‘Frankenstein shorelines’ of floating plastic create weird new alien ecosystem in Pacific
Huge islands of floating plastic in the Pacific have spawned a bizarre new ecosystem where coastal creatures are breeding in the deep sea, according to new research
Floating plastic islands have triggered an unusual transformation in the middle of the Pacific Ocean(Image: Ocean Voyages Institute/Cover Images)
Bizarre Frankenstein shorelines made of floating plastic have triggered an unusual transformation in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, spawning a new ecosystem. Marine scientists have discovered that the infamous Great Pacific Garbage Patch – a swirling vortex of human rubbish between California and Hawaii – is no longer just an eyesore.
Instead, tens of thousands of tons of indestructible trash have bonded together to create artificial, floating landmasses where creatures are adapting their ways of life to survive. For generations, experts believed the open ocean and shallow coastal waters were two completely different worlds.
Beach-dwelling critters were expected to stick to rocks and piers, while deep-sea species ruled the open waves.
While the odd storm could wash a log out to sea, it was always assumed any coastal hitchhikers would quickly perish in the brutal, unforgiving environment of the deep ocean. The first clue that the rules of nature had changed came after the devastating 2011 Great East Japan Tsunami. Monstrous waves dragged docks, vessels and heaps of plastic out to sea.
For six years, the debris drifted across the globe before washing up in America and Hawaii – and scientists were stunned to find Japanese coastal critters still clinging to life. To investigate whether the shore-dwellers were building permanent colonies, researchers launched an expedition into the heart of the rubbish patch.
Reaching into the sea, they hauled in 105 chunks of floating trash, including slime-covered bottles, buoys, crates and tangled fishing nets. Back in the laboratory, they found the plastic was absolutely crawling with spineless invertebrates. Scientists identified 46 different types of creatures, ranging from crabs and barnacles to anemones and amphipods.
Statistics revealed that 80 per cent of the species found on the rubbish actually belonged on a beach, not the middle of the ocean. In fact, creepy-crawlies were present on a staggering 98 per cent of the debris.
Coastal and deep-sea species were forced to share the same cramped, floating plastic islands. Nets and ropes were particularly packed with life, acting as breeding grounds. Surprisingly, the creatures are even breeding and thriving in their new synthetic homes.
Scientists discovered pregnant crabs and amphipods bursting with eggs, alongside multi-generational families of sea anemones.
Tiny babies, teenagers and fully grown adults were all living together on the same pieces of trash, proving they are reproducing out in the wild ocean.
Many of the resilient shore-dwellers have adapted by effectively cloning themselves, ensuring their young don’t need to drift away into the abyss.
Experts have dubbed the new phenomenon the “neopelagic” community – a brand-new, human-caused ecosystem where coastal invaders are colonising the deep sea.
By choking our oceans with indestructible plastic, humans have fundamentally re-written the laws of nature, providing permanent islands for creatures that should never be there.
Publishing their findings in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution, the researchers said the oceanic environment and floating plastic habitat are “clearly hospitable to coastal species.”
They said the beach-dwelling critters can “survive, reproduce, and have complex population and community structures in the open ocean.”
The team added: “The plastisphere may now provide extraordinary new opportunities for coastal species to expand populations into the open ocean and become a permanent part of the pelagic community, fundamentally altering the oceanic communities and ecosystem processes in this environment.”
With plastic waste expected to increase significantly over the next few decades, experts believe a steady source of rubbish will sustain the freakish new ecosystem for a long time to come.
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