World War II Bombs, Torpedoes and Naval Mines: How Ocean Creatures Prosper on Abandoned Weapons

In the brackish sea off the Germany's shoreline sits a collection of World War II explosives, torpedo heads and mines. Dumped from barges at the conclusion of the World War II and neglected, thousands explosives have accumulated over the decades. They comprise a decaying carpet on the low-depth, silty seafloor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the years, the explosive stockpile was ignored and forgotten about. A growing number of visitors flocked to the coastal areas and tranquil sea for jetskiing, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Below the waves, the munitions eroded.

We initially expected to see a lifeless zone, with no organisms because it was all toxic, explains a scientist.

When the first scientists went searching to see what they were doing to the ecosystem, the team thought they would find a barren area, with nothing living there because it was all toxic, states a scientist.

What they discovered surprised them. Vedenin recounts his scientists exclaiming in amazement when the ROV first sent the images back. It was a memorable occasion, he says.

Numerous of sea creatures had made their homes on the explosives, developing a regenerated marine community denser than the seabed surrounding it.

This ocean community was proof to the resilience of marine life. Truly remarkable how much marine organisms we observe in locations that are expected to be toxic and risky, he explains.

Over 40 starfish had piled on to one exposed fragment of explosive material. They were living on metal shells, detonator compartments and transport cases just centimetres from its explosive filling. Marine fish, crustaceans, sea anemones and mussels were all found on the historic weapons. It's similar to a marine reef in terms of the amount of creatures that was inhabiting the area, says Vedenin.

Unexpected Creature Concentration

An average of more than forty thousand organisms were dwelling on every square metre of the weapons, experts wrote in their research on the finding. The adjacent region was much less diverse, with only eight thousand individuals on every meter squared.

It is surprising that objects that are designed to eliminate everything are hosting so much marine organisms, states Vedenin. One can observe how the natural world adjusts after a major disaster such as the World War II and how, in certain respects, life establishes itself to the most dangerous places.

Artificial Features as Ocean Environments

Man-made structures such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, drilling platforms and undersea pipes can offer substitutes, compensating for some of the lost habitat. This research shows that explosives could be comparably advantageous – the bloom of life on those in the Bay of Lübeck is expected to be found in different areas.

Between the late 1940s and 1948, 1.6 million tons of munitions were disposed of off the Germany's shoreline. Numerous of workers loaded them in boats; a portion were deposited in specific areas, the remainder just thrown overboard en route. This is the first time experts have recorded how marine life has adapted.

Worldwide Instances of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, retired energy installations have turned into reef ecosystems
• Shipwrecks from the World War I have become homes for wildlife along the Potomac River in the state of Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become habitat to reef-building organisms off Asan in the Pacific island

These areas become even more important for wildlife as the marine environments are increasingly depleted by commercial fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Shipwrecks and weapons dump sites effectively act as protected areas – they are not official reserves, but virtually any kind of human activity is banned, explains Vedenin. Therefore a numerous of organisms that are otherwise scarce or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are flourishing.

Future Considerations

Anywhere military conflict has occurred in the recent history, nearby oceans are often containing munitions, states Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of volatile compounds lie in our oceans.

The locations of these munitions are insufficiently recorded, partially because of national borders, restricted defense data and the reality that documents are buried in old files. They present an detonation and security risk, as well as danger from the ongoing emission of poisonous compounds.

As Germany and additional nations start removing these remains, researchers plan to safeguard the habitats that have established in their vicinity. In the Bay of Lübeck munitions are presently being removed.

We should replace these metal carcasses left from weapons with some less dangerous, various harmless objects, like possibly artificial reefs, says Vedenin.

He presently wishes that what occurs in Lübeck creates a precedent for substituting structures after weapon clearance in different areas – because including the most damaging armaments can become scaffolding for ocean ecosystems.