Deschampsia antarctica

Species of plant

Deschampsia antarctica

Scientific classification
Kingdom:  | Plantae
Clade:  | Tracheophytes
Clade:  | Angiosperms
Clade:  | Monocots
Clade:  | Commelinids
Order:  | Poales
Family:  | Poaceae
Subfamily:  | Pooideae
Genus:  | Deschampsia
Species:  |

D. antarctica

Binomial name
Deschampsia antarctica

É.Desv.[1]

Synonyms[1]

* Airidium elegantulum Steud.
* Deschampsia elegantula (Steud.) Parodi
* Deschampsia henrardii Kloos

Deschampsia antarctica, the Antarctic hair grass, is one of two flowering plants native to Antarctica, the other being Colobanthus quitensis (Antarctic pearlwort).

## Ecology

[edit]

An early illustration of the species under its previous name Aira antarctica

Deschampsia antarctica mainly occurs on the South Orkney Islands, the South Shetland Islands, and along the western Antarctic Peninsula.[2] Deschampsia antartica distribution largely depends on the area's nutrient supply of the soil and its water distribution.[3] Deschampsia antarctica has been recorded by the Guinness Book of World Records as the southernmost flowering plant. In 1981, a specimen was found on the Antarctic Peninsula's Refuge Islands at a latitude of 68°21′S.[4][5] Since 2009, both D. antarctica and C. quitensis have been spreading rapidly, which studies suggest has been the result of rising air temperatures and a reduction in the number of fur seals.[6]

In Antarctica, the plant can be found forming low clumps in wet, protected habitats.[2]

## See also

[edit]

* Antarctic flora

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Deschampsia antarctica". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
2. ^ a b Rudolph, E. D. (1965). "Antarctic Lichens and Vascular Plants: Their Significance". BioScience. 15 (4): 285–287\. doi:10.2307/1293425. ISSN 0006-3568. JSTOR 1293425.
3. ^ Androsiuk, Piotr; Chwedorzewska, Katarzyna J.; Dulska, Justyna; Milarska, Sylwia; Giełwanowska, Irena (2020-12-16). "Retrotransposon-based genetic diversity of Deschampsia antarctica Desv. from King George Island (Maritime Antarctic)". Ecology and Evolution. 11 (1): 648–663\. doi:10.1002/ece3.7095. ISSN 2045-7758. PMC 7790655.
4. ^ Young, Mark C., ed. (1996). Guinness Book of World Records 1997. Guinness Publishing Ltd. pp. 42. ISBN 0-9652383-0-X.
5. ^ Wali, Mohan K.; Evrendilek, Fatih; Fennessy, M. Siobhan (July 2009). The Environment: Science, Issues, and Solutions. CRC Press. p. 21\. ISBN 978-1-4200-0733-6. Retrieved 25 Sep 2016.
6. ^ "Flourishing plants show warming Antarctica undergoing 'major change'". the Guardian. 2022-02-14. Retrieved 2022-02-14.

## External links

[edit]

* Media related to Deschampsia antarctica at Wikimedia Commons
* Data related to Deschampsia antarctica at Wikispecies
* Plants in Antarctica
* Pearlwort & Hairgrass picture
* Anatomy of hairgrass

Taxon identifiers

Deschampsia antarctica|

* Wikidata: Q426089
* Wikispecies: Deschampsia antarctica
* APNI: 132093
* ARKive: deschampsia-antarctica
* BOLD: 624528
* CoL: 34Z4S
* GBIF: 4144844
* GrassBase: imp02815
* GRIN: 410685
* iNaturalist: 344042
* IPNI: 397932-1
* ITIS: 783016
* NCBI: 159298
* Open Tree of Life: 3490
* Plant List: kew-407539
* POWO: urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:397932-1
* Tropicos: 25516408
* WFO: wfo-0000862424