Like a script from a horror movie giant and potentially deadly blobs of both dead and living organic matter are on the rise in the Mediterranean Sea. These mucus like blobs, called a mucilage, are part of a naturally-occurring process in the sea but according to National Geographic with rising sea temperatures they are getting larger and more frequent and carry bacteria and viruses, including potentially deadly E. coli in their midst. Scientists have identified these blobs start out as simple marine snow but over time attract other hitchhikers and pieces of organic matter creating a snowball effect until they are large sheets or blobs. These blobs were first documented way back in 1729 and scientists note the relative shallowness and stillness of the sea as the reason these blobs are able to form. This is definitely a part of nature we don’t want to replicate in my tank!
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