This is Part 3 in the Marine Biology Series.
The Abyss is a truly inhospitable place. The pressure is crushing, the
water is highly acidic, freezing and above boiling point at the same
time. There is absolutely no sunlight and it's pitch dark. To top it all
off, hydrothermal vents spew toxic gases everywhere. Needless to say,
it's the last place you would expect to find life.
And yet, a huge dive
rsity
of life can be found in The Deep. Even when cut off from the source of
all life, the Sun, an entire ecosystem is able to thrive, almost
completely cut off from the rest of the world. Whilst ecosystems closer
to the surface rely on photosynthesis to survive, species that live near
hydrothermal vents rely on chemosynthesis, in which chemicals from the
Earth's interior provide the energy necessary. Microorganisms oxidize
the Hydrogen sulfide that is spewed out the vents, forming the basis of
the entire ecosystem.
Organisms living in such conditions must
also deal with highly toxic, acidic waters. They have evolved many
methods to survive these conditions. For example, some polychaete
tubeworms expel the toxins in their mucus.
The creatures must
also contend with pressures exceeding 3000psi (That's 200 times the
pressure on land). To survive this, vent species have no air spaces in
theirr body, to prevent being crushed.
It's interesting to note
that vent ecosystems appear to be living fossils. It is likely that
whilst the world on the surface suffered mass extinction after mass
extinction, life went on as usual in The Abyss.
Read more about this: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/
Image Source: http://faculty.cascadia.edu/
This is Part 3 in the Marine Biology Series.
The Abyss is a truly inhospitable place. The pressure is crushing, the water is highly acidic, freezing and above boiling point at the same time. There is absolutely no sunlight and it's pitch dark. To top it all off, hydrothermal vents spew toxic gases everywhere. Needless to say, it's the last place you would expect to find life.
And yet, a huge dive
The Abyss is a truly inhospitable place. The pressure is crushing, the water is highly acidic, freezing and above boiling point at the same time. There is absolutely no sunlight and it's pitch dark. To top it all off, hydrothermal vents spew toxic gases everywhere. Needless to say, it's the last place you would expect to find life.
And yet, a huge dive
rsity
of life can be found in The Deep. Even when cut off from the source of
all life, the Sun, an entire ecosystem is able to thrive, almost
completely cut off from the rest of the world. Whilst ecosystems closer
to the surface rely on photosynthesis to survive, species that live near
hydrothermal vents rely on chemosynthesis, in which chemicals from the
Earth's interior provide the energy necessary. Microorganisms oxidize
the Hydrogen sulfide that is spewed out the vents, forming the basis of
the entire ecosystem.
Organisms living in such conditions must also deal with highly toxic, acidic waters. They have evolved many methods to survive these conditions. For example, some polychaete tubeworms expel the toxins in their mucus.
The creatures must also contend with pressures exceeding 3000psi (That's 200 times the pressure on land). To survive this, vent species have no air spaces in theirr body, to prevent being crushed.
It's interesting to note that vent ecosystems appear to be living fossils. It is likely that whilst the world on the surface suffered mass extinction after mass extinction, life went on as usual in The Abyss.
Read more about this: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/
Image Source: http://faculty.cascadia.edu/
Organisms living in such conditions must also deal with highly toxic, acidic waters. They have evolved many methods to survive these conditions. For example, some polychaete tubeworms expel the toxins in their mucus.
The creatures must also contend with pressures exceeding 3000psi (That's 200 times the pressure on land). To survive this, vent species have no air spaces in theirr body, to prevent being crushed.
It's interesting to note that vent ecosystems appear to be living fossils. It is likely that whilst the world on the surface suffered mass extinction after mass extinction, life went on as usual in The Abyss.
Read more about this: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/
Image Source: http://faculty.cascadia.edu/
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