Today, the ratio of carbon to nitrogen and phosphorus in marine organic matter is relatively constant. But this ratio probably varied during the Earth's history as a consequence of changes in the phytoplankton community and ocean oxygen levels.
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Planavsky, N. The elements of marine life. Nature Geosci 7, 855–856 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo2307
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo2307
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