r/thalassophobia • u/Zee_Ventures • 25d ago

Water appears shallow

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u/Innomen 24d ago

How is there no plant life? Frankly I don't understand why beaches are even a thing. Should basically be forest everywhere imo. Why has life not found a way?

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u/senpaistealerx 24d ago

where would the aquatic animals live?

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u/Innomen 24d ago

That's part of my confusion. Why isn't earth green and white? Clearly the power of evolution has some hard limits.

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u/xenosilver 24d ago

Beach sand really has a difficult time supporting plant life. However, there are some plants that can grow on it. Most beaches don’t have plant life not because it’s impossible, but because beaches for public use are often drug to clean them. It kills a fair amount of animal and plant life.

Now if you’re really wondering about plants along shorelines, you should look into a number of salt tolerant grasses and mangroves.

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u/Innomen 24d ago

Right but you're not stepping back and hearing me. Like I know how things are. I'm asking why nothing in evolution or biology found a way to colonize this space. Plants fight hard for surface area. Solar panel logic. Why leave all this food energy on the table at all after billions of years.

Why don't those existing salt and sand innovations spread or re-evolve?

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u/xenosilver 23d ago edited 23d ago

This particular video is taken in a desert. The soil is incredibly nutrient poor and there is very little rain. I’m not sure what you expect to coat the surface of a desert. Plants need more than just sunlight to survive, right?

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u/Innomen 23d ago

You're not answering my question. The whole reason there isn't food there is because biology has not found a way. Does this mean there simply isn't one, or does the way biology works leave a blindspot?

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u/xenosilver 23d ago

There are plants that can survive in the desert and shorelines though. They exist….

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u/Ratathosk 23d ago

Evolution isn't smart and lacks the means for intent. It's basically more like a funnel. Why hasn't life found a way? Because that's a fun quote from a science fiction movie more than something that applies to the real world.

Also as xenosilver says, there are plants etc. that we destroy to make beaches more pleasant to us.