OS33A-2006
The Role of Seep Ecosystems in Distribution Patterns of Deep-Sea Megafauna
Wednesday, 16 December 2015
Poster Hall (Moscone South)
Jamie Wagner1, Zachary McKelvey1, Alixandra Jacobson2, Elizabeth Hoerauf1 and Cindy Lee Van Dover3, (1)Duke University, Durham, NC, United States, (2)University of Wisconsin Law School, Madison, WI, United States, (3)Duke University Marine Laboratory, Marine Science and Conservation, Beaufort, NC, United States
Abstract:
One of the key questions about methane seeps is the sphere of influence on the surrounding area they provide in terms of habitat structure, food sources, and geochemical environment. Understanding the distribution of megafauna relative to the seep environment is an initial step toward understanding these ecosystem properties. Systematic photo surveys using AUV Sentry were conducted at 4 methane seeps at the Blake Ridge Diapir and a seep at Cape Fear Diapir. Distributions of dominant seep features (bivalves, carbonates, bacterial mats) were used to define the active seep site. Geospatial mapping indicates that non-seep-endemic taxa (those not hosting chemoautotrophic endosymbionts) either avoid (e.g., sea urchins, certain sea cucumbers), are attracted to (e.g., squat lobsters, cake urchins) or show no distributional bias to (e.g., sea stars, certain fish) the presence of a seep. Further investigation into these faunal relationships may improve understanding of services that seeps provide to the larger ocean ecosystem.
