Antarctic Animals Information

Geography

• Antarctica has the distinction of being both the coldest place on Earth and the world's largest desert. Antarctica's cold and dry climate is so severe that its interior is nearly barren of plant and animal life.

Location

• According to J. Rank Science Encyclopedia, only small insects, earthworms and crustaceans live on Antarctica's interior. Larger animals only live on or near Antarctica's coast.

Types

• According to the British Antarctica Survey, Antarctic animals include emperor, chinstrap, macaroni, gentoo, king and Adelie penguins; albatrosses; seagulls and terns; toothed whales such as sperm whales and killer whales; baleen whales such as humpback, blue and minke whales; sea lions; seals; fish; squid; and tiny crustaceans called krill.

Krill

• The most abundant animals in Antarctica are tiny crustaceous zooplankton called krill. Krill form the first link in the Antarctic food chain and nearly every Antarctic animal depends on them for survival.

Fun Fact

• The blue whale is the largest animal to ever have lived on Earth and feeds on one of the smallest. One blue whale eats 3 tons of krill each day.