The struggle for life in the Dead Sea sediments: Necrophagy as a survival mechanism
Monday, March 25, 2019 - 13:00
in Paleontology & Archaeology
The Dead Sea is not completely dead. The most saline lake on Earth (more than 10 times saltier than sea water) is a harsh environment where only salt-loving microbes from the Archaea domain, known as extreme halophiles, are able to survive. Geologists are interested in the evolution of this lake and have been investigating its subsurface to reconstruct its biological and geological history. The salty sediments of the Dead Sea are still full of mysteries, in particular regarding the life forms harbored there, commonly called the deep subsurface biosphere.