On a small yacht off the coast of the Mediterranean island of Malta, Marlon Clark held up a grizzled root of the seagrass Posidonia oceanica to admire its potential. His bright orange anorak ruffled in the breeze as the beaming 29-year-old pointed out a khaki patch on the root, smaller than a thumbnail. Clark was fascinated. What looked like the “moss of the ocean” was actually an animal. “It’s just weird because, on land, it’s very obvious what’s an animal and what’s a plant. I feel like when you go into the ocean, there’s stuff that just doesn’t look like either of those,” he said. “It feels like you’re going to a different planet.”
在地中海岛国马耳他海岸附近的一艘小型游艇上，马龙•克拉克(Marlon Clark)举起一根粗糙的地中海海神草(Posidonia oceanica)根部，欣赏着它的潜力。这位29岁的年轻人身穿亮橙色防风夹克，在微风中衣角飘扬，他指着根部上一块比指甲盖还小的卡其色斑点，满脸兴奋。克拉克对此着迷。看起来像“海洋的苔藓”的东西，其实是一种动物。“这很奇怪，因为在陆地上，什么是动物、什么是植物都很明显。但我觉得当你进入海洋时，有些东西看起来既不像动物，也不像植物，”他说，“感觉就像去了另一个星球。”