EU OVERSEAS REGIONS OF GLOBAL With the kind support of: 7IMPORTANCE Polar& Did you Polar & Sub-Polar Sub-Polar know? Greenland is the world’s largest island British Antarctic and EU Overseas territory, covering over Territory Characterised by extreme climatic 2 million km2. It’s also the least populated country with less than 3 inhabitants/km2 or conditions and an abundance of © Jeremy Holden, Redfern Natural History marine life supporting economically 1100 inhabitants in an area the size of its Sovereign State Denmark. important fisheries, the Polar and Sub-polar region encompasses Greenland is covered to 80% by inland ice Greenland and French St Pierre and (over 1.7 million km2), amounting to 9% of all Miquelon in the North as well as the fresh water on Earth. 3 unpopulated Overseas Countries and Territories French Southern and The Crozet archipelago is nicknamed the “25 Antarctic Territories (French acronym million bird island”. The density of the marine bird population on these Sub-Antarctic TAAF), South Georgia and the South islands reaches a staggering 60 tonnes/km². Sandwich Islands (UK), and the British Antarctic Territories (BAT) in the Saint Pierre and Miquelon is home to the South. Both, the Arctic and Southern only boreal forest of France. Oceans are among the most productive Territories marine environments with worldwide Over 30 million pairs of seabird communities breed on the South Georgia and the influence on large parts of other marine Greenland Sandwich Islands on an area of less than ecosystems in lower latitudes. 4000 km2 Saint Pierre Contrary to the Arctic, terrestrial and Miquelon South Georgia The world’s largest and most northerly – Antarctic biodiversity on the Antarctic continent South Georgia national park of nearly 1 million km2 protects fur seal is sparse due to isolation from other and South almost 50% of Greenland’s terrestrial areas land masses for 23 million years and Sandwich Islands and northeastern coast. © Judith Brown almost complete ice coverage for 15 million years, leaving less than 1% for British Antarctic Territory colonization by plants. Crozet* The once heavily exploited whale populations in the Sub-Antarctic Kerguelen Islands* region are slowly growing again. However, several remain threatened, Saint Paul* including the Blue Whale (Balaenoptera Amsterdam* musculus) and the Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). The Adélie Land Polar and Sub-polar region also face substantial threats from exploitation of natural resources through overfishing and colonization by invasive species. Their ecosystems are the most affected by climate change, with a Saint Pierre and Miquelon – Orca number of significant direct impacts *Part of the Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (French: Terres Australes et Antarctiques Françaises - TAAF) on biodiversity already documented in © Joël Detcheverry both hemispheres. Greenland – Sled dogs and sleds South Georgia - King penguin © Judith Brown during summer British Antarctic Territory © Simon Vacher, Redfern Natural History Greenland – Uummannaq town © Stewart McPherson, Redfern Natural History © Michael Køie Poulsen.