An undersea submersible has spotted crabs, worms, and fish thriving on the surfaces of Second World War explosives once thought to be toxic to marine life. At a former weapons dump site in the Baltic Sea, scientists found more creatures living on top of warheads than in the surrounding seabed.
“We were prepared to see significantly lower numbers of all kinds of animals,” said study author Andrey Vedenin from the Senckenberg Research Institute in Germany. “But it turned out the opposite.”
Past conflicts have left their mark on the world’s oceans, Mr. Vedenin explained. German waters alone contain about 1.6 million tons (1.5 million metric tonnes) of dumped weapons, mostly from the two world wars in the 20th century. These dumped relics can include nuclear and chemical remnants as well as explosives such as TNT.
This discovery is the latest example of wildlife flourishing in polluted sites. Previous research has shown that shipwrecks and former weapons complexes can teem with biodiversity.
In the new study, researchers filmed networks of anemones, starfish, and other underwater life in the Bay of Lübeck off the coast of Germany. They were found living on pieces of V-1 flying bombs used by Nazi Germany during the war.
“Normally, one does not study the ecology of bombs,” said University of Georgia ecologist James Porter, who was not involved in the research.
The study was published in the journal *Communications Earth & Environment*.
### Why Do Sea Creatures Make Their Home on Contaminated Weapons?
Scientists believe the creatures are drawn to the hard surfaces provided by the warheads, which are in short supply in the Baltic Sea.
“The seafloor is mainly a flat bed of mud and sand because stones and boulders were fished out for construction in the 1800s and 1900s,” Mr. Vedenin said. Moreover, the area is fairly isolated from human activity due to the chemicals present, creating a somewhat protective bubble for these creatures to thrive despite some toxic trade-offs.
Scientists now hope to calculate how much contamination the sea life has absorbed.
Another important next step, according to Mr. Porter, is to observe what happens after the creatures settle and whether they are capable of reproducing in this environment.
### Nature’s Resilience
Studies like these showcase how nature can take advantage of human leftovers, flipping the script to survive, said marine conservation biologist David Johnston from Duke University.
Mr. Johnston recently mapped sunken First World War ships that have become habitats for wildlife along the Potomac River in Maryland.
“I think it’s a really cool testimony to the strength of life,” he said.
This unexpected thriving of marine life on war relics provides new insights into both the resilience of ecosystems and the complex legacy of human conflict on the natural world.
https://www.breakingnews.ie/world/scientists-find-marine-life-thriving-on-second-world-war-explosives-in-sea-1811078.html
