Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep
Source at https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 . Cold-seep megafaunal communities around gas hydrate mounds (pingos) in the western Barents Sea (76°N, 16°E, ∼ 400 m depth) were investigated with high-resolution, geographically referenced images acquired with an ROV and towed camera. Four pingos a...
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European Geosciences Union (EGU)
2018
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Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10037/13482 https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 |
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ftunivtroemsoe:oai:munin.uit.no:10037/13482 2023-05-15T14:23:45+02:00 Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep Sen, Arunima Åström, Emmelie Karin Linnea Hong, Wei-Li Portnov, Aleksei D Waage, Malin Serov, Pavel Carroll, Michael Leslie Carroll, JoLynn 2018-07-25 https://hdl.handle.net/10037/13482 https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 eng eng European Geosciences Union (EGU) Biogeosciences info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/RCN/SFF/223259/Norway/Centre for Arctic Gas Hydrate, Environment and Climate/CAGE/ Sen, A., Åström, E.K.L., Hong W-L., Portnov, A., Waage, M., Serov, P., . Carroll, J. (2018). Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep. Biogeosciences,15(14), 4533-4559. https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018. FRIDAID 1600891 doi:10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 1726-4170 1726-4189 https://hdl.handle.net/10037/13482 openAccess VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Geofag: 450 VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Geosciences: 450 Journal article Tidsskriftartikkel Peer reviewed 2018 ftunivtroemsoe https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 2021-06-25T17:56:02Z Source at https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 . Cold-seep megafaunal communities around gas hydrate mounds (pingos) in the western Barents Sea (76°N, 16°E, ∼ 400 m depth) were investigated with high-resolution, geographically referenced images acquired with an ROV and towed camera. Four pingos associated with seabed methane release hosted diverse biological communities of mainly nonseep (background) species including commercially important fish and crustaceans, as well as a species new to this area (the snow crab Chionoecetes opilio). We attribute the presence of most benthic community members to habitat heterogeneity and the occurrence of hard substrates (methane-derived authigenic carbonates), particularly the most abundant phyla (Cnidaria and Porifera), though food availability and exposure to a diverse microbial community is also important for certain taxa. Only one chemosynthesis-based species was confirmed, the siboglinid frenulate polychaete Oligobrachia cf. haakonmosbiensis. Overall, the pingo communities formed two distinct clusters, distinguished by the presence or absence of frenulate aggregations. Methane gas advection through sediments was low, below the single pingo that lacked frenulate aggregations, while seismic profiles indicated abundant gas-saturated sediment below the other frenulate-colonized pingos. The absence of frenulate aggregations could not be explained by sediment sulfide concentrations, despite these worms likely containing sulfide-oxidizing symbionts. We propose that high levels of seafloor methane seepage linked to subsurface gas reservoirs support an abundant and active sediment methanotrophic community that maintains high sulfide fluxes and serves as a carbon source for frenulate worms. The pingo currently lacking a large subsurface gas source and lower methane concentrations likely has lower sulfide flux rates and limited amounts of carbon, insufficient to support large populations of frenulates. Two previously undocumented behaviors were visible through the images: grazing activity of snow crabs on bacterial mats, and seafloor crawling of Nothria conchylega onuphid polychaetes. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Arctic Barents Sea Chionoecetes opilio Snow crab University of Tromsø: Munin Open Research Archive Arctic Barents Sea Biogeosciences 15 14 4533 4559 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Tromsø: Munin Open Research Archive |
op_collection_id |
ftunivtroemsoe |
language |
English |
topic |
VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Geofag: 450 VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Geosciences: 450 |
spellingShingle |
VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Geofag: 450 VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Geosciences: 450 Sen, Arunima Åström, Emmelie Karin Linnea Hong, Wei-Li Portnov, Aleksei D Waage, Malin Serov, Pavel Carroll, Michael Leslie Carroll, JoLynn Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep |
topic_facet |
VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Geofag: 450 VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Geosciences: 450 |
description |
Source at https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 . Cold-seep megafaunal communities around gas hydrate mounds (pingos) in the western Barents Sea (76°N, 16°E, ∼ 400 m depth) were investigated with high-resolution, geographically referenced images acquired with an ROV and towed camera. Four pingos associated with seabed methane release hosted diverse biological communities of mainly nonseep (background) species including commercially important fish and crustaceans, as well as a species new to this area (the snow crab Chionoecetes opilio). We attribute the presence of most benthic community members to habitat heterogeneity and the occurrence of hard substrates (methane-derived authigenic carbonates), particularly the most abundant phyla (Cnidaria and Porifera), though food availability and exposure to a diverse microbial community is also important for certain taxa. Only one chemosynthesis-based species was confirmed, the siboglinid frenulate polychaete Oligobrachia cf. haakonmosbiensis. Overall, the pingo communities formed two distinct clusters, distinguished by the presence or absence of frenulate aggregations. Methane gas advection through sediments was low, below the single pingo that lacked frenulate aggregations, while seismic profiles indicated abundant gas-saturated sediment below the other frenulate-colonized pingos. The absence of frenulate aggregations could not be explained by sediment sulfide concentrations, despite these worms likely containing sulfide-oxidizing symbionts. We propose that high levels of seafloor methane seepage linked to subsurface gas reservoirs support an abundant and active sediment methanotrophic community that maintains high sulfide fluxes and serves as a carbon source for frenulate worms. The pingo currently lacking a large subsurface gas source and lower methane concentrations likely has lower sulfide flux rates and limited amounts of carbon, insufficient to support large populations of frenulates. Two previously undocumented behaviors were visible through the images: grazing activity of snow crabs on bacterial mats, and seafloor crawling of Nothria conchylega onuphid polychaetes. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Sen, Arunima Åström, Emmelie Karin Linnea Hong, Wei-Li Portnov, Aleksei D Waage, Malin Serov, Pavel Carroll, Michael Leslie Carroll, JoLynn |
author_facet |
Sen, Arunima Åström, Emmelie Karin Linnea Hong, Wei-Li Portnov, Aleksei D Waage, Malin Serov, Pavel Carroll, Michael Leslie Carroll, JoLynn |
author_sort |
Sen, Arunima |
title |
Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep |
title_short |
Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep |
title_full |
Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep |
title_fullStr |
Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep |
title_full_unstemmed |
Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep |
title_sort |
geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high arctic cold seep |
publisher |
European Geosciences Union (EGU) |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/10037/13482 https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 |
geographic |
Arctic Barents Sea |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Barents Sea |
genre |
Arctic Arctic Barents Sea Chionoecetes opilio Snow crab |
genre_facet |
Arctic Arctic Barents Sea Chionoecetes opilio Snow crab |
op_relation |
Biogeosciences info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/RCN/SFF/223259/Norway/Centre for Arctic Gas Hydrate, Environment and Climate/CAGE/ Sen, A., Åström, E.K.L., Hong W-L., Portnov, A., Waage, M., Serov, P., . Carroll, J. (2018). Geophysical and geochemical controls on the megafaunal community of a high Arctic cold seep. Biogeosciences,15(14), 4533-4559. https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018. FRIDAID 1600891 doi:10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 1726-4170 1726-4189 https://hdl.handle.net/10037/13482 |
op_rights |
openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-4533-2018 |
container_title |
Biogeosciences |
container_volume |
15 |
container_issue |
14 |
container_start_page |
4533 |
op_container_end_page |
4559 |
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1766296240211886080 |