They’re relatives of the pond skaters or water striders that zip spread-eagled across the surface of ponds and lakes.
Except they skate over the open ocean, eating plankton at the surface.
There are only five species of sea skaters, all belonging to the Halobates group.
Of all the millions of insect species, these five are the only ones to live out at sea.
Now, Goldstein has discovered that one sea skater Halobates sericeus actually benefits from what most people would regard as an ecological disaster – the circling mass of plastic and debris known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
It’s not just about sea skaters either.
There’s a large community of sea-dwellers that also grow on floating objects, including microbes, algae and bryozoans.
They might also benefit from the accumulating plastics in the water.
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I like animals and I'm also studying them
2024-04-13
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