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Nothofagus trees stranded on the Antarctic Peninsula

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 January 2012

R.I. Lewis Smith*
Affiliation:
Centre for Antarctic Plant Ecology and Diversity, Moffat, Dumfriesshire, DG10 9LB, UK (rils1@o2.co.uk)

Abstract

The occurrence of two basal sections of southern beech trees (Nothofagus sp.) embedded in raised cobble beaches and exposed by receding icefields at widely separated locations on islands off the western coast of the Antarctic Peninsula is reported. These are the most southerly records of naturally occurring driftwood. Both are of Fuegian or southern Patagonian origin but whether they arrived at their destinations directly from the north or by circumnavigating the Southern Ocean eastwards is uncertain. While their stranding probably occurred several centuries ago this can only be speculated.

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Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012 

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