Paleodictyon Nodosum: What could it be?

Paleodictyon Nodosum: What could it be?

The film Volcanoes of the Deep Sea depicts the journey of a geologist on the search for an organism called Paleodictyion Nodosum. The geologist found fossilized burrows in Spain that he believes were formed before the dinosaurs existed. This would mean that Paleodictyon Nodosum survived all the mass extinctions and has become the earth’s very own living fossil

In order to learn more about Paleodictyon Nodosum scientists took the ship, Atlantis, to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge System. They went to the Galapagos rift in the Atlantic Ocean and looked at hydrothermal vents. They found that there was a temperature differential and saw that underwater volcanoes were building elaborate structures. The interior of these structures has a temperature reaching to 700 degrees Fahrenheit and found that organisms were able to survive and live in these extreme conditions.

Geologists could not waste time looking at this spectacular structures when searching for Paleodictyon Nodosum. This is because it takes the submarine, Alvin, two hours to reach the sea floor. The pilot needs at least five hours to take the submarine on a round trip from ship to seafloor and back again. That means that scientists have only four hours to find their specimen and take samples

During their search, scientists found the lost city, which was a sculpture of lime stone that has methane chemistry. This area had been destroyed by lava flow and now flourished with organisms. Bacteria turn the methane into nutrients that shrimp use for food and energy. Scientist founds that shrimp actually have bacteria growing on them. Scientists also found microscopic hyperthermaphyle living in the walls of the largest vent, Houston Astrodome. These organisms are able to survive temperatures of 130 degrees Celsius. These microscopic organisms contain human DNA and hypothesize that life first started in the ocean of hydrothermal vents.

Still in the search for Paleodictyon Nodosum, geologists came across a dead vent. No one knows why vents turn off, but when they do all life dies. The geologists discovered burrow holes like the one found in Spain and this dead vent site. They hypothesize that Paleodictyon Nodosum survived because it is an efficient organisms that was able to survive on the spares nutrients because they farm bacteria. When geologists collected a sample of the burrow and cut into it Paleodictyon Nodosum was nowhere to be found.

I thought the film was interesting when they said scientists hypothesize that life could have started in the deep sea around hydrothermal vents with a single microscopic organism. My least favorite part about the film is that they built up the suspense of finding Paleodictyon Nodosum only to end with the disappointment of not finding the species. However, through my own research I found that Paleodictyon Nodosum is a “bit larger than a poker chip and that it thrives in restricted areas of Atlantic seabed (Broad).” Still Paleodictyon Nodosum has yet to be found. The only trace scientists have of this organism is a “six-sided patterns that look curiously like the hearts of Chinese checkers boards (Broad).” Dr. Seilacher said, “The earliest forms of Paleodictyon dated to the explosion of complex life in the Cambrian period some 500 million years ago. The animals began existence in shallow waters, he added, and gradually expanded into the dark habitats of the deep sea,” leaving the hexagonal tube shapes where ever it existed. The question is are these hexagonal tubes formed by the organisms body itself, or are they tunnel systems the species used to move around. I personally believe that Paleodictyon Nodosum is a worm of some sort and that the hexagonal fossils are the eminence of an elaborate tunnel system they used to get around. I think the tunnels ran so deep into the earth’s surface that they offered shelter and protection from mass extinction.

Broad, William J. "The New York Times Log In." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. 24 Aug. 2009. Web. 3 Oct. 2010.