Antarctic Benthic Fauna in the Global Climate Change

In the last 50 years a signifi cant climatic shift has been observed along the Antarctic Peninsula (air and seawater temperature rise, glacial retreat, localized instances of lowered shallow waters salinities).Many Antarctic marine benthic invertebrates are adapted to specifi c environmental conditions (e.g.low stable temperatures, high salinity and oxygen content).Changes caused by global climate changes and subsequent glacial melting can be expected to have signifi cant impacts on species physiology and distribution.The rise of sea water temperature coupled with such additional stress factors as melt water run-off, increased ice disturbance, disruption of food webs or invasion of alien species can be a serious problem for their long-term survival.