Page 4 - Microsoft Word - geo class task.docx

Ecosystems At Risk Class Research Task

Imagine you are a member of an environmental group competing for a monetary grant from
the Federal Government (it doesn't have to be Australia). The main concern of your group is
the protection of vulnerable ecosystems.

Part 1:
Name and describe the ecosystem you wish to protect.

Antarctic polar desert:

• Contains 90% of all ice on the planet in an area just under 1.5 times the size of the
United States
• Fifth largest continent
• Less than ½ a percent of the continent is free of ice
• Divided into East and West Antarctica
rd
• East Antarctica takes up 2/3 of the continent, roughly the size of Australia
• Ice in this part of the continent averages 2km thick
• West Antarctica is a series of frozen islands, stretching toward the southern tip of
south America, an extension of the Andes mountains
• Continuously changing expanse of ice
• Crevasse fields with cracks hundreds of feet deep span the continent, hidden by only
a shallow layer of snow
• Classified as a desert due to the little precipitation that falls
• Inner regions receive an average of 2 inches, primarily in the form of snow, each
year.
• More rain falls in the Sahara desert
• Summer – October  February
• Antarctic summers average just above freezing
• The lowest temperature in the world (-89.6 degrees Celsius) was recorded at the
Russian Vostok station in Antarctica
• Factors such as location and climate play an important role in the diverse ecosystem

Describe where the ecosystem is located ( provide a map

).