Professor David Aldridge, co-author and also of the University of Cambridge, said: “Invasive, non-native species are one of the biggest threats to Antarctica’s biodiversity. Its native species have been isolated for the last 15 to 30 million years.

“They may also have economic impacts, via the disruption of fisheries.”

Professor Lloyd Peck, another co-author and a researcher at the British Antarctic Survey, said: “Biosecurity measures to protect Antarctica, such as cleaning ships’ hulls, are currently focused on a small group of recognised ‘gateway ports’.

“With these new findings, we call for improved biosecurity protocols and environmental protection measures to protect Antarctic waters from non-native species, particularly as ocean temperatures continue to rise due to climate change.”

The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, also warned that the currently “pristine” Antarctic could become more hospitable to life from other oceans because of climate change.

Global warming is happening more quickly at the poles than in more equatorial climates, with the Antarctic thought to be warming three times faster than the global average.