Three Stellenbosch University researchers leave for New Zealand next month en route to Antarctica as part of a joint South African-New Zealand project to study insects.
Jaco Klok, John Terblanche and team leader Brent Sinclair of the university’s zoology department will link up with Matt Scott of the University of Otago.
The team of four will fly to Scott Base from Christchurch early in November and will land on the sea ice at remote Cape Hallett in mid November.
They will study the ecology and physiology of the continent’s largest land-based animals, one-metre long insects called springtails.
Sinclair said on Thursday springtails were wholly terrestrial.
”They spend their entire lives on the small patches of soil that are not covered by thick ice sheets.”
The team will live in a tent camp and will set up a sophisticated physiology laboratory.
They hope to learn how the three species of springtails at Cape Hallett, 600km north of Scott Base, survive the extreme winter cold, and to make an inventory of all the animal species in the area.
”The results of the study are expected to help scientists understand the mechanisms that limit life in Antarctica and to make predictions about the effects of climate change on the terrestrial ecosystems,” Sinclair said.
He said they also hoped to provide information about the animals that would be useful for future comparisons, and to help conserve the Antarctic ecosystem.
The expedition is supported by Antarctica New Zealand, the South African Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and the New Zealand Foundation for Research and Technology.
The group will return to New Zealand by ship in February. – Sapa