size produced for P. australis (strain HNDR4) was 32.0 Mb with 586 contigs. Totals of 58 and 51 BGC regions were predicted for P. griseus (strain AKSP4) and P. australis (strain HNDR4), respectively. Four putative regions were found to be similar to those of choline, swainsonine, trichobrasilenol and geodin, which have antibacterial, anticancer and insecticidal activities that are valuable for the biotechnological industry. The BGCs reported here could potentially help narrow down the gene regions to be investigated for the characterized SMs of interest and elucidate their biosynthetic pathways. Furthermore, the WGSs produced provide useful reference genomes for assembling other polar Pseudogymnoascus strains. The present study is the first to report the occurrence of P. australis within the Arctic region. Overall, this study highlights the potential of polar fungi and their genomic information as sources for novel compounds in the biotechnological industry.

The diet of Antarctic toothfish (Dissostichus mawsoni) captured by bottom longlines on the Ross Sea continental shelf was examined during four consecutive summer research surveys (2012–2015) within the Ross Sea polynya. The surveys included three areas: south-west continental shelf (Core area), McMurdo Sound and Terra Nova Bay. Toothfish diet comprised mainly small notothens, especially Trematomus spp. (which accounted for 20–52% of total prey weight by area) and icefish (30–57% of total prey weight by area). Notothen prey were mainly Trematomus loennbergii, with Trematomus scotti regularly observed. The most important icefish prey were Chionodraco spp., of which Chionodraco hamatus was most frequently identified, and Neopagetopsis ionah. Dragonfish (Bathydraconidae) were rarely observed, except in 2012 when Gymnodraco acuticeps accounted for ~11% of prey weight. Antarctic silverfish (Pleuragramma antarcticum) were regularly observed but contributed little by weight (0.4–3.6% total prey weight by area). Invertebrates were a relatively small component of toothfish diet, with the prawn Notocrangon antarcticus and the amphipod Eusiris spp. found in ~3–24% and 0–9% of stomachs, respectively, but they were small and weighed little. Icefish (particularly Dacodraco hunteri) were more important than notothens in toothfish diet in Terra Nova Bay. The results indicate that D. mawsoni are predominantly benthic feeders, with no evidence of substantial feeding away from the seafloor in the days before they were caught. In contrast with previous McMurdo Sound diet studies, Antarctic silverfish were of relatively minor importance as a prey item for Antarctic toothfish in other areas of the Ross Sea shelf, which is consistent with a coastal and fast-ice distribution of silverfish and/or a seasonal change in the distribution of silverfish.

In 2019 we collected gravity and magnetic measurements, in conjunction with multibeam swath bathymetry and multi-channel seismic reflection profiling, to characterize the neovolcanic zone around Orca Volcano in the Central Bransfield Basin, Antarctica. New analysis of mafic dredge samples shows that the caldera is composed of rocks with a wide range of measured susceptibilities. Multi-channel seismic reflection profiles across Orca Volcano showed the presence of several reflectors under the caldera, characterized by strong amplitudes and phase-reversed polarity. Gravity and magnetic data also show coincident anomalies. Our 2D forward modelling shows that these anomalies are the result of a shallow magma accumulation zone underlain by a low-density, low-susceptibility volume. We also observe that the axial ridge to the south-west of the volcano is characterized by a narrow zone of low density and high susceptibility, consistent with a focused rift axis. To the north-east of the volcano, the potential field data show that the axial rift is left-lateral offset and is somewhat broader. An asymmetric pattern of decreasing density and susceptibility of igneous rocks across the rift is consistent with a pattern of extension that has only recently evolved into a narrow rift and the mid-ocean ridge basalt-like compositions seen in dredge samples. These results are consistent with rifting that is rapidly transitioning to seafloor spreading.

Human activity in the Antarctic is supported by a wide network of government agencies, policies, businesses and workers back home. This polar workforce is particularly important in the so-called ‘Antarctic gateway cities’, which foreground their economic and cultural connections with the far south. Rather than focusing just on the Antarctic continent as the place of work, this paper therefore takes a broader approach by turning attention to the people back home that enable Antarctic logistics, modelling, policymaking and public awareness to be executed successfully. The paper outlines a matrix for mapping polar work capacity, with Antarctic roles classified as direct or indirect and as in situ or ex situ. By bringing together stakeholders from a range of Antarctic workplaces (including local and national government, academia, tourism and local business owners and training providers) from Christchurch (New Zealand) in October 2024, a workshop event identified the key challenges facing the Antarctic sector over the coming 5 years and highlighted areas where international collaboration could help to address these challenges into the future. Key suggestions include the implementation of an overarching Antarctic strategy; training and education to improve local talent and pathways; enhanced visibility of existing skillsets; establishing exchange opportunities across the Antarctic gateway cities; and developing Antarctic identities, including through tourism opportunities.

