Sea bottom bacteria on ocean-bottom rocks are plentiful and diverse than before thought, appearing to feed on the planet's oceanic outside, according to results of a revise reported in the journal Nature.

The conclusions pose intriguing questions about ocean chemistry with the co-evolution of land and life.

Previously considered a barren plain spotted with hydrothermal vents, the seafloor's rocky regions become visible to be teeming with microbial life, say scientists initial the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution during Woods Hole, Massachusetts, University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California, and further institutions.