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Prince Edward Islands - Environment

The system is characterized as sub-Antarctic and as with many such islands, the Prince Edward Islands (PEIs) are host to millions of seabirds and seals that use the islands as a refuge for breeding and moulting. Rainfall is approximately 2500 mm a year, though a warming and drying of the islands has been documented. There has been a southward shift in the frontal systems of the Southern Ocean, which is postulated to have an impact on the hydrodynamics at the islands, potentially altering their productivity by affecting the occurrence of island associated blooms. Recent declines in open ocean productivity for this sector of the Southern Ocean have also been documented from remotely sensed ocean colour data, which may also affect the production at the islands in the future.