Nazi Bombs, Torpedo Heads and Mines: The Way Ocean Creatures Flourishes on Abandoned Armaments

In the slightly salty sea off the German coast sits a graveyard of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and mines. Dumped from vessels at the end of the World War II and neglected, numerous explosives have accumulated over the decades. They form a rusting carpet on the low-depth, muddy ocean floor of the Lübeck Bay in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the years, the wartime weapons was overlooked and forgotten about. A increasing amount of tourists traveled to the sandy beaches and calm waters for jetskiing, kiteboarding and amusement parks. Beneath the surface, the munitions eroded.

We initially expected to see a desert, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, says the lead researcher.

When the initial researchers went searching to see what they were affecting to the marine environment, some of us thought they would find a desert, with no life because it was all contaminated, explains the lead researcher.

What they observed surprised them. Vedenin remembers his team members reacting with shock when the submersible first transmitted footage. This was a remarkable experience, he says.

Numerous of marine animals had established habitats on the munitions, forming a regenerated habitat richer than the ocean bottom surrounding it.

This underwater metropolis was testament to the persistence of life. It is actually astonishing how much marine organisms we find in locations that are expected to be hazardous and harmful, he explains.

More than 40 starfish had piled on to one exposed chunk of explosive material. They were dwelling on metal shells, detonator compartments and storage boxes just a short distance from its dangerous content. Fish, crabs, anemones and mussels were all discovered on the discarded explosives. It's similar to a coral reef in terms of the amount of animal life that was there, says Vedenin.

Unexpected Creature Concentration

An mean of more than 40,000 organisms were dwelling on every meter squared of the munitions, experts documented in their research on the finding. The nearby seabed was much sparser, with only 8,000 individuals on every meter squared.

It is surprising that items that are meant to destroy all life are drawing so much life, states Vedenin. You can see how the natural world evolves after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in some way, marine life finds its way to the most risky locations.

Artificial Features as Marine Habitats

Artificial constructions such as sunken vessels, offshore windfarms, oil rigs and undersea pipes can offer substitutes, compensating for some of the destroyed habitat. This research shows that weapons could be equally positive – the proliferation of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is probable to be found elsewhere.

Between 1946 and 1948, 1.6m tonnes of weapons were dumped off the German coast. Thousands of people placed them in vessels; a portion were dropped in specific areas, others just thrown overboard en route. This is the initial instance researchers have documented how marine life has reacted.

Global Instances of Marine Transformation

• In the US, retired energy installations have become coral reefs
• Submerged vessels from the World War I have become environments for marine life along the Potomac River 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 valuable for marine life as the seas are increasingly denuded by commercial fishing, bottom trawling and anchoring. Shipwrecks and explosive disposal locations essentially function as refuges – they are not national parks, but virtually any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is prohibited, explains Vedenin. Therefore a numerous of marine species that are typically rare or decreasing, such as the cod fish, are flourishing.

Future Issues

Wherever military conflict has taken place in the recent history, nearby oceans are typically containing weapons, says Vedenin. Millions of tons of dangerous substances remain in our oceans.

The positions of these weapons are poorly recorded, partly because of national borders, classified defense data and the reality that archives are stored in historical records. They pose an explosion and safety hazard, as well as danger from the ongoing emission of hazardous substances.

As Germany and additional nations start removing these remains, scientists hope to protect the marine communities that have established around them. In the Bay of Lübeck weapons are presently being extracted.

Researchers recommend substitute these iron structures originating from munitions with some less dangerous, some safe structures, like possibly concrete structures, states Vedenin.

He presently aspires that what transpires in the Bay of Lübeck establishes a model for substituting habitats after explosive extraction elsewhere – because including the most harmful explosives can become scaffolding for ocean ecosystems.