The Plankton Chronicles - Diatoms

About this video

Life in glass houses.

Producing a quarter of the oxygen we breath these unicellular organisms are champions of photosynthesis. They're also extremely old; with the earliest diatoms appearing over 200 million years ago, during the time the dinosaurs ruled the land.

Early forms of these organisms were made from combinations of yeast-like-cells and algae, with many of their remnants forming the basis of our fossil fuels. Today, whilst still retaining features of animal cells, they resemble photosynthetic powerhouses, which in the polar regions are capable of huge blooms visible from space.

View this video on the Plankton Chronicles website.