Underwater forest, A group of scuba divers found a 52,000-year old underwater forest off the coast of Alabama.Ben Raines, one of the divers and executive director of the Weeks Bay Foundation, and his team discovered this ancient underwater forest which was left untouched as revealed by its well-preserved bald cypress trees.
The forest was sitting quietly 60 feet below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico and extends up to 0.8 kilometers in area. The researchers wanted to explore it as soon as possible since it is slowly deteriorating because of the marine animals that burrow the trees.
Despite its recent revelation, the ancient underwater secret was initially found in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina. A local fisherman first discovered it when he noticed that there were many fish in the area. This was then shared to an owner of a dive shop who happened to be Raines friend. His friend kept it a secret because he would not want divers going to the area searching for artifacts and shipwrecks which may damage the forest.
In 2012, the dive owner shared the secret to Raines. He then went to the area and found the untouched underwater forest. It was home to fish, crustaceans, sea anemones, and other marine animals that depend on the bald cypress trees for shelter and survival.
Raines worked with other scientists including Grant Harley from the University of Grant Harley and Kristine DeLong of Louisiana State University to know more about this untouched underwater forest. Harley studied the rings of the trees and used carbon isotopes to know how old the trees were. His analysis revealed that the forest is 52,000 years old.
The team had requested permission from authorities to do further research on this ancient underwater forest. They were wondering how the trees manage to survive for over 50,000 years. Bald cypress trees if well-maintained could live over 1,300 years.
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