The land plants that developed the first penetrating roots systems were the land plants. It was approximately 400 million years agoThis could have caused a series of mass ocean extinctions.
The expansion of plants onto the terra firma was It’s a huge moment in Earth’s historyCompletely restructuring the terrestrial biosphere. According to researchers from Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) in the US and University of Southampton in the UK, the consequences for our oceans might have been just as profound.
During the Devonian PeriodThe marine environment was subject to numerous mass extinction events over its entire history, which spans from 360 million to about 420 million years ago. Nearly 60% of all marine genera were extinct in a particularly devastating event at the end.
According to some scientists, these losses could have been caused by trees.
Plant life began to look for water sources as they moved further away from them. Their roots would eventually begin to pull phosphorous from underground minerals.
After the tree dies, the nutrients in its biomass are more easily dissolved into groundwater, and eventually, the sea.
As root systems became more complex and moved further in the inland, more phosphorus was dumped into the marine environment during the Devonian.
These nutrient pulses are now on the verge of being destroyed. This information is based upon the chemical analysis stones from ancient lakes and coastlines in Greenland or Scotland.
“Our analysis suggests that tree roots evolved from oceans that were contaminated with too many nutrients, leading to massive algal growth.” explains IUPUI earth scientist Gabriel Filippelli.
“These destructive and rapid algae blooms would have depleted the oceans of oxygen, leading to catastrophic mass extinction events.”
Although scientists have long suspected that tree roots may be responsible for Devonian mass extinctions, this new study is the first to determine the magnitude and timings of phosphorus deliveries from land to the water.
Researchers found that there was a wide range of phosphorus levels at different sites. However, the majority of cases indicate that there were significant and rapid changes in the environment during the Devonian.
It is clear that the increased phosphorus levels in oceans coincide with major extinction events of the past, indicating that the crisis was caused by this nutrient.
Although peak levels of phosphorus exportedation didn’t necessarily coincide at all sites studied, the authors state that this is normal. They found that the colonization of land by plants did not occur in a single, punctuated event. Explain“But likely staggered geographically. Peaking at different times in different parts Euramerica or other parts of Devonian Earth”
There were many marine extinctions that occurred over millions of years. The land’s phosphorus was depleted at different rates according to where it was. Although the processes that lead to nutrient absorption, plant development, and decay are complicated, there seems to be a trend. Researchers found that phosphorus delivery to lakes increased during dry periods. This suggests that tree roots could become dehydrated if there is not enough water, which would lead to the release of their nutrients.
Trees aren’t as harmful to marine life today as they were in the early days of their existence. The soil is much deeper on land, allowing mineral bound phosphorus to hide further than roots and allow organic molecules containing the phosphorus cycle more easily through the ecosystem.
However, the current events are similar to those hundreds of millions years ago.
The Devonian saw atmospheric carbon dioxide and oxygen reach similar levels to recent years. However, these changes were due in large part to the slow advancement of plant life rather than rapid human activity.
It doesn’t take tree roots to pollute the ocean with organic waste or fertilizers. It is pumped there from us. It’s triggering “dead areas”Many important marine and lake environments are affected by low oxygen levels.
“These insights into the devastating effects of natural events in ancient times may serve as warning signs about similar conditions that can arise from human activity today.” Says Fillipelli.
The study was published in GSA Bulletin.
