For the first time scientists have assessed the extinction risk of a plant species in Antarctica and found that a rare moss Roaldia revoluta is regionally endangered, highlighting growing concerns about the vulnerability of the continent’s unique vegetation.
Although Antarctica is often viewed as a frozen wilderness, small ice-free areas support a surprising variety of plant life. The continent is home to two native flowering plant species more than 100 moss species as well as numerous liverworts and lichens. Despite their ecological importance, none of these plants had previously undergone a formal extinction risk assessment in Antarctica.
Researchers evaluated the conservation status of Roaldia revoluta a rusty brown to yellow green moss that occurs in both polar regions and mountainous areas of Europe, Patagonia and New Zealand. While the species is listed globally as being of least concern, its status varies significantly across its range. It is considered critically endangered in the United Kingdom, near threatened in Romania, and may already be extinct in the Czech Republic.
To determine the moss’s condition in Antarctica, scientists analyzed herbarium collections gathered during research expeditions, mapped its known distribution, and examined information on its habitat, ecology and potential threats. Their assessment identified only about 80 mature individuals across Antarctica, leading them to classify the species as regionally endangered.
According to study co-author Peter Convey of the British Antarctic Survey, the finding is not unexpected. After decades of fieldwork across the Antarctic Peninsula, he has observed that several moss species occur only rarely or have highly restricted distributions. He suggested that similar assessments of other Antarctic mosses could reveal additional species facing conservation concerns.
The study also exposed significant knowledge gaps. Researchers noted that obtaining reliable records of the species was challenging because many plant collections are made by non-specialists, while expert moss taxonomists can only survey a limited number of locations during each field season.
Scientists are calling for more detailed baseline surveys of Antarctica’s plant communities. Mosses make up the majority of the continent’s vegetation and are particularly vulnerable to human disturbance. Tourism, scientific research activities, trampling, vehicle traffic and the construction of research stations can damage fragile moss beds, which may take decades to recover in Antarctica harsh climate.
Another concern is the lack of formal protection for the species. The researchers found no records of Roaldia revoluta occurring within any Antarctic Specially Protected Area. Most of the continent’s protected sites were established primarily to safeguard colonies of seabirds and marine mammals rather than plant habitats.
The authors say their assessment represents an important first step toward identifying threatened Antarctic plants and could help guide the creation of future protected areas specifically designed to conserve the continent’s unique vegetation.
As climate change, expanding tourism and increasing human activity place growing pressure on Antarctica ecosystems, scientists warn that understanding and protecting its overlooked plant life is becoming increasingly urgent.