Understanding the diverse pathways between science and policy is crucial for assessing the impact of research. In this context, ‘research impact’ refers to the broader societal benefits of scientific research that extend beyond traditional research evaluation metrics. Metrics of academic and scientific excellence, such as h-indexes or bibliometric analyses, often fail to capture the impact of science on policy. To investigate one aspect of how research can influence policy, and therefore probably have impact, this study analysed ice core publications from the Australian Antarctic Program. A dataset of 266 Australian-authored and/or -funded East Antarctic ice core publications was examined, revealing that 123 were cited in 284 international and Australian (domestic) policy and policy-related documents. To analyse the policy influence of the research, key information was categorized into authoring countries, institutions, research themes and the contextual use of publications by the documents. This categorization highlighted the different uses of information and interpretations of ice core publications by separate forums, with some more active compared to passive uses. The ‘Active-Passive’ spectrum developed in this study provides a framework for understanding how research is being used, and it underscores the relevance of ice core science to local Australian governance. The results show that domestic uptake of ice core publications by some Australian states demonstrated more ‘Active’ inclusions in policy to support an area of national interest: water security. The mixed methods piloted in this study can be used to assess scientific publications from national Antarctic programmes with more nuance, thereby offering an improved avenue for measuring research impact.

Understanding how human activities affect Antarctic ecosystems is essential for both environmental management and the interpretation of ecological change. This is particularly important in Antarctica’s ice-free areas, which contain most of the continent’s terrestrial biodiversity and host the majority of scientific infrastructure. While work has been done to understand short-term impacts of research stations and scientific activity, little is known about the persistence of these impacts on soil ecosystems. Here, we examine the long-term ecological legacy of historical research infrastructure in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, East Antarctica. We collected soil samples from sites of historical research facilities that have since been removed, extracted and identified soil invertebrates and conducted statistical and geospatial analyses to identify spatiotemporal trends and evaluate patterns of abundance relative to distance from disturbance centres and time since abandonment. Soils closer to former infrastructure consistently had lower nematode abundances than soils further away, indicating long-lasting impacts of human activities on soil ecosystems. We also found evidence of potential recovery in some nematode populations, which appears to depend on the type of disturbance and the surrounding environmental setting. At several sites, surface disturbance from historical infrastructure is no longer readily apparent but biological recovery remains incomplete, demonstrating that visual restoration of the landscape does not necessarily correspond to ecological recovery. Measuring the impacts of human activities in these areas is important because they may confound our ability to interpret the subtle but significant effects of climate change and ecosystem responses more generally. This is particularly pressing as research and tourism are expected to increase in these regions. We offer ecological explanations for these patterns and discuss their implications for environmental management and conservation in the McMurdo Dry Valleys and other ice-free areas of Antarctica.

The intensity and frequency of extreme weather events in rapidly changing environments continue to increase, driving unusual behaviours and posing significant threats to terrestrial ecosystems. In this study, we describe the co-occurrence of 1) Collembola swarming, 2) vegetation die-off and 3) extreme weather events, particularly heavy rainfall and high temperatures, over a 5 day period on sub-Antarctic Marion Island. Taxonomic and molecular evidence confirmed that the Collembola species displaying swarming behaviour was Ceratophysella denticulata, an invasive hypogastrurid. Our observations suggest that environmental stressors may have induced vegetation die-off, which, in turn, may have directly or indirectly driven Collembola aggregation. The association of these factors highlights the potential role of Collembola as bioindicators of soil ecosystem responses to climatic extremes, and that the recognition of these interactions can be critical in the prediction and management of ecological responses to changing environments.

To date, there are few records of Holocene changes in sea ice in the south-eastern Weddell Sea, which limits our understanding of how sea ice has interacted with climate in this sector of the Southern Ocean. Here, we present a multi-proxy analysis of a snow petrel stomach-oil deposit that records occupation history and dietary fluctuations from ~1800 to 800 calibrated (cal.) yr bp. Lipid biomarkers (fatty acids (FAs), sterols and alkanols), bulk stable isotopes (δ13C and δ15N) and trace elements show distinct dietary shifts, which are linked to centennial-scale changes in summer sea-ice extent. From ~1730 to 1370 cal. yr bp, foraging in pelagic waters near the edge of the sea-ice pack is suggested by low nest occupation rates and Antarctic krill contributions to the diet. From ~1370 to ~1180 cal. yr bp, an increase in nest occupation and a fish-dominated diet reflect foraging within open water (polynyas) during a period of more extensive summer sea ice. A decrease in nest occupation after ~1180 cal. yr bp is attributed to local sea-ice readvance, resulting in reduced access to open water, impeding foraging success. Our results highlight the use of multi-proxy geochemical records from snow petrel stomach-oil deposits to reconstruct seasonal sea-ice fluctuations in the Weddell Sea and their interactions with late Holocene climate records.

This bibliometric study maps Antarctic microbiology research in South American countries using Web of Science records (1978–2024). A descriptive, quantitative design applied bibliometrix and VOSviewer, with thesaurus-based normalization reducing keyword variants by 6%, to construct a 1240-term science map. After manual screening focused on Antarctic (excluding sub-Antarctic) microbiology, 497 publications remained. Chile led the output (234), followed by Brazil (124) and Argentina (98). The leading journals for this output are Polar Biology, Frontiers in Microbiology and Extremophiles. Keyword and co-occurrence analyses revealed dominant themes of Pseudomonas and the bioremediation/biodegradation of heavy metals. The largest cluster, centred on Pseudomonas, was linked to oxidative stress, antioxidants, pigments, biofilms and polyhydroxyalkanoates, with a second major cluster focused on bioremediation. The findings indicate an applied orientation towards collecting biological materials and characterizing molecular/biochemical properties with commercialization potential. This study clarifies trends and gaps, informing future directions to facilitate international cooperation and advance the understanding of microbial diversity and functions across Antarctic habitats.