Benthic Communities on the Mohn’s Treasure Mound: Implications for Management of Seabed Mining in the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge
The Mohn’s Treasure, described as an inactive sulfide mound, was discovered at 2,600-m depth on the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge (AMOR) in 2002. In 2015, we conducted the first biological survey of Mohn’s Treasure using remotely operated vehicle (ROV) photo transects and sampling. This site is covered by...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:9471c76235564a428cebd8b7fe0f270a 2023-05-15T14:51:08+02:00 Benthic Communities on the Mohn’s Treasure Mound: Implications for Management of Seabed Mining in the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge Eva Ramirez-Llodra Ana Hilario Emil Paulsen Carolina Ventura Costa Torkild Bakken Geir Johnsen Hans Tore Rapp 2020-07-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.00490 https://doaj.org/article/9471c76235564a428cebd8b7fe0f270a EN eng Frontiers Media S.A. https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmars.2020.00490/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745 2296-7745 doi:10.3389/fmars.2020.00490 https://doaj.org/article/9471c76235564a428cebd8b7fe0f270a Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 7 (2020) deep-sea benthos Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge inactive hydrothermal vent seabed mining vulnerable marine ecosystem Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 article 2020 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.00490 2022-12-31T09:20:42Z The Mohn’s Treasure, described as an inactive sulfide mound, was discovered at 2,600-m depth on the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge (AMOR) in 2002. In 2015, we conducted the first biological survey of Mohn’s Treasure using remotely operated vehicle (ROV) photo transects and sampling. This site is covered by a thick layer of fine sediments, where hard substratum is only visible as rocky outcrops on ridges. The observed benthic community was typical of Arctic bathyal systems. A total of 46 species (identified as morphospecies) were recorded, with densities varying from 12.2 to 31.6 ind.m–2. The two most abundant phyla were Porifera and Echinodermata. The sediment is dominated by fields of the stalked crinoid Bathycrinus carpenterii, whereas areas of hard substratum were characterized by high abundances of several sponge species and associated fauna. Interest in commercial exploration and exploitation of minerals from massive sulfide deposits is rising globally, and the AMOR is being targeted for mineral exploration within Norwegian waters. Gathering baseline ecological data from these poorly known sites is thus urgent and essential if robust resource management measures are to be developed and implemented. The results of this ecological survey are discussed in relation to the designation of deep-sea vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) and their implication in management and conservation of areas targeted by the emerging deep-sea mining industry. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Frontiers in Marine Science 7 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
deep-sea benthos Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge inactive hydrothermal vent seabed mining vulnerable marine ecosystem Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 |
spellingShingle |
deep-sea benthos Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge inactive hydrothermal vent seabed mining vulnerable marine ecosystem Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 Eva Ramirez-Llodra Ana Hilario Emil Paulsen Carolina Ventura Costa Torkild Bakken Geir Johnsen Hans Tore Rapp Benthic Communities on the Mohn’s Treasure Mound: Implications for Management of Seabed Mining in the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge |
topic_facet |
deep-sea benthos Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge inactive hydrothermal vent seabed mining vulnerable marine ecosystem Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 |
description |
The Mohn’s Treasure, described as an inactive sulfide mound, was discovered at 2,600-m depth on the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge (AMOR) in 2002. In 2015, we conducted the first biological survey of Mohn’s Treasure using remotely operated vehicle (ROV) photo transects and sampling. This site is covered by a thick layer of fine sediments, where hard substratum is only visible as rocky outcrops on ridges. The observed benthic community was typical of Arctic bathyal systems. A total of 46 species (identified as morphospecies) were recorded, with densities varying from 12.2 to 31.6 ind.m–2. The two most abundant phyla were Porifera and Echinodermata. The sediment is dominated by fields of the stalked crinoid Bathycrinus carpenterii, whereas areas of hard substratum were characterized by high abundances of several sponge species and associated fauna. Interest in commercial exploration and exploitation of minerals from massive sulfide deposits is rising globally, and the AMOR is being targeted for mineral exploration within Norwegian waters. Gathering baseline ecological data from these poorly known sites is thus urgent and essential if robust resource management measures are to be developed and implemented. The results of this ecological survey are discussed in relation to the designation of deep-sea vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) and their implication in management and conservation of areas targeted by the emerging deep-sea mining industry. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Eva Ramirez-Llodra Ana Hilario Emil Paulsen Carolina Ventura Costa Torkild Bakken Geir Johnsen Hans Tore Rapp |
author_facet |
Eva Ramirez-Llodra Ana Hilario Emil Paulsen Carolina Ventura Costa Torkild Bakken Geir Johnsen Hans Tore Rapp |
author_sort |
Eva Ramirez-Llodra |
title |
Benthic Communities on the Mohn’s Treasure Mound: Implications for Management of Seabed Mining in the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge |
title_short |
Benthic Communities on the Mohn’s Treasure Mound: Implications for Management of Seabed Mining in the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge |
title_full |
Benthic Communities on the Mohn’s Treasure Mound: Implications for Management of Seabed Mining in the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge |
title_fullStr |
Benthic Communities on the Mohn’s Treasure Mound: Implications for Management of Seabed Mining in the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge |
title_full_unstemmed |
Benthic Communities on the Mohn’s Treasure Mound: Implications for Management of Seabed Mining in the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge |
title_sort |
benthic communities on the mohn’s treasure mound: implications for management of seabed mining in the arctic mid-ocean ridge |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.00490 https://doaj.org/article/9471c76235564a428cebd8b7fe0f270a |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic |
genre_facet |
Arctic |
op_source |
Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 7 (2020) |
op_relation |
https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmars.2020.00490/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745 2296-7745 doi:10.3389/fmars.2020.00490 https://doaj.org/article/9471c76235564a428cebd8b7fe0f270a |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.00490 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Marine Science |
container_volume |
7 |
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1766322197052260352 |