Each zone has characteristic life and conditions. This vast, pelagic area is further divided into Deep Sea Zones. The oceans cover about 71 percent of Earth’s surface, and about 90 percent of that is considered deep water (below about 600 feet). The ocean is a vast body of water that stretches from tropical waters to frigid polar regions, from shallow seas to deep ocean trenches. Could it have started through chemosynthesis? This new find made us ask questions about how life arose on planet earth. It was previously thought that life depended on photosynthesis, converting sunlight to energy. The most amazing part of this find was that science had found organisms whose primary energy source was not the sun. These bacteria then supported large tube worms, crustaceans, and multitudes of other organisms. The answer came from the discovery that bacteria in the vents were able to convert hydrogen sulfide coming out of the vents into energy. So what was this abundance sustaining itself on? The only food that would have been available was through dead animals floating down from the surface waters. Previously, scientists believed that little lived at these extreme depths. Other deep sea animals include the infamous giant squid, black swallower, tripod fish.ĭeep Sea vents: Chemosynthesis, the basis of life in the deep seaĪ remarkable find when submersibles starting probing the deep sea was the presence of extraordinary abundance of life around mid-ocean vents. In many ways the deep sea is about eat or be eaten. A great example of this is the deep-sea anglerfish. Because food is scarce in this zone most animals have large gaps to ingest any possible food.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |