First animals oxygenated the ocean, study suggests

[knocker]

The evolution of the first animals may have oxygenated the earth's oceans – contrary to the traditional view that a rise in oxygen triggered their development.

 

New research led by the University of Exeter contests the long held belief that oxygenation of the atmosphere and oceans was a pre-requisite for the evolution of complex life forms.

 

The study, published today in the leading journal Nature Geoscience, builds on the recent work of scientists in Denmark who found that sponges – the first animals to evolve – require only small amounts of oxygen.

 

http://www.sciencecodex.com/first_animals_oxygenated_the_ocean_study_suggests-129305