Early Silurian ‘algal meadows’ of Anticosti Island, eastern Canada: an analogue to modern sea grass meadows?

Research on Anticosti Island, eastern Canada, reveals that Early Silurian thallophytic algal meadows may have functioned as significant carbon sinks, analogous to modern sea-grass meadows or kelp forests. This discovery suggests that these ancient algae played a crucial role in assimilating CO2 during the early Palaeozoic era, when complex life was predominantly marine and lacked the diversity of today's ecosystems. The study, based on well-preserved fossil records from Anticosti, proposes that thallophytic algae were major primary producers, contributing substantially to carbon sequestration despite their soft-bodied nature and sporadic fossil record.

Wang, Y., Jin, J., Zhan, R., & Copper, P. (2014). Early Silurian ‘algal meadows’ of Anticosti Island, eastern Canada: an analogue to modern sea grass meadows? Geology Today, 30(2), 67–70. Portico. https://doi.org/10.1111/gto.12043