| Ice |
| Ice accumulates as glaciers and icecaps at high latitudes and altitudes. No plant life can survive on the ice surface, but plankton find a niche underneath sea ice where enough light penetrates to maintain photosynthesis. Plankton form the basis of a food chain in the polar oceans which supports fish, mammals such as seals and polar bears, and birds. Many of these animals use the sea ice surface to travel, hunt or rest, but breed on ice-free islands and coasts.
Larsen Ice Shelf, Antarctica
Mulock Glacier, Antarctica |
