Plankton copepods collected during Admiral R. E. Byrd's expedition to the Antarctic, 1933 to 1935
✍ Scribed by Charles Branch Wilson
- Book ID
- 102280948
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1938
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 313 KB
- Volume
- 36
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 1434-2944
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
During Admirals Byrd's last expedition into the Antarctic collections of plankton were made by Dr. Earle B. Perkins of Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, zoologist with the expedition. These collections have been examined and the copepods which they contained have been identified by the author with the following results.
The geographical location is of exceptional importance since it shares with England's ,,Terra Nova" Expedition in being the farthest south that plankton has ever been obtained. The conditions under which the present plankton was captured argalso so peculiar that they greatly increase its scientific interest and value. For these reasons the following lists of localities and species seem worthy of publication since they add considerably to our knowledge of copepod distribution, environment and reproduction althoiigh they do not contain any new species.
In connection with the dates here given it should be kept in mind that we are dealing with the southern hemisphere and the Antarctic. Consequently the seasons come at periods of the year directly opposite to their occurrence north of the equator. Midsummer is in January and midwinter in July, with spring and fall similarly transposed.
Again the sun sets in the Antarctic April 21st and does not reappear until August 21st, and during this winter season there will be no reaction to sunlight on the part of any component of the plankton. There may be twilight conditions a t noon when the sun nears the horison for two or three weeks. after it has set and just before it rises, but all the rest of the four months will be continuous darkness.
During the summer months on the other hand the sunlight will be continuous and exert its influence the entire twenty-four hours of