Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
6383350 | Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers | 2016 | 20 Pages |
Abstract
This paper describes a method to survey the distribution of megabenthos over multi-hectare regions of the seafloor. Quantitative biomass estimates are made by combining high-resolution 3D image reconstructions, used to model spatial relationships between representative taxa, with lower-resolution reconstructions taken over a wider area in which the distribution of larger predatory animals can be observed. The method is applied to a region of the Iheya North field that was the target of scientific drilling during the IODP Expedition 331 in 2010. An area of 2.5Â ha was surveyed 3 years and 4 months after the site was drilled. More than 100,000 organisms from 6 taxa were identified. The visible effects of drilling on the distribution of megabenthos were confined to a 20Â m radius of the artificially created hydrothermal discharges, with the associated densities of biomass lower than observed in nearby naturally discharging areas.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Earth and Planetary Sciences
Geology
Authors
Blair Thornton, Adrian Bodenmann, Oscar Pizarro, Stefan B. Williams, Ariell Friedman, Ryota Nakajima, Ken Takai, Kaori Motoki, Tomo-o Watsuji, Hisako Hirayama, Yohei Matsui, Hiromi Watanabe, Tamaki Ura,