Page |1

BIOLOGY TODAY
SYSTEMATICS OF MARINE INTERVERTEBRATES
EVALUATING DR. KEN HALANYCH

can organisms easily disperse around

Antarctica? In an attempt to answer
these question, Dr. Halanych hypothesized
organisms would be able to move in and
out of Antarctic waters, despite the strong
current and thermal barriers surrounding
Antarctica, as well as easily disperse
around Antarctica due to the strong
Antarctic current as a key proponent of
dispersion.
With the aim of answering these
two questions, Dr. Halanychs methods
Although now separated by the Drake

consisted of three components, collection,

Passage, Antarctica and South America

processing, and analysis. The team

were attached at one time. Dr. Ken

utilized net systems, mud cores, and fish

Halanychs, from Auburn University,

traps in order to collect a large sample of

research focused on the phytogeography

organisms. Once the team sifted through

of invertebrate life in the region between

the sample, the organisms proceeded to

Antarctica and South America. Dr.

be processed in the lab. Initially, the

Halanychs aimed to answer two

organisms were separated into species

questions. One, can organisms move in

based on morphology. The organisms were

and out of Antarctic waters? and two,

subsequently photographed, classified by

CHANDLER SIMS | BIOLOGY TODAY

Page |2
name, and preserved so as to analyze

between Antarctic and South American

their morphology and genetic information

species and Antarctic coastal current do in

in the future. The team employed mtDNA

fact promote dispersal of marine

sequencing as well as 2b-RAD analyses to

invertebrates around Antarctica. Lastly,

study the SNPs of these organisms and

Dr. Halanychs research led to the

identify the genetic continuity of benthic

additional discovery that there are more

species within the Antarctic waters.

hemichordates around Antarctica than

Dr. Halanychs research findings

supported both hypotheses, to an extent.
Dr. Halanychs determined that some taxa
are able to move in and out of Antarctic
waters, results revealing similar genetic
sequencing on both sides of the Drake
Passage supported this claim. Data that
determined there was a common
Echinoderm gene pool along the western
Antarctica region supported Dr. Halanychs
second claim that some organisms can
disperse around Antarctica, namely the
Echinoderms, Astrotoma Agassiziim, that
he studied.
Dr. Halanych provided the
interpretation of his research larval life
history is a poor predictor of connectivity,
the organisms with different reproductive
forms do not necessarily predict the
genetic connectivity they may have

CHANDLER SIMS | BIOLOGY TODAY

Page |3
were previously known.

Questions that remain to be answered

include, are these genetic and
connectivity patterns seen throughout all
of Antarctica, as Dr. Halanychs team only
sampled a third of Antarctica? As well as,
although these Echinoderms can disperse
via the Antarctic currents, are they able to
disperse beyond the surrounding region of
Antarctica despite the water temperature
barriers? In concerns of future direction for
this line of research, Dr. Halanych touched
on a more comprehensive study of the
Meiofauna Biodiversity that influences the
ingestion behavior of the Echinoderms
mentioned formerly.

CHANDLER SIMS | BIOLOGY TODAY