So unless you’ve been living under a rock these days, you know about global warming.
The big culprits in global warming are greenhouses gases – stuff like carbon dioxide, methane, ozone and water vapor. These gases bog up in the atmosphere, essentially making a shell around the world that re-reflects light back onto us. You know, sort of like a greenhouse.
As you also know, a big part of fixing the planet up revolves around dealing with all these greenhouses gases. Little did we know that other critters are playing their part too. Some are even pooping their help.
Check this out – a group of scientists have been studying sperm whale poo. Don’t blame them, we all have our vices.
Sperm whales eat deep in the ocean, but return to the surface to … do their business. When they poop, they shower their diarrhea-like poo all over the floating phytoplankton. These are aquatic plants that take up carbon as they grow. The good guys.
Because the whale poo is so nutrient and iron-rich, the phytoplankton get a natural fertilizer. They flourish and grow, reducing the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. By a lot.
It’s been estimated that sperm whales contribute 40 tons of iron to the light receiving zone of the ocean. Because this is where the plants are, they help draw down nearly half a million tons of carbon. This means that whales and other large marine animals are some of the most environmentally beneficial creatures on the planet.
Now the bad news. Whale populations are down – way down – from their historical numbers, somewhere between 1-10 percent of their original population. The fewer whales we have, the more global warming is going to be a problem.
Just another shining reminder that the Earth has mechanisms we’re only beginning to understand. If we thought less about our sushi plates and more about the big picture, maybe we’d start getting the hint?
Also, this makes me wonder — if poo is useful, can we really call it waste?
