Plants know how to swim to avoid enemies

A tiny plankton in the ocean is able to swim to another location when enemies appear near them.

Susanne Menden-Deuer, a marine expert at the University of Rhode Island in the US, and her colleagues observed Heterosigma akashiwo, a microalgae, in the lab. Livescience reported.

"We found that H. akashiwo algae have the ability to control their movement in water and they often move towards light and nutrients. In addition, they move whenever the zooplankton, the enemy of This is the first time we have discovered a plant capable of doing so, " Menden-Deuer said.

The team thinks that H. akashiwo algae have a way to detect the characteristic odor of those who want to eat them. If they reach safe waters, their numbers will double after two days. But if there is no place to hide, they will try to "reclaim" the enemy within 24 hours. This phenomenon can help scientists find a new way to explain the rapid explosion in the number of phytoplankton on the sea. Because phytoplankton are always directed towards light and nutrients during the escape process, millions of organisms will move towards light-rich waters and nutrients, creating huge planktonic creatures.

"One of the mysteries of giant algae blooms is that they suddenly appear. In many cases we cannot explain the occurrence of giant algae by the growth rate and the abundance of nutrients. "The behavior of fleeing algae predators can help us explain the mechanism of formation of large algae , " Menden-Deuer commented.