Benthic megafauna on steep slopes at the Northern Mid‐Atlantic Ridge

The role of small‐scale (<10 km) habitat availability in structuring deep‐sea hard substratum assemblages is poorly understood. Epibenthic megafauna and substratum availability were studied on steep slopes at the Mid‐Atlantic Ridge from May to July 2010 northwest, northeast, southwest and southeast of the Charlie‐Gibbs Fracture Zone (CGFZ; 48–54°N) at between 2095 and 2601 m depth. Megafauna were six times denser north of the CGFZ compared with the south and differences in density were almost entirely driven by sessile fauna. There was no significant difference in habitat availability amongst sites. Rocky substratum made up 48% of the total area surveyed, with individual transects having between 0% and 82% rock. Assemblage structures were different amongst all superstations. The north was dominated by demospongids and hexactinellids, whereas the southern superstations were dominated by anthozoans and hexactinellids. Differences in megafaunal assemblages north and south of the CGFZ primarily reflected variations in demospongid and anthozoan species composition. With 213–1825 individuals·ha^?1, and 7–24 species per superstation, hexactinellids were the most species‐rich (36 species) and cosmopolitan taxa at the study site, supporting observations elsewhere along the ridge and in the CGFZ. The absence of significant differences in substrata availability suggested alternative drivers for density or percentage cover. The amount of hard substratum available only limited sessile megafauna density at one transect that was entirely covered with sediments. Species richness was highest for areas with intermediate values of substratum coverage (35–43% rock).     

Peripheral communities of the Eastern Lau Spreading Center and Valu Fa Ridge: community composition,temporal change and comparison to near‐vent communities

Western Pacific hydrothermal vents will soon be subjected to deep‐sea mining and peripheral sites are considered the most practical targets. The limited information on community dynamics and temporal change in these communities makes it difficult to anticipate the impact of mining activities and recovery trajectories. We studied community composition of peripheral communities along a cline in hydrothermal chemistry on the Eastern Lau Spreading Center and Valu Fa Ridge (ELSC‐VFR) and also studied patterns of temporal change. Peripheral communities located in the northern vent fields of the ELSC‐VFR are significantly different from those in the southern vent fields. Higher abundances of zoanthids and anemones were found in northern peripheral sites and the symbiont‐containing mussel Bathymodiolus brevior, brisingid seastars and polynoids were only present in the northern peripheral sites. By contrast, certain faunal groups were seen only in the southern peripheral sites, such as lollipop sponges, pycnogonids and ophiuroids. Taxonomic richness of the peripheral communities was similar to that of active vent communities, due to the presence of non‐vent endemic species that balanced the absence of species found in areas of active venting. The communities present at waning active sites resemble those of peripheral sites, indicating that peripheral species can colonize previously active vent sites in addition to settling in the periphery of areas of venting. Growth and mortality were observed in a number of the normally slow‐growing cladorhizid stick sponges, indicating that these animals may exhibit life history strategies in the vicinity of vents that differ from those previously recorded. A novel facultative association between polynoids and anemones is proposed based on their correlated distributions.     

Diversity and large-scale biogeography of Paramesochridae (Copepoda, Harpacticoida) in South Atlantic Abyssal Plains and the deep Southern Ocean

Multicorer samples for meiofaunal study were obtained within the framework of the international project CeDAMar