Nazi Bombs, Torpedo Heads and Naval Mines: The Way Ocean Creatures Thrives on Discarded Armaments
In the slightly salty sea off the Germany's coast lies a wasteland of Nazi bombs, torpedo heads and mines. Thrown off vessels at the end of the second world war and forgotten about, numerous weapons have become matted together over the years. They form a decaying carpet on the low-depth, silty ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western tip of the Baltic Sea.
Over the decades, the Nazi arsenal was overlooked and neglected. A increasing amount of tourists came to the sandy beaches and calm waters for water sports, kiteboarding and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the weapons deteriorated.
Some of us thought to see a lifeless zone, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, states Andrey Vedenin.
When the initial researchers went searching to see what they were doing to the ecosystem, some of us thought they would find a desert, with no life because it was all toxic, says the lead researcher.
What they observed surprised them. Vedenin remembers his team members reacting with shock when the underwater vehicle first sent the images back. This was a remarkable experience, he says.
Thousands of ocean life had settled amid the weapons, creating a regenerated ecosystem richer than the sea floor around it.
This ocean community was testament to the persistence of marine life. It is actually remarkable how much life we find in areas that are expected to be hazardous and risky, he says.
In excess of 40 starfish had piled on to one exposed chunk of explosive material. They were living on metal shells, detonator compartments and transport cases just centimetres from its volatile core. Marine fish, crabs, anemones and mussels were all found on the historic weapons. You could compare it with a reef ecosystem in terms of the amount of animal life that was there, notes Vedenin.
Surprising Population Density
An average of more than forty thousand creatures were residing on every meter squared of the munitions, experts documented in their research on the finding. The adjacent region was much less diverse, with only eight thousand individuals on every meter squared.
It is paradoxical that objects that are intended to destroy all life are drawing so much marine organisms, states Vedenin. One can observe how nature evolves after a catastrophic event such as the World War II and how, in certain respects, life returns to the most hazardous places.
Artificial Features as Ocean Habitats
Artificial structures such as sunken vessels, offshore windfarms, drilling platforms and undersea pipes can provide replacements, restoring some of the lost marine environment. This research demonstrates that explosives could be equally beneficial – the bloom of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is likely to be found in different areas.
Between the late 1940s and the post-war period, 1.6m tonnes of weapons were discarded off the German shoreline. Countless of workers placed them in vessels; a portion were dropped in allocated sites, the remainder just discarded at sea while traveling. This is the first time experts have recorded how ocean organisms has reacted.
Worldwide Examples of Ocean Adaptation
- In the United States, decommissioned energy installations have transformed into coral reefs
- Submerged vessels from the first world war have become homes for wildlife along the Potomac in the state of Maryland
- Military vehicle parts that have become home to reef-building organisms off Asan beach in the Pacific island
These areas become even more important for organisms as the seas are increasingly stripped by commercial fishing, seafloor dredging and anchoring. Shipwrecks and weapons dump sites essentially function as sanctuaries – they are not national parks, but nearly any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is restricted, states Vedenin. Therefore a lot of marine species that are usually rare or decreasing, such as the Baltic cod, are prospering.
Coming Considerations
Anywhere military conflict has taken place in the past 100 years, nearby oceans are often strewn with weapons, explains Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of dangerous substances rest in our marine environments.
The sites of these weapons are insufficiently documented, partially because of international boundaries, secret armed forces records and the reality that documents are buried in historical records. They pose an explosion and safety risk, as well as threat from the ongoing emission of hazardous substances.
As the German government and different states start removing these artifacts, scientists aim to safeguard the ecosystems that have formed in their vicinity. In the Lübeck Bay weapons are already being removed.
Researchers recommend substitute these metal carcasses left from munitions with some less dangerous, some harmless objects, like maybe man-made habitats, says Vedenin.
He now wishes that what happens in Lübeck creates a example for replacing habitats after weapon clearance in different areas – because even the most damaging armaments can become scaffolding for marine organisms.
