Look: Hidden fossils reveal a microscopic creature that may be resilient to climate change

Today’s climate crisis is unprecedented thanks to human activity.

But historical climate fluctuations help researchers gauge how rising greenhouse gas levels will have a domino effect on modern ecosystems.

Similar cycles in Earth’s past show that as oceans acidify, vital organisms die off.

But a new report this week in Science shows that some may have been more resilient than we previously thought.

Coccolithophores may be at the bottom of the food chain, but they play a vital role in regulating ocean CO2 levels.

They make up algal blooms and they form calcified shells called coccoliths.

When less coccolithophore fossils are present at a certain past time period, that indicates to researchers that less calcium carbonate was present in the ocean.

Instead of finding fossilized remains of coccolithophores themselves, the researchers unearthed plentiful imprints of their tiny, shelled bodies.

These newly discovered fossils reveal that there may not have been a period of time when populations of coccoliths dramatically dropped due to inhospitable ocean conditions.

However, that doesn’t mean the coccolithophores’ CO2-regulating properties will save the entire ocean ecosystem from acidification today.

Fossil records show that the habitats for larger organisms were depleted during acidification events, writes Uppsala University paleobiology professor Jorijntje Henderiks in a related Science commentary.

That may have had to do with the resilience of phytoplankton.

So while the past indicates that coccolithophores have a competitive advantage during climate change events, it might not be the best news for other creatures.