Particle.news

Download on the App Store

Antarctic Zooplankton Migrations Store Carbon Equivalent to 55 Million Cars Annually

Integrating this biological pump into climate models could refine forecasts of future warming

Un nuevo estudio revela que el zooplancton, un diminuto organismo marino, ayuda a combatir el cambio climático al migrar a las profundidades del océano Antártico y almacenar carbono/Foto: Flickr/Wikimedia Commons
Image
Estos animales suelen venderse como alimento para acuarios

Overview

  • In spring copepods, krill and salps feed on phytoplankton at the surface then migrate below 500 meters, transporting an estimated 65 million tonnes of carbon each year
  • Internal fat reserves act like a battery that releases carbon slowly during deep dives, sequestering CO₂ for decades or centuries
  • Scientists quantified this seasonal pump using data dating back to the 1920s and recent 2025 expeditions aboard the Sir David Attenborough
  • Warming ocean temperatures, shifting stratification and growing krill fisheries threaten to weaken zooplankton populations and their carbon-storage role
  • Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, British Antarctic Survey and other institutions are urging the integration of this mechanism into climate models to refine warming projections