[The Mucus Mansion: How Giant Larvaceans Are Fighting Ocean Plastic]-[Mucus Mansions & Pooping Plastic]

Wow in the World · B1 · 2017-09-07

📋 Summary

The Mucus Mansion: Nature's Solution to Ocean Plastic

In this episode of Wow in the World, hosts Mindy and Guy Raz embark on an eccentric, submarine-building adventure to explore a fascinating biological phenomenon: the "giant larvacean" and its potential role in mitigating the global crisis of ocean plastic pollution.

The Plastic Crisis

The hosts begin by highlighting the alarming state of our oceans. Mindy notes that humans toss "8 billion metric tons of plastic into the ocean" every year, which is equivalent to "a dump truck's worth of plastic every single minute." This waste, ranging from grocery bags to microscopic particles, poses a lethal threat to marine life, as animals often mistake these materials for food. As plastic floats, it is broken down by "the waves and the sun" into "teeny tiny, microscopic plastic particles," making them nearly impossible to track or remove.

The Giant Larvacean: A Tiny Hero

To address this, the hosts turn their attention to the giant larvacean, a "blob-like jelly-looking filter feeder." Despite being only about the size of a "pinky finger," this creature possesses a unique mechanism for survival and environmental interaction: the "mucus mansion."

This "mucus mansion" is a complex, three-dimensional structure that the larvacean spins to act as a net. As a filter feeder, the creature sifts through enormous amounts of water—up to "80 liters of water in an hour"—to capture food. During this process, the larvacean inadvertently consumes microscopic bits of plastic.

Scientific Breakthroughs and Future Applications

Researchers at the "Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute" have been studying how these creatures process plastic. In a surprising observation, the scientists discovered that after consuming the plastic, the larvaceans "pooped them out." These "tiny poop pellets containing the plastic" sink to the bottom of the ocean, effectively removing the debris from the water column where it would otherwise be consumed by other marine life.

This discovery has sparked interest in the field of "biomimicry," where engineers look to nature to solve human problems. The research team is now exploring the possibility of a "futuristic plastic eating vacuum" inspired by the giant larvacean’s efficient filtering system. While this does not solve the entire problem of surface-level pollution, it offers a promising, nature-based approach to managing the microscopic plastic waste that permeates our oceans.

Conclusion

Through their whimsical journey, Mindy and Guy Raz illustrate that even the smallest creatures can hold the keys to monumental environmental solutions. By studying the "mucus mansion" of the giant larvacean, scientists are gaining a better understanding of how nature cycles pollutants and how we might innovate to protect the "deepest, deep of the deep" for future generations.

🎯Key Sentences

That'll do it.

You are never going to get there.

Just saying.

She doesn't mess around.

Beauty really does come in all shapes and sizes.

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📝Key Phrases

music to your ears

get on with the show

work out a few kinks

feast your eyes on

up and running

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📖 Transcript

Grownups, Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to Wow in the World early and ad-free right now.

Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or Wondery Kids Plus on Apple Podcasts.

Hey, Wowzer fans, Mindy here.

And before we start the show, I gotta let you know that this November, with a special new episode featuring our friends at Circle Round and Terrestrials on Radiolab for Kids,

And don't miss when Elmo from Sesame Street stops by Wow in the World to make us all belly laugh on November 24th.

Oh, but that's not all, Reg.

Or study on the web version →