Biodiversity and distribution of polynoid and spionid polychaetes (Annelida) in the Vema Fracture Zone, tropical North Atlantic

During the Vema-TRANSIT (Bathymetry of the Vema-Fracture Zone and Puerto Rico TRench and Abyssal AtlaNtic BiodiverSITy Study) expedition from December, 2014 to January, 2015, a transect along the Vema Fracture Zone in the equatorial Atlantic was surveyed and sampled at about 10 degrees N. The Vema F...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography
Main Authors: Guggolz, Theresa, Lins Pereira, Lidia, Meißner, Karin, Brandt, Angelika
Other Authors: Kaiser, Stefanie, Riehl, Torben
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2018
Subjects:
Earth and Environmental Sciences
Atlantic Ocean
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
Polynoidae
Spionidae
Barrier effect
ANTARCTIC BOTTOM WATER
DEEP-SEA
SPECIES-DIVERSITY
POPULATION-STRUCTURE
LAONICE POLYCHAETA
PATTERNS
OCEAN
RIDGE
COMMUNITIES
PACIFIC
Antarctic
Pacific
Antarc*
North Atlantic
Online Access:https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8527661
http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-8527661
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2017.07.013
https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8527661/file/8527664
Description
Summary:During the Vema-TRANSIT (Bathymetry of the Vema-Fracture Zone and Puerto Rico TRench and Abyssal AtlaNtic BiodiverSITy Study) expedition from December, 2014 to January, 2015, a transect along the Vema Fracture Zone in the equatorial Atlantic was surveyed and sampled at about 10 degrees N. The Vema Fracture Zone is one of the largest fracture zones of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and it is characterized by a large left-lateral offset. Benthic communities of the transect and the abyssal basins on both sides were investigated to examine whether the Mid-Atlantic Ridge serves as a physical barrier for these organisms, or if there is a potential connection from east to west via the Vema Fracture Zone. Samples comprised 4149 polychaetes, belonging to 42 families. Exemplary, Polynoidae and Spionidae, both typical deep-sea families with high abundances in all investigated regions, were identified up to species level. The present results show significant differences in polychaete faunistic composition between both sides of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Moreover, the eastern and western Vema Fracture Zone characterizes divergent habitats, since the two basins differ in sedimentology and environmental variables (e.g. temperature, salinity), hence characterizing divergent habitats. Most species found were restricted to either eastern or western VFZ, but there was a trans-Mid-Atlantic Ridge distribution of certain abundant species observed, indicating that the Mid-Atlantic Ridge might rather act limiting to dispersal between ocean basins than as an absolute barrier. Given the abyssal valley formed by the Vema Fracture Zone and its role in oceanic currents, this seafloor feature may well represent exchange routes between eastern and western faunas.

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