Marine ecology
An oceanic refuge for endangered species
The volcano Borealis, spewing out mud and methane. | Photo: G. Panieri et al. (2025)
It started with a chance discovery in the Barents Sea, north of Norway: At 390 metres below sea level, researchers found a so-called mud volcano that expels mud, water and gases, such as methane. The microbial mats growing there serve as a food source for an astonishing variety of organisms, such as endangered fish, says the molecular ecologist Inés Barrenechea Angeles. She is currently funded by the SNSF and is helping to identify the species of single-cell organisms. “This site is therefore absolutely worth protecting”, she says. Her team has meanwhile found further mud volcanoes nearby.
