In the challenger Deep, there are small single celled creatures that have been observed building home using materials that sink down there from by the ocean surface. According to this article, the zone that they are in goes from 6 kilometers deep to the deepest parts of the Mariana Tench.
These little home builders are called foraminifera. Professor Andrew Gooday of the National Oceanography Centre, in Southamptom, says they use a varied range of particles that they glue or cement together with their own organic matter. Observations of these organisms had shown that there were parts of organisms associated with shallower waters, which surprised observers. They had also found some shells which were pitted. They examined some of these pitted shells and found that there had been pieces of minerals that used to fill those holes, and had dissolved. After seeing all of these signs, they were able to conclude that the foraminifera build shells and they use particles that fall from above to do it. This using of what falls from above was even compared to using manna which came down from heaven.
Do we need to explore more of the deep ocean?
Can humanity ever benefit from deep ocean research?
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