Nazi Bombs, Torpedoes and Mines: How Marine Life Flourishes on Discarded Weapons

In the brackish sea off the German coast sits a collection of Nazi bombs, torpedo heads and naval mines. Discarded from vessels at the end of the World War II and forgotten about, countless munitions have become matted together over the decades. They comprise a rusting layer on the low-depth, muddy ocean floor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western part of the Baltic Sea.

Over the decades, the wartime weapons was overlooked and forgotten about. A growing number of tourists flocked to the sandy beaches and tranquil sea for jetskiing, kite surfing and entertainment venues. Underwater, the munitions decayed.

We initially anticipated to see a barren area, with nothing living there because it was all poisoned, explains the lead researcher.

When the first scientists went looking to see what they were doing to the ecosystem, some of us anticipated finding a desert, with no organisms because it was all poisoned, says the lead researcher.

What they found amazed them. Vedenin recounts his colleagues shouting with surprise when the ROV first relayed pictures. That moment was a memorable occasion, he says.

Countless of sea creatures had settled on the explosives, developing a revitalized ecosystem richer than the ocean bottom around it.

This marine city was evidence to the tenacity of life. Truly remarkable how much marine organisms we find in areas that are supposed to be dangerous and risky, he states.

Over 40 sea stars had gathered on to one accessible chunk of TNT. They were living on steel casings, detonator compartments and carrying containers just a short distance from its dangerous content. Marine fish, crustaceans, anemones and bivalves were all found on the old munitions. You could compare it with a marine reef in terms of the amount of animal life that was there, notes Vedenin.

Remarkable Population Density

An mean of more than 40,000 organisms were dwelling on every square metre of the explosives, researchers documented in their study on the observation. The nearby seabed was much poorer in life, with only 8,000 organisms on every square metre.

It is surprising that objects that are meant to eliminate all life are attracting so much life, states Vedenin. It's evident how the natural world adapts after a catastrophic event such as the second world war and how, in some way, marine life returns to the most hazardous locations.

Artificial Features as Marine Habitats

Artificial features such as shipwrecks, wind turbines, drilling platforms and pipelines can provide alternatives, compensating for some of the destroyed habitat. This research reveals that explosives could be equally advantageous – the bloom of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is probable to be found in different areas.

Between the late 1940s and 1948, 1.6 million tons of weapons were discarded off the German shoreline. Countless of individuals loaded them in vessels; a portion were placed in designated sites, the remainder just dumped during transport. This is the initial instance experts have recorded how ocean organisms has responded.

Global Instances of Marine Transformation

• In the United States, retired oil and gas structures have turned into reef ecosystems
• Submerged vessels from the World War I have become homes for wildlife along the Potomac in Maryland
• Military vehicle parts that have become home to coral off Asan beach in the Pacific island

These areas become even more crucial for organisms as the oceans are increasingly depleted by fishing, bottom trawling and boat mooring. Shipwrecks and explosive disposal locations practically function as refuges – they are not national parks, but virtually any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is banned, states Vedenin. As a result a lot of marine species that are usually scarce or diminishing, such as the cod fish, are prospering.

Coming Considerations

Anywhere armed conflict has taken place in the recent history, adjacent waters are often containing munitions, states Vedenin. Millions of tons of volatile compounds lie in our oceans.

The positions of these weapons are inadequately documented, in part because of national borders, classified defense data and the situation that archives are buried in historic archives. They create an explosion and security danger, as well as danger from the ongoing leakage of hazardous substances.

As the German government and different states start removing these artifacts, scientists aim to protect the marine communities that have developed nearby. In the Bay of Lübeck explosives are presently being extracted.

It would be wise to replace these iron structures remaining from munitions with certain more secure, various harmless objects, like possibly man-made habitats, says Vedenin.

He presently wishes that what occurs in the Bay of Lübeck creates a model for replacing structures after weapon clearance elsewhere – because also the most harmful armaments can become scaffolding for ocean ecosystems.