Expedition ANTARKTIS XIX/5 (LAMPOS) of RV

Abstract

Special relationships exist between the waters around the southern part of South America, the Magellan Province, and the waters around the Subantarctic islands and the Antarctic continent. They have their origin in the common past of these regions as part of the Gondwana continent and in their close vicinity up to the present day as compared to the distances between Antarctica and the other surrounding continents. Both factors, as well as the actual Isolation of Antarctica by deep water and the current system, and periods of interchange, radiation and extinction in the past, are reflected in the present-day marine biota on either side of the Drake Passage. This context represents a singular case of ecosystem change and evolution on our planet, and a great challenge to research.