Scientists claim to have discovered that complex life may never have developed if it wasn’t for the demise of some of Earth’s first life-forms — the methane-producing microbes.

An international team has found that if the methane- producing microbes hadn’t died out then the Earth’s atmosphere may not have become oxygenated and the complex life would not have developed, the ‘Nature’ journal reported.

According to Prof Mark Barley of University of Western Australia, who led the team, only when the Earth began to cool — resulting in a reduction of nickel in oceans — were oxygen producing photosynthetic bacteria able to thrive.

“The nickel crash after its early boom 2.7 billion years ago helped make our planet habitable by complex life. Methane-producing microbes (methanogens) require the element nickel for their life and for the formation of methane.

“Prior to 2.7 billion years ago the global oceans were very nickel-rich and would have supported a huge methanogen population resulting in methane-rich atmosphere. When oceanic nickel contents declined after this time this would’ve caused a famine for methanogens and significantly reduced the methane content of the atmosphere,” he said.

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