Abyssal Scavenging Communities attracted to Sargassum and fish in the Sargasso Sea

Fleury, Aharon; Drazen, Jeffrey C.

doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2012.11.004

Cited by 19 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Scavenging behaviour was still observed in the New Hebrides Trench and South Fiji Basin by ophidiid rather than macrourid scavengers. Barathrites iris has been observed feeding at mackerel baits in previous studies (Fleury and Drazen, 2013;Henriques et al, 2002;Janßen et al, 2000) as has Spectrunculus grandis (Cousins et al, 2013b;Henriques et al, 2002;Janßen et al, 2000). These two species were present in the South Fiji Basin and New…”

Section: Feedingmentioning

confidence: 76%

“…Data collected by the Abyssal-lander lends itself better to statistical analysis due to its fixed field of view, discrete sampling method and larger suit of environmental sensors. Two metrics are commonly extracted from lander data (Farnsworth et al, 2007;Fleury and Drazen, 2013): 1) The time of first arrival (T arr ) is the time from the arrival of the lander at the seabed until the first arrival of each species; and 2) The maximum number (MaxN) of individuals of each species observed simultaneously. T arr can be difficult to work with due to its high variability and inverse relationship with fish abundance (Farnsworth et al, 2007;Priede et al, 1990).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A similar community was reported in the basins east of the Bahamas (Sulak, 1982). Baited lander deployments by Fleury and Drazen (2013) in the Sargasso Sea observed Coryphaenoides armatus, but it was rare and one of the last fish species to arrive. Their deployments were also dominated by a Bassozetus spp., closely resembling those discussed herein, that was never observed to feed on the bait.…”

Section: Macrourid or Ophidiid Dominated Communitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Bait attending fishes of the abyssal zone and hadal boundary: Community structure, functional groups and species distribution in the Kermadec, New Hebrides and Mariana trenches

Linley

Stewart

McMillan

et al. 2017

Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers

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Baited landers were deployed at 83 stations at four locations in the west Pacific Ocean from bathyal to hadal depths: The Kermadec Trench, the New Hebrides Trench, the adjoining South Fiji Basin and the Mariana Trench. Forty-seven putative fish species were observed. Distinct fish faunal groups were identified based on maximum numbers and percentage of observations. Both analyses broadly agreed on the community structure: A bathyal group at <3000 m in the New Hebrides and Kermadec trenches, an abyssal group (3039-4692 m) in the Kermadec Trench, an abyssal-hadal transition zone (AHTZ) group (Kermadec: 4707-6068 m, Mariana: 4506-6198 m, New Hebrides: 2578-6898 m, South Fiji Basin: 4074-4101 m), and a hadal group of endemic snailfish in the Kermadec and Mariana trenches (6750-7669 m and 6831-8143 m respectively). The abyssal and hadal groups were absent from the New Hebrides Trench. Depth was the single factor that best explained the biological variation between samples (16%), the addition of temperature and average surface primary production for the previous year increased this to 36% of variation. The absence of the abyssal group from the New Hebrides Trench and South Fiji Basin was due to the absence of macrourids (Coryphaenoides spp.), which defined the group. The macrourids may be energetically limited in these areas. In their absence the species of the AHTZ group appear released of competition with the macrourids and are found far shallower at these sites. The fish groups had distinct feeding strategies while attending the bait: The bathyal and abyssal groups were almost exclusively necrophagous, the AHTZ group comprised predatory and generalist feeders, while the hadal snailfishes were exclusively predators. With increasing depth, predation was found to increase while scavenging decreased. The data suggest scavenging fish fauna do not extend deeper than the hadal boundary.

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Section: Feedingmentioning

confidence: 76%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Macrourid or Ophidiid Dominated Communitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Bait attending fishes of the abyssal zone and hadal boundary: Community structure, functional groups and species distribution in the Kermadec, New Hebrides and Mariana trenches

