The sea was named about 1932 after theScotia, the expedition ship used in these waters by the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition (1902–1904) underWilliam S. Bruce. The most famous traverse of this frigid sea was made near the end of theImperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition in 1916 by SirErnest Shackleton and five others in the adapted lifeboatJames Caird. They leftElephant Island, just off the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, and reachedSouth Georgia Island two weeks later. It was a distance of nearly 900 miles and the sun was only sighted for navigational fixes four times during the entire journey.
InArgentina, the Scotia Sea is considered part of an area known as theMar Argentino, and several territories claimed but not occupied by Argentina, such as South Georgia and the Falkland Islands, lie within this region.
The islands bordering the Scotia Sea are rocky and partly covered in ice and snow year round. Despite these harsh conditions, however, the islands do support vegetation. They have been described as theScotia Sea Islands tundraecoregion, which includes South Georgia, the volcanic South Sandwich Islands, and the South Orkneys in the Scotia Sea, as well as the remoteSouth Shetland Islands near the Antarctic Peninsula and the small isolated volcano calledBouvet Island. All these islands lie in the cold seas below theAntarctic Convergence. These areas supporttundra vegetation consisting ofmosses,lichens, andalgae, while seabirds, penguins, and seals feed in the surrounding waters.
Map of the Scotia Sea. Toponyms: Undersea relief, maritime, nearby lands, countries and cities. Isobath interval: 2000 m
Although theScotia Arc islands have a harsh climate and have never been permanently occupied, they have long been used as a base for fishing and seal hunting. Wildlife on these remote islands is threatened byintroduced species, especially on South Georgia, where even large animals, including (now removed)reindeer, have been brought to the islands. Further damage to ecosystems results from overfishing. South Georgia, the South Sandwich Islands, and Bouvet Island are protected as nature reserves, withBird Island, South Georgia, being asite of special scientific interest. The seals are further protected by international agreements, and fur seal populations are recovering.
