When we called at Cuverville Island in 2002 there were large areas of moss banks on the steep slopes above the penguin rookery. In the extreme conditions on the Antarctic Peninsular these plants can only grow a few millimetres a year but, even so, we did see some moss growing on a wind-swept ridge. The problems they face are extremely low temperatures, dehydration and low light levels. These problems are at a minimum on north-facing slopes where there is some run-off from melting snow. Even here at zero degrees, which is a relatively warm day for Antarctica, the efficiency of photosynthesis drops to 30% to 40% of its maximum but the effect on metabolism - that is the conversion of the sugars produced by photosynthesis into amino acids and other useful products - is even
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