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Hypersea and the land ecosystem

M A McMenamin1, D L McMenamin

  • 1Department of Geography and Geology, Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA 01075-1484.

Bio Systems
|January 1, 1993
PubMed
Summary

Land ecosystems exhibit higher productivity and diversity than marine ecosystems due to

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Biogeochemistry
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • Land ecosystems surpass marine ecosystems in primary productivity and species diversity per unit area.
  • Eukaryotic life actively manages nutrient-rich fluid flow on land, influencing geochemical cycles.
  • This directed fluid flow and associated organisms are termed 'Hypersea'.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To introduce and define the concept of 'Hypersea' as a biogeophysical entity.
  • To explain the high productivity and diversity of terrestrial ecosystems compared to marine ones.
  • To elucidate the origins of coal deposits and the long-term dominance of land biota.

Main Methods:

  • Paleontological analysis of Lower Devonian fossils (Rhynie Chert).
  • Conceptual framework development for 'Hypersea' and 'hypermarine upwelling'.
  • Comparative analysis of land and marine ecosystem productivity and diversity over geological timescales.

Main Results:

  • Identified fossil evidence of Hypersea interactions in the Lower Devonian (approx. 400 million years ago).
  • Proposed 'hypermarine upwelling' as a mechanism driving coal formation.
  • Established Hypersea as a key factor in the long-standing ecological dominance of land biota.

Conclusions:

  • Hypersea, a novel biogeophysical entity, explains the superior productivity and diversity of land ecosystems.
  • The concept of hypermarine upwelling provides insights into coal genesis and terrestrial ecosystem evolution.
  • Eukaryotic fluid management on land has had profound evolutionary and geochemical impacts.

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