Linley

Stewart

McMillan

et al. 2017

Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers

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“…If low coverage also contributes to reduced sinking rates, because clumps do not sink from being overgrown and weighed down (Rothäusler et al 2012 ), then the rate of food supply of Sargassum to the deep sea would also be reduced. Fish and invertebrate scavengers in the Sargasso Sea’s deep waters (> 5,000 m) consume fallen Sargassum and epibiota and could be impacted by changes in surface Sargassum communities (Fleury and Drazen 2013 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pelagic Sargassum community change over a 40-year period: temporal and spatial variability

et al. 2014

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Pelagic forms of the brown algae (Phaeophyceae) Sargassum spp. and their conspicuous rafts are defining characteristics of the Sargasso Sea in the western North Atlantic. Given rising temperatures and acidity in the surface ocean, we hypothesized that macrofauna associated with Sargassum in the Sargasso Sea have changed with respect to species composition, diversity, evenness, and sessile epibiota coverage since studies were conducted 40 years ago. Sargassum communities were sampled along a transect through the Sargasso Sea in 2011 and 2012 and compared to samples collected in the Sargasso Sea, Gulf Stream, and south of the subtropical convergence zone from 1966 to 1975. Mobile macrofauna communities exhibited changes in community structure and declines in diversity and evenness within a 6-month time period (August 2011–February 2012). Equivalent declines in diversity and evenness were recorded in the same region (Sargasso Sea, 25°–29°N) in 1972–1973. Recent community structures were unlike any documented historically, whether compared to sites of the same latitude range within the Sargasso Sea, or the broader historical dataset of sites ranging across the Sargasso Sea, Gulf Stream, and south of the subtropical convergence zone. Recent samples also recorded low coverage by sessile epibionts, both calcifying forms and hydroids. The diversity and species composition of macrofauna communities associated with Sargassum might be inherently unstable. While several biological and oceanographic factors might have contributed to these observations, including a decline in pH, increase in summer temperatures, and changes in the abundance and distribution of Sargassum seaweed in the area, it is not currently possible to attribute direct causal links. Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00227-014-2539-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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“…The most central region of the DEA was the most highly disturbed area crosscut by the majority of plough tows ( Fig. 1; Foell et al, 1992).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observations of deep-sea fishes and mobile scavengers from the abyssal DISCOL experimental mining area

et al. 2019

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Abstract. Industrial interest in deep-sea mineral extraction began decades ago, and today it is at an all-time high, accelerated by global demand for metals. Several seafloor ecosystem disturbance experiments began in the 1970s, including the Disturbance and Recolonization experiment (DISCOL) conducted in the Peru Basin in 1989. A large seafloor disturbance was created by repeatedly ploughing the seafloor over an area of ∼10.8 km2. Though a number of studies in abyssal mining regions have evaluated megafaunal biodiversity and ecosystem responses, few have included quantitative and detailed data on fishes or scavengers despite their ecological importance as top predators. We used towed camera transects (1989–1996, 2015) and baited camera data (1989–1992) to evaluate the fish community at the DISCOL site. The abyssal fish community included 16 taxa and was dominated by Ipnops meadi. Fish density was lower in ploughed habitat at 6 months and 3 years following disturbance but thereafter increased over time. Twenty-six years after disturbance there were no differences in overall total fish densities between reference and experimental areas, but the dominant fish, I. meadi, still exhibited much lower densities in ploughed habitat, likely avoiding these areas and suggesting that the fish community remains affected after decades. At the scale of industrial mining, these results could translate to population-level effects. The scavenging community was dominated by eelpouts (Pachycara spp.), hermit crabs (Probeebei mirabilis) and shrimp. The large contribution of hermit crabs appears to be unique amongst abyssal scavenger studies worldwide. The abyssal fish community at DISCOL was similar to that in the more northerly Clarion–Clipperton Zone (CCZ), though some species have only been observed at DISCOL thus far. Also, further species-level identifications are required to refine this assessment. Additional studies across the polymetallic nodule provinces of the Pacific are required to further evaluate the environmental drivers of fish density, diversity and species biogeographies. This information will be important for the development of appropriate management plans aimed at minimizing human impact from deep-sea mining.

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Abyssal Scavenging Communities attracted to Sargassum and fish in the Sargasso Sea

Cited by 19 publications

References 42 publications

Bait attending fishes of the abyssal zone and hadal boundary: Community structure, functional groups and species distribution in the Kermadec, New Hebrides and Mariana trenches

Bait attending fishes of the abyssal zone and hadal boundary: Community structure, functional groups and species distribution in the Kermadec, New Hebrides and Mariana trenches

Pelagic Sargassum community change over a 40-year period: temporal and spatial variability

Observations of deep-sea fishes and mobile scavengers from the abyssal DISCOL experimental mining area

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