Originally posted by hippomchippo
The problem is pressure, we KNOW there can't be very many deep sea fish because it simply wouldn't work due to the pressure, this is shown when we
actually do go deep and find only a few species down there.
I beg to differ. There are NUMEROUS uncounted fish down there. The only thing that you don't see living down there is mammals, birds, and
reptiles.
Because of the vast expanses of the sea floor, it APPEARS that life is sparse and struggling to endure; but in fact, the sea urchins, starfish, and
other echinoderms are the most numerous species on the planet, estimated to outnumber even insects!
The rat tails and sharks (among the hundreds of other fish species) that exist down there have survived in balance with their environment for millions
of years. None would survive long if brought to the surface (in fact many wouldn't survive the trip) and we have yet to fully explore more than 3-5%
of the seafloor.
There is a huge number of mid-ocean animals that live in the deep and migrate to the twilight zone to feed on plankton and other life nightly - it's
the largest biomass migration on the planet (some trillion tons of it) and it takes place every night. Some of those may also visit the sea floor (or
get close).
I think you underestimate the ability of life to adapt.
PS - Shouldn't Green Peace be scrutinizing the Gulf of Mexico at this point?
[edit on 6-7-2010 by Maxmars]