The oxidation of methane in anoxic marine sediments is thought to be mediated by a consortium of methane-consuming archaea and sulfate-reducing bacteria. In this study, we compared results of rRNA gene (rDNA) surveys and lipid analyses of archaea and bacteria associated with methane seep sediments from several different sites on the Californian continental margin. Two distinct archaeal lineages (ANME-1 and ANME-2), peripherally related to the order Methanosarcinales, were consistently associated with methane seep marine sediments. The same sediments contained abundant 13 C-depleted archaeal lipids, indicating that one or both of these archaeal groups are members of anaerobic methane-oxidizing consortia.13 C-depleted lipids and the signature 16S rDNAs for these archaeal groups were absent in nearby control sediments. Concurrent surveys of bacterial rDNAs revealed a predominance of ␦-proteobacteria, in particular, close relatives of Desulfosarcina variabilis. Biomarker analyses of the same sediments showed bacterial fatty acids with strong 13 C depletion that are likely products of these sulfate-reducing bacteria. Consistent with these observations, whole-cell fluorescent in situ hybridization revealed aggregations of ANME-2 archaea and sulfate-reducing Desulfosarcina and Desulfococcus species. Additionally, the presence of abundant 13 C-depleted ether lipids, presumed to be of bacterial origin but unrelated to ether lipids of members of the order Desulfosarcinales, suggests the participation of additional bacterial groups in the methane-oxidizing process. Although the Desulfosarcinales and ANME-2 consortia appear to participate in the anaerobic oxidation of methane in marine sediments, our data suggest that other bacteria and archaea are also involved in methane oxidation in these environments.

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Seafloor sediment flows (turbidity currents) are among the volumetrically most important yet least documented sediment transport processes on Earth. A scarcity of direct observations means that basic characteristics, such as whether flows are entirely dilute or driven by a dense basal layer, remain equivocal. Here we present the most detailed direct observations yet from oceanic turbidity currents. These powerful events in Monterey Canyon have frontal speeds of up to 7.2 m s−1, and carry heavy (800 kg) objects at speeds of ≥4 m s−1. We infer they consist of fast and dense near-bed layers, caused by remobilization of the seafloor, overlain by dilute clouds that outrun the dense layer. Seabed remobilization probably results from disturbance and liquefaction of loose-packed canyon-floor sand. Surprisingly, not all flows correlate with major perturbations such as storms, floods or earthquakes. We therefore provide a new view of sediment transport through submarine canyons into the deep-sea.

Dense biological communities of large epifaunal taxa similar to those found along ridge crest vents at the East Pacific Rise were discovered in the abyssal Gulf of Mexico. These assemblages occur on a passive continental margin at the base of the Florida Escarpment, the interface between the relatively impermeable hemipelagic clays of the distal Mississippi Fan and the jointed Cretaceous limestone of the Florida Platform. The fauna apparently is nourished by sulfide rich hypersaline waters seeping out at near ambient temperatures onto the sea floor.

An expanded and largely complete upper Paleocene to upper Eocene section was recovered from the pelagic cap overlying Allison Guyot, Mid‐Pacific Mountains at Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 865 (18°26′N, 179°33′W; paleodepth 1300–1500 m). Reconstructions show that the site was within a few degrees of the equator during the Paleogene. Because no other Paleogene sections have been recovered in the Pacific Ocean at such a low latitude, Site 865 provides a unique record of equatorial Pacific paleoceanography. Detailed stable isotopic investigations were conducted on three planktonic foraminiferal taxa (species of Acarinina, Morozovella, and Subbotina). We studied benthic foraminiferal isotopes at much lower resolution on species of Cibicidoides and Lenticulina, Nuttallides truempyi and Gavelinella beccariiformis, because of their exceptional rarity. The δ18O and δ13C stratigraphies from Site 865 are generally similar to those derived from other Paleocene and Eocene sections. The planktonic foraminiferal records at Site 865, however, include significantly less short‐term, single‐sample variability than those from higher‐latitude sites, indicating that this tropical, oligotrophic location had a comparatively stable water column structure with a deep mixed layer and less seasonal variability. Low‐amplitude (0.1–0.8‰) oscillations on timescales of 250,000 to 300,000 years correlate between the δ13C records of all planktonic taxa and may represent fluctuations in the mixing intensity of surface waters. Peak sea surface temperatures of 24°–25°C occurred in the earliest Eocene, followed by a rapid cooling of 3–6°C in the late early Eocene. Temperatures remained cool and stable through the middle Eocene. In the late Eocene, surface water temperatures decreased further. Vertical temperature gradients decreased dramatically in the late Paleocene and were relatively constant through much of the Eocene but increased markedly in the late Eocene. Intermediate waters warmed through the late Paleocene, reaching a maximum temperature of 10°C in the early Eocene. Cooling in the middle and late Eocene paralleled that of surface waters, with latest Eocene temperatures below 5°C. Extinction patterns of benthic foraminifera in the latest Paleocene were similar to those observed at other Pacific sites and were coeval with a short‐term, very rapid negative excursion in δ13C values in planktonic and benthic taxa as at other sites. During this excursion, benthic foraminiferal δ18O values decreased markedly, indicating warming of 4 to 6°C for tropical intermediate waters, while planktonic taxa show slight warming (1°C) followed by 2°C of cooling. Convergence of δ18O values of planktonic and benthic foraminifera suggests that thermal gradients in the water column in this tropical location collapsed during the excursion. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that equatorial Pacific surface waters were a potential source of warm, higher salinity waters which filled portions of the deep ocean in the latest Paleocene. Oxygen isotopic data...

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Crescent-shaped bedforms with wavelengths from 20 to 80 m, amplitudes to 2.5 m, and concave down-canyon crests occur in the axial channel of Monterey Canyon (offshore California, USA) in water depths from 11 to more than 350 m. The existence of these features may be an important new clue as to how sediment moves through submarine canyons. Three complementary studies were initiated in 2007 to understand the origin and evolution of these bedforms. (1) Vibracoring. Three transects of closely spaced remotely operated vehicle-collected vibracores were obtained across these bedforms. The seafl oor underneath these features is composed of gravity-fl ow deposits. (2) Acoustic array. Three boulder-sized concrete monuments containing acoustic beacons were buried just below the surface of the canyon fl oor in ~290 m water depth and their locations were redetermined on 17 subsequent occasions. Although the beacons became more deeply buried >0.6 m below the seafl oor, they still could be tracked acoustically. Over a 26-month period the position of 1 or more of the beacons moved down-canyon during at least 6 discrete transport events for a total displacement of 994-1676 m. The movement and burial of the monuments suggest that the seabed was mobilized to >1 m depth during gravity-fl ow events. (3) Autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) repeat mapping. AUV-acquired high-resolution multibeam mapping , and CHIRP (compressed highintensity radar pulse) subbottom profi ling surveys of the seafl oor in the active channel were repeated four times in the fi rst half of 2007. In addition, the movement of large instrument frames deployed in 2001-2003 within the axis of Monterey Canyon in the area now known to be associated with the crescent-shaped bedforms is documented.The fate of the frames has helped elucidate the frequency, transport potential, and processes occurring within the axis of Monterey Canyon associated with these bedforms. The crescent-shaped bedforms appear to be produced during brief gravity-fl ow events that occur multiple times each year, commonly coincident with times of large signifi cant wave heights. Whether the bedforms are generated by erosion associated with cyclic steps in turbidity fl ows or internal deformation associated with slumping during gravity-fl ow events remains unclear.