Octopus hints at ice-sheet fall
The genetic evidence suggests that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet collapsed at one point - perhaps as recently as 200,000 years ago when global temperatures were warmer. Image: Elaine Jorgensen/NOAA Genetic evidence from an Antarctic octopus indicates that one of the world’s major ice sheets – the West Antarctic Ice Sheet – could collapse if global temperatures keep climbing.octopusThe research has been published in the international journal Molecular Ecology and reported on Britain's Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) ‘Planet Earth’ website.Lead author of the international study was Australian geneticist Dr Jan Strugnell from La Trobe University.The team analysed the genes of the Turquet's octopus, which lives in the Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica. Their work was carried out during the Census of Antarctic Marine Life, from 2005 to 2010, and International Polar Year in 2007.Dr Strugnell told ‘Planet Earth: 'We were able to take advantage of much larger sample sizes than had been...