🔗 Share this article Nazi Bombs, Torpedo Heads and Mines: How Marine Life Flourishes on Dumped Weapons In the slightly salty waters off the German shoreline lies a wasteland of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and mines. Thrown off vessels at the end of the World War II and forgotten about, thousands weapons have fused into clusters over the decades. They comprise a decaying layer on the shallow, muddy ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic. Over the years, the Nazi arsenal was ignored and neglected. A increasing amount of visitors came to the sandy beaches and tranquil sea for jetskiing, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the munitions decayed. Researchers expected to see a barren area, with no organisms because it was all toxic, explains Andrey Vedenin. When the first scientists went searching to see what they were doing to the marine environment, researchers thought they would find a barren area, with no organisms because it was all poisoned, explains the lead researcher. What they observed astonished them. Vedenin recalls his colleagues exclaiming in amazement when the ROV first transmitted footage. That moment was a great moment, he says. Numerous of ocean life had established habitats among the munitions, creating a revitalized ecosystem richer than the ocean bottom surrounding it. This marine city was evidence to the tenacity of life. It is actually astonishing how much life we discover in places that are expected to be dangerous and harmful, he explains. More than 40 starfish had piled on to one accessible piece of explosive material. They were living on metal shells, fuse pockets and storage boxes just centimetres from its dangerous content. Marine fish, crabs, anemones and bivalves were all found on the old munitions. It resembles a coral reef in terms of the amount of creatures that was inhabiting the area, notes Vedenin. Surprising Creature Concentration An average of more than forty thousand creatures were dwelling on every meter squared of the munitions, researchers documented in their research on the observation. The surrounding area was much less diverse, with only 8,000 individuals on every square metre. It is surprising that items that are designed to kill everything are drawing so much life, explains Vedenin. You can see how nature adjusts after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in certain respects, marine life establishes itself to the most risky locations. Man-made Structures as Marine Habitats Artificial constructions such as sunken vessels, wind turbines, drilling platforms and pipelines can provide alternatives, replacing some of the removed habitat. This research shows that explosives could be equally positive – the explosion of life on those in the Bay of Lübeck is likely to be found in different areas. Between the late 1940s and the post-war period, 1.6m tons of munitions were discarded off the German shoreline. Numerous of individuals placed them in boats; some were deposited in specific sites, others just discarded at sea en route. This is the first time researchers have recorded how marine life has adapted. Worldwide Instances of Ocean Transformation In the US, retired drilling platforms have become marine habitats Submerged vessels from the first world war have become homes for creatures along the Potomac River in Maryland Tank tracks that have become habitat to reef-building organisms off Asan in Guam These places become even more valuable for organisms as the oceans are increasingly denuded by fishing, bottom trawling and boat mooring. Sunken ships and munitions areas essentially serve as refuges – they are not official reserves, but virtually any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is prohibited, says Vedenin. Consequently a numerous of marine species that are usually uncommon or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are flourishing. Future Issues Wherever armed conflict has occurred in the recent history, nearby oceans are usually containing explosives, states Vedenin. Many millions of tons of explosive material rest in our marine environments. The positions of these explosives are poorly mapped, partly because of national borders, classified armed forces records and the fact that records are stored in historical records. They present an explosion and security hazard, as well as danger from the ongoing release of toxic chemicals. As Germany and additional nations embark on clearing these remains, researchers aim to preserve the marine communities that have established in their vicinity. In the Lübeck Bay explosives are presently being cleared. Researchers recommend substitute these steel remains remaining from weapons with some more secure, some non-dangerous objects, like perhaps artificial reefs, states Vedenin. He currently wishes that what occurs in the Bay of Lübeck creates a model for substituting habitats after explosive extraction elsewhere – because including the most damaging weaponry can become scaffolding for new life.
In the slightly salty waters off the German shoreline lies a wasteland of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and mines. Thrown off vessels at the end of the World War II and forgotten about, thousands weapons have fused into clusters over the decades. They comprise a decaying layer on the shallow, muddy ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic. Over the years, the Nazi arsenal was ignored and neglected. A increasing amount of visitors came to the sandy beaches and tranquil sea for jetskiing, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the munitions decayed. Researchers expected to see a barren area, with no organisms because it was all toxic, explains Andrey Vedenin. When the first scientists went searching to see what they were doing to the marine environment, researchers thought they would find a barren area, with no organisms because it was all poisoned, explains the lead researcher. What they observed astonished them. Vedenin recalls his colleagues exclaiming in amazement when the ROV first transmitted footage. That moment was a great moment, he says. Numerous of ocean life had established habitats among the munitions, creating a revitalized ecosystem richer than the ocean bottom surrounding it. This marine city was evidence to the tenacity of life. It is actually astonishing how much life we discover in places that are expected to be dangerous and harmful, he explains. More than 40 starfish had piled on to one accessible piece of explosive material. They were living on metal shells, fuse pockets and storage boxes just centimetres from its dangerous content. Marine fish, crabs, anemones and bivalves were all found on the old munitions. It resembles a coral reef in terms of the amount of creatures that was inhabiting the area, notes Vedenin. Surprising Creature Concentration An average of more than forty thousand creatures were dwelling on every meter squared of the munitions, researchers documented in their research on the observation. The surrounding area was much less diverse, with only 8,000 individuals on every square metre. It is surprising that items that are designed to kill everything are drawing so much life, explains Vedenin. You can see how nature adjusts after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in certain respects, marine life establishes itself to the most risky locations. Man-made Structures as Marine Habitats Artificial constructions such as sunken vessels, wind turbines, drilling platforms and pipelines can provide alternatives, replacing some of the removed habitat. This research shows that explosives could be equally positive – the explosion of life on those in the Bay of Lübeck is likely to be found in different areas. Between the late 1940s and the post-war period, 1.6m tons of munitions were discarded off the German shoreline. Numerous of individuals placed them in boats; some were deposited in specific sites, others just discarded at sea en route. This is the first time researchers have recorded how marine life has adapted. Worldwide Instances of Ocean Transformation In the US, retired drilling platforms have become marine habitats Submerged vessels from the first world war have become homes for creatures along the Potomac River in Maryland Tank tracks that have become habitat to reef-building organisms off Asan in Guam These places become even more valuable for organisms as the oceans are increasingly denuded by fishing, bottom trawling and boat mooring. Sunken ships and munitions areas essentially serve as refuges – they are not official reserves, but virtually any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is prohibited, says Vedenin. Consequently a numerous of marine species that are usually uncommon or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are flourishing. Future Issues Wherever armed conflict has occurred in the recent history, nearby oceans are usually containing explosives, states Vedenin. Many millions of tons of explosive material rest in our marine environments. The positions of these explosives are poorly mapped, partly because of national borders, classified armed forces records and the fact that records are stored in historical records. They present an explosion and security hazard, as well as danger from the ongoing release of toxic chemicals. As Germany and additional nations embark on clearing these remains, researchers aim to preserve the marine communities that have established in their vicinity. In the Lübeck Bay explosives are presently being cleared. Researchers recommend substitute these steel remains remaining from weapons with some more secure, some non-dangerous objects, like perhaps artificial reefs, states Vedenin. He currently wishes that what occurs in the Bay of Lübeck creates a model for substituting habitats after explosive extraction elsewhere – because including the most damaging weaponry can become scaffolding for new life.