The Sea

Floor and

Beyond….

Features of the Ocean Floor

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Deep-Ocean Floor

Communities Less known about than shallower water communities

Expensive to explore the deep

Limited oxygen

Robotic technology for exploration

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Deep Ocean Physical

Environment Bathal, abyssal, hadal zones

Light absent below 1000 meters

(3300 feet)

Temperature usually between -1.8°C (28.8°F) and 3°C

(37°F)

High oxygen

High pressure

Abyssal storms – affect bottom currents

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Deep Ocean Food Sources and

Species Diversity

No primary productivity

Only 1 – 3% of euphotic food present

Special adaptations for detecting food

Species diversity equivalent to rain forest

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Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vent

Biocommunities

Discovery – Alvin in

1977

Galapagos Rift in

Pacific Ocean

Water temperature

8–12°C (46–54°F)

Chimney vents, hot

acidic water

Black smokers

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Locations of Hydrothermal Vent

Communities

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Hydrothermal Vent Species

Giant tubeworms

Giant clams

Giant mussels

Crabs

Microbial mats

Life supported by

chemosynthesis

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Chemosynthesis

Microscopic archaea – thrive on hydrogen sulfide

from vents

Manufacture sugar, carbon dioxide, and dissolved oxygen

Base of hydrothermal vent food chain

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Hydrothermal Vent

Communities Vents active for years

or decades

Animals species similar at widely separated vents

Larvae drift from site to site

“Dead whale hypothesis”

Large carcasses may be stepping stone for larvae

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Hydrothermal Vents and the

Origins of Life

Life on Earth may have originated at hydrothermal

vents.

Uniform conditions

Presence of archaea bacteria

Microbes with genes identical to those found in humans

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Low-Temperature Seep

Biocommunities

Chemosynthetically

support life

Hypersaline seeps

High salinity

Florida Escarpment –

seeping water from

limestone fractures

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Low-Temperature Seep

Biocommunities

Hydrocarbon seeps

Oil and gas seeps

Hydrogen sulfide

and/or methane

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Low-Temperature Seep

Biocommunities

Subduction zone

seeps

Juan de Fuca plate

Folded sedimentary

rocks

Methane

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Beneath the Sea Floor A new frontier

Deep biosphere

Microbes live in pore fluids

Might represent much of Earth’s total biomass

There are harsh conditions

present in the deep sea. What

adaptations have marine life

developed in order to survive

the abyss?

Types of Luminescence

•Bioluminescence is a form of chemiluminescence, •which is the production of visible light by a chemical reaction. •Bio because it is accruing in a living organism• Land – Rare – fireflies example•Ocean - Common

•Fluorescence• A fraction of the light illuminating an object is absorbed and then re-emitted as a different color. •When you shine an ultraviolet light on a backlight poster and it glows, that is fluorescence.• Upper to middle part of the water column•Bright and concentrated in certain body parts.

•Phosphorescence• Similar to fluorescence in its chemistry• Unlike fluorescence, phosphorescent materials continue to emit light for a much longer time •The glowing hands on watches and clocks are familiar examples.

Bioluminescence is the emission (releasing) of light by

animals through special cells called photophores.

Photophores on fish are used mainly for attracting food or

confusing predators.

Bioluminescence is

formed through a

chemical reaction.

WHO and WHY?

Bioluminescent deep

sea creatures also use

lures for attracting prey

Prey is rare in the deep sea, so feeding has

also become highly specialized with

adaptations such as large mouths, distensible

stomachs, and needlelike teeth.

The gulper eel

The gulper eel’s mouth is so large that it can

swallow organisms much bigger than itself whole.

Once swallowed, the gulper eel’s stomach will

stretch to fit its meal.

A wide mouth

can also be

used like a net

to catch many

smaller prey at

once.

Some organisms in the deep

ocean have long, needle like

teeth that point inward,

keeping prey from being able

to escape once caught.

Some fish actually have teeth so long and sharp that they

can never close their mouths completely!

Viper fish and deep sea angler fish

Pressures are very high in the deep-sea environment. To adapt,

deep sea fish do not have swim bladders. If they do have one it

is filled with lipids (fats) instead of gas. Gases could compress

and collapse under the pressure, but the fats will stay solid.

If deep sea organisms are

brought to the surface, their

bladders may burst

because of the change in

pressure.

Mating is particularly difficult in the deep sea, so fish have

developed certain adaptations specifically to help carry on

their species.

Ex: The deep-sea anglerfish.

The male anglers are small and act as parasites. They

attach themselves to the female and fuse into her

circulatory system (they share blood). She supports them

both while the male is there solely to fertilize the female’s

eggs.

Male

Female

http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/

09bioluminescence/logs/slideshow/flash_sl

ideshow.html

View a slideshow of some pictures from the Bioluminescence 2009: Living Light on the Deep Sea Floor Exploration, where scientists observe bioluminescence on the deep-sea floor off the Bahamas. Bioluminescence is a fascinating phenomenon that is found in only a few species on land (e.g. fireflies), but is common in all the world’s oceans. It has been estimated that 90% of the animals living in the pelagic (water column) are bioluminescent. However, information on bioluminescence in the deep-sea benthos (organisms that live on the bottom) is very sparse, due to the difficulty in getting live animals in trawls and dredges.

What are the 7 adaptations?

Bioluminescence

Lures

Distensible stomachs

Unhingable jaws

Needle-like teeth

Mating strategies

Swim Bladders