Evolutionary History of Antarctica

Abstract

One of the most important breakthroughs in Antarctic geological research over the last three decades has been the elucidation of the continent’s fossil record. Although fossils have been known since the very earliest days of scientific exploration in the south polar regions, it is only comparatively recently that their study has been placed within a firm scientific framework. Detailed taxonomic studies of many key groups have been completed and it is now possible, for the first time, to take a broad perspective of the history of life on our southernmost continent. A surprising diversity of fossil plants and animals has now been found in Antarctica; the story they tell is every bit as important to the development of our understanding of the broad patterns of the history of life on Earth as that from other continents.