Talking Plants

The Moon (2020) Reading Kath Kenny's article in the most recent issue of The Monthly  about the dire consequences of ice melt in Antarctica, where 90% of the world's ice is currently stored, I was momentarily distracted by an algal conundrum.  Biogeochemist, Delphine Lannuzel, was quoted as saying her research team were 'surprised' at finding phytoplankton (small algae) growing deep in the ocean, 'in the dark'. Everyone knows algae (and plants) need light to photosynthesise. The article moved swiftly onto the implications to our planet of ice melting due to climate change, as it should, but there was a later passing mention of the famous 24-hour daylight in summer, and 24-hour night in winter, once you are within the Antarctic Circle. Which made me think that even phytoplankton nearer the surface would have to survive complete, or almost complete, darkness for weeks or months at a time. When I was young post-doctoral fellow at The University of Melbourne, I bec...