A group of scientists achieved an extraordinary feat that seemed impossible: reviving the dormant stages of algae that sank about 7,000 years ago at the bottom of the Baltic Sea. This event took place despite centuries of inactivity, without light or oxygen.
According to the study published in The ISME Journal, this research, conducted within the collaborative research project PHYTOARK, aimed to understand the best future for the Baltic Sea by analyzing various previous paleoecological research.
It is known that many organisms, whether bacteria or even mammals, have the ability to enter a state similar to “sleep mode”, also known as latency. This is often used as a survival tool, allowing species to survive periods characterized by unfavorable environmental conditions.
When this happens, animals enter a state of reduced metabolic inactivity in which, typically, special latency stages with particular structures are formed, functioning as internally stored energy reserves. This same scheme can be seen in species like phytoplankton, which live in water and perform photosynthesis.
The bottom of the Baltic Sea, considered a “time capsule”
According to the phytoplankton expert from the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research (IOW) in Warnemünde, sediment deposits on the seafloor act as a kind of “time capsule” that holds valuable information related to ecosystems and biological communities that existed in the past, such as zombie algae.
This research approach has an unusual name: “resurrection ecology.” This term refers to the latent stages that can be assigned to specific periods in the history of the Baltic Sea, according to researchers.
Particularities of the Baltic Sea
Being home to zombie algae is not the only peculiarity of the Baltic Sea, as it has several curiosities, including:
– Salinity: It is the second largest brackish sea in the world after the Black Sea, with lower salinity than other seas.
– Depth: It is shallow, and the water temperature is lower than in other seas.
– Ice: Every year, the surface of the Baltic Sea is at least partially covered with ice.
– Connection to the ocean: Its connection to the Atlantic Ocean is narrow, so only small amounts of ocean saltwater enter it.
– Biodiversity: Its fish fauna is a mix of marine and freshwater species. High eutrophication, resulting from the pollution that this sea has been suffering for years, causes the oxygen present to decrease to levels almost incompatible with life.
– Dark waters: The waters of the Baltic Sea are well known for their high content of colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM), which strongly influences their optical properties.
Source: Europapress.
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