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Research indicates that the earliest forms of animal life developed in the oceans between 520 and 540 million years ago, where their decomposition action on the organic matter of the seabed caused an increase in carbon dioxide (CO2) and a reduction of oxygen in the atmosphere.
At the same time that oxygen levels in the water were decreasing, the increase in CO2 increased the temperature and caused a global warming that complicated the survival of these animals over the next 100 years. . This study, developed by the British universities of Exeter and Leeds, together with the Belgians of Antwerp and the University of Brussels Vrije, highlights the experience of the 1960s. Like worms in a garden, the tiny creatures from the bottom of the sea were removed, they mixed and recycled dead organic matter, a process known as bioturbation, "says one of the authors, Tim Lenton , University of Exeter
. Analysis of the lower layers of the sea revealed that the bioturbation process altered very little of these sediments, although the decrease in oxygen was important.
"This means that the marine animals of the time were not very active and they moved very deep on the seabed. At first glance, these two observations did not fit, "said Simon Poulton, of the University of Leeds.
According to the main author of the study, Sebastiaan van de Velde, of the University of Vrije, the explanation came that is, he said, that the first bioturbation process "had a huge impact."
With the The last piece of this puzzle in place, scientists were then able to design a mathematical model of Earth more than 500 million years ago to examine the climate changes that caused these primitive life forms.
" The evolution of these small animals reduces oxygen in the oceans and oceans. the atmosphere, but also increased the two atmospheric levels of CO2 that caused global warming. We knew this had happened during this historic period, but not that it had been driven by animals, "added Benjamin Mills, of the University of Leeds
The Researchers warned that, now, human action was recreating similar circumstances to the anoxia of the oceans 500 million years ago, which could then cause mbadive extinctions of species. [19659009] Source: EFE
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