Oldest Known Marine Plant Found in Ancient Ocean Beds

baltic sea

In a significant breakthrough, researchers from multiple institutions, including Kiel, London, Oldenburg, and Davis, California, have developed a groundbreaking genetic clock.

This innovative tool has enabled them to accurately date a massive seagrass clone found in the Baltic Sea to around 1,400 years ago, specifically from the Migration Period.

This exceptional discovery marks the first time such an ancient marine plant has been effectively dated using molecular techniques.

Researchers believe this genetic clock could be applied to a broad range of clonal species, encompassing corals, algae, and even terrestrial plants like reeds and raspberries.

Dr. Thorsten Reusch, a leading marine ecology professor at GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, elaborates that vegetative reproduction, an alternative mode of reproduction prevalent in various kingdoms including animal, fungal, and plant species, is vital for the survival of clonal organisms.

Unlike sexual reproduction, vegetative reproduction generates genetically similar but not identical offspring through branching or budding.

Interestingly, previous research conducted by the GEOMAR team demonstrated that somatic mutations accumulate in vegetative offspring, akin to the process in cancer.

Using this mutation accumulation, Prof. Reusch and his team, which includes Dr. Benjamin Werner from Queen Mary University London and Prof. Iliana Baums from the Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity at the University of Oldenburg, have devised a molecular clock capable of determining the precise age of seagrass clones with high accuracy.

Professor Reusch and his team applied this genetic clock to a global dataset of Zostera marina (eelgrass) encompassing regions from the Pacific to the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.

Remarkably, they found clones in Northern Europe that were several centuries old, paralleling the age of massive oak trees.

The oldest clone identified, a 1,402-year-old from the Baltic Sea, has withstood harsh and fluctuating environmental conditions.

This longevity surpasses the ages of well-known long-lived species like the Greenland shark and the Ocean Quahog.

This study fills a critical knowledge gap about the age and lifespan of clonal species in marine habitats, where many essential habitat-forming species like corals and seagrasses reproduce vegetatively.

In these species, the continuous production of small, genetically similar but physically separated shoots or fragments from the parent clone decouples age and size.

The new findings provide a tool to date these clones with unparalleled accuracy, which is crucial for advancing conservation genetics.

The research benefited significantly from the availability of a high-quality eelgrass genome.

Additionally, a seagrass clone maintained in culture tanks at the University of California, Davis, for 17 years provided a crucial calibration point.

Dr. Benjamin Werner and Prof. Iliana Baums highlight the interdisciplinary collaboration between cancer evolutionary biologists and marine ecologists as instrumental in achieving these insights.

The team anticipates that other seagrass species and clones, such as those from the genus Posidonia, which extend over massive areas, could exhibit even greater ages.

These future studies aim to investigate these potentially ancient species further.

Posted by Thomas Callaghan

I hold a degree in Marine Biology and have spent years conducting fieldwork, from the coral reefs of the Pacific to the deep trenches of the Atlantic. My work focuses on understanding the intricate relationships within marine ecosystems and the impact of human activity on these fragile environments.

1 comment

  1. It’s really cool to see ancient plants studied this way. Shows how much history is hidden under the sea. Kudos to the team for this discovery!

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