Sixty feet deep in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, ten miles off the coast of Alabama, lies a forest of Cyprus trees thousands of years old. The trees grew on dry ground over 50,000 years ago according to scientists, but eventually, sea levels rose and hundreds of tree stumps and logs the size of trucks were covered by sediments. The sediments blocked oxygen from getting to the fragile wood, preserving them down the millennia. Then, Katrina. The storm that devastated New Orleans made its mark not only on the cultural landscape of the Gulf Coast, but also on the sea bed. The winds and waves stirred up those deep layers of sediment, sweeping them away to reveal the waterlogged remnants of the forest. Fish and other sea creatures discovered the site first, making homes among the stumps. Fishermen followed the fish, and some decided to get a closer look at what was attracting their catch to that spot. The few fishermen that knew of the site took a select few scuba divers out to the spot, keeping the location a guarded secret. Only recently have some scientists gained access to the site.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Jul 2013 22:42:34 +0000
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