Antarctica's Wildlife: 19 Marine Mammals, 17 Seabirds, 2 Flowering Plants

Antarctica's terrestrial biodiversity is minimal, but its marine ecosystem is extraordinarily rich. The accepted species counts for the continent and surrounding Southern Ocean:

Marine Mammals (~19 species)

• Whales (8–10): Blue, Fin, Sei, Minke, Humpback, Southern Right, Sperm, Orca (Killer Whale), Arnoux's Beaked, Hourglass Dolphin
• Seals (6): Weddell, Crabeater (most abundant large mammal on Earth), Leopard, Ross, Southern Elephant, Antarctic Fur Seal

Seabirds (~17 breeding species)

• Penguins (4 breeding): Emperor, Adélie, Chinstrap, Gentoo (King, Macaroni, Rockhopper on subantarctic islands)
• Flying Seabirds: Snow Petrel, Antarctic Petrel, Southern Fulmar, Cape Petrel, Wilson's Storm Petrel, Black-bellied Storm Petrel, South Polar Skua, Brown Skua, Antarctic Tern, Kelp Gull, Snowy Sheathbill

Flowering Plants (2 native species)

• Deschampsia antarctica (Antarctic Hair Grass)
• Colobanthus quitensis (Antarctic Pearlwort)

Both confined to Antarctic Peninsula and nearby islands (South Shetlands, South Orkneys). No trees, shrubs, or vascular plants beyond these.

Invertebrates & Microbial Life

Rich: nematodes, tardigrades, rotifers, springtails, mites, midges (Belgica antarctica — only insect), plus vast microbial diversity in soils, lakes, cryoconite holes.

Antarctica's "wildlife" is overwhelmingly marine. The continent itself is a polar desert with microscopic life; the coast and ocean teem with biomass.