| Moving away from shore, the ocean floor rapidly drops below
the depth of light penetration. Insects may be unable to find suitable places
for oviposition. This fact has led to the hypothesis that ocean depth limits insect colonization of the sea. But, evidence of deep-dwelling insects from Lake Baikal, Russia seem to refute this belief. Specifically, chironomid larvae (aquatic midges) have been found at about 1,300 meters below the lake surface! The deepest diving mammal, the sperm whale, can manage dives only to about 1,000 meters. A human without diving gear can survive a trip to over 120 meters (400 feet!!) |
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| Can a human really dive to 133 meters without a scuba tank and live? Yes, at least some extraordinarily fit (and maybe some extraordinarily stupid) people have dove this far. Check out the sport of free-diving at a free-diving web site, complete with photos and strange, but true, stories (click here to see the photos and learn more). Use your browsers "back" button to return here and pursue the last two hypotheses. |
So an unassisted human can look for insects to a depth of 400 feet and in a submersible, humans can look even deeper. In freshwater, insects have been found at below 1,300 meters... depth alone probably does not explain the absence of insects in the deep ocean. Maybe the low level of oxygen explains the absence of insects in the open ocean. Find out with hypothesis three. |
A
The Second Letter Of the Password