Revolutionary new research shows that sharks and rays lay their eggs in warm deep see Methane seeps where volcanic activity heats the water and creates a full-fledged food chain.
It is nothing new in itself that life thrives around deep-sea volcanoes, far away from sunlight and photosynthesis.
An eco system of its own is created where bacteria nourishes on methane and sulphur instead of oxygen and sunlight. Clams and worms feed on bacteria and the question is whether the juvenile sharks and rocks make it too?
For us humans, this is big news. That there would be animals high up the food chain that partly feed in a system that is not driven by photosynthesis. Strange.
For sharks and rays, this is however no news. Palaeontologists have found fossils from tapeworms that lived in similar underwater volcanoes and have also found the fossil shark eggs there too. At least 200 million years old.
As a human being, you may well feel a bit paltry facing these numbers
It certainly is amazing!?
