News Oceans

Fleeting dead zones can muck with seafloor life for decades

Effects of low-oxygen conditions could offset some human-caused warming, but at a price

Black Sea

SUFFOCATING SEA  The effects of low-oxygen conditions on seafloor communities linger even when oxygen returns, suggests a new study comparing oxygen and ecological activity in the Black Sea (shown).

RussAsanov/iStockphoto

By Thomas Sumner

- More than 2 years ago

Short bouts of suffocating conditions can desolate swaths of seafloor for decades, new research suggests.