Seascape ecology in the vicinity of a Blake Ridge cold seep
Systematic surveys of the distribution of epibenthic megafaunal species relative to one another and to environmental variables in the deep sea can lead to inferences and testable hypotheses regarding factors that influence their distributions. Here we use a seascape approach to provide insight into...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-11-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Marine Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2023.1198226/full |
| _version_ | 1797635774268571648 |
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| author | Kellie Johnson Avery Taylor Annika Socha Ellie Barkyoumb Koichi Nakamura Carl L. Kaiser Christopher R. German Dana R. Yoerger Cindy Lee Van Dover |
| author_facet | Kellie Johnson Avery Taylor Annika Socha Ellie Barkyoumb Koichi Nakamura Carl L. Kaiser Christopher R. German Dana R. Yoerger Cindy Lee Van Dover |
| author_sort | Kellie Johnson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Systematic surveys of the distribution of epibenthic megafaunal species relative to one another and to environmental variables in the deep sea can lead to inferences and testable hypotheses regarding factors that influence their distributions. Here we use a seascape approach to provide insight into the character and spatial extent of the influence of a chemosynthetic seep on the distribution of epibenthic megafauna and the nature of transition zones (ecotones). Faunal distributions were determined from georeferenced images of the seabed collected during a systematic survey (~ 400 m x 400 m) by the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Sentry in the vicinity of a newly discovered methane bubble plume on the Blake Ridge Diapir. The survey area was found to include both seep and non-seep habitats. The sphere of influence of seep productivity on the surrounding benthic megafaunal assemblage was limited—on the order of 10’s of meters—based on ecotone analysis. Small but detectable redox anomalies in the water column (5 m above bottom) in the study area occurred on a similar horizontal scale. Distributions of background megafaunal taxa were non-random for many morphotypes and included both positive and negative associations between morphotypes and the seep habitat. Subtle variations in depth (<6 m) correlated with distributions of seep-associated vesicomyid clams, which occupy shallow depressions in the seabed. The seep habitat itself, comprising a patchy mosaic of megafaunal sub-communities (e.g., clam bed, mussel bed, background soft-sediment bathyal taxa) and transition zones, was at least as diverse as the surrounding non-seep habitat and contributes seep endemic morphotypes to regional biodiversity. While seep productivity may support prey fields for deep-diving beaked whales, any relationship between the seeps and whale feeding areas remains intriguing speculation. Like many other regions of the deep sea, Blake Ridge South has accumulated marine litter, including litter likely originating from scientific endeavors. The suite of observations and analyses deployed here underscore the importance of seep habitats in enriching regional biodiversity, provide a glimpse of the non-random complexity of species distributions from a seascape perspective, and establish ecological baselines against which future studies may measure natural and anthropogenic changes in the seascape. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T12:25:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d2e94b74c4ac4633a2a3d8f657bc99c4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-7745 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T12:25:06Z |
| publishDate | 2023-11-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Marine Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-d2e94b74c4ac4633a2a3d8f657bc99c42023-11-06T10:24:30ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Marine Science2296-77452023-11-011010.3389/fmars.2023.11982261198226Seascape ecology in the vicinity of a Blake Ridge cold seepKellie Johnson0Avery Taylor1Annika Socha2Ellie Barkyoumb3Koichi Nakamura4Carl L. Kaiser5Christopher R. German6Dana R. Yoerger7Cindy Lee Van Dover8Division of Marine Science and Conservation, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Beaufort, North Carolina, NC, United StatesDivision of Marine Science and Conservation, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Beaufort, North Carolina, NC, United StatesDivision of Marine Science and Conservation, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Beaufort, North Carolina, NC, United StatesDivision of Marine Science and Conservation, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Beaufort, North Carolina, NC, United StatesThe Research Institute of Geology and Geoinformation, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba, JapanApplied Ocean Physics and Engineering, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, MA, United StatesGeology and Geophysics, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, MA, United StatesApplied Ocean Physics and Engineering, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, MA, United StatesDivision of Marine Science and Conservation, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Beaufort, North Carolina, NC, United StatesSystematic surveys of the distribution of epibenthic megafaunal species relative to one another and to environmental variables in the deep sea can lead to inferences and testable hypotheses regarding factors that influence their distributions. Here we use a seascape approach to provide insight into the character and spatial extent of the influence of a chemosynthetic seep on the distribution of epibenthic megafauna and the nature of transition zones (ecotones). Faunal distributions were determined from georeferenced images of the seabed collected during a systematic survey (~ 400 m x 400 m) by the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Sentry in the vicinity of a newly discovered methane bubble plume on the Blake Ridge Diapir. The survey area was found to include both seep and non-seep habitats. The sphere of influence of seep productivity on the surrounding benthic megafaunal assemblage was limited—on the order of 10’s of meters—based on ecotone analysis. Small but detectable redox anomalies in the water column (5 m above bottom) in the study area occurred on a similar horizontal scale. Distributions of background megafaunal taxa were non-random for many morphotypes and included both positive and negative associations between morphotypes and the seep habitat. Subtle variations in depth (<6 m) correlated with distributions of seep-associated vesicomyid clams, which occupy shallow depressions in the seabed. The seep habitat itself, comprising a patchy mosaic of megafaunal sub-communities (e.g., clam bed, mussel bed, background soft-sediment bathyal taxa) and transition zones, was at least as diverse as the surrounding non-seep habitat and contributes seep endemic morphotypes to regional biodiversity. While seep productivity may support prey fields for deep-diving beaked whales, any relationship between the seeps and whale feeding areas remains intriguing speculation. Like many other regions of the deep sea, Blake Ridge South has accumulated marine litter, including litter likely originating from scientific endeavors. The suite of observations and analyses deployed here underscore the importance of seep habitats in enriching regional biodiversity, provide a glimpse of the non-random complexity of species distributions from a seascape perspective, and establish ecological baselines against which future studies may measure natural and anthropogenic changes in the seascape.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2023.1198226/fullBlake Ridge seepcooccurrencenetwork analysisecotonespecies distributionssphere of influence |
| spellingShingle | Kellie Johnson Avery Taylor Annika Socha Ellie Barkyoumb Koichi Nakamura Carl L. Kaiser Christopher R. German Dana R. Yoerger Cindy Lee Van Dover Seascape ecology in the vicinity of a Blake Ridge cold seep Frontiers in Marine Science Blake Ridge seep cooccurrence network analysis ecotone species distributions sphere of influence |
| title | Seascape ecology in the vicinity of a Blake Ridge cold seep |
| title_full | Seascape ecology in the vicinity of a Blake Ridge cold seep |
| title_fullStr | Seascape ecology in the vicinity of a Blake Ridge cold seep |
| title_full_unstemmed | Seascape ecology in the vicinity of a Blake Ridge cold seep |
| title_short | Seascape ecology in the vicinity of a Blake Ridge cold seep |
| title_sort | seascape ecology in the vicinity of a blake ridge cold seep |
| topic | Blake Ridge seep cooccurrence network analysis ecotone species distributions sphere of influence |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2023.1198226/full |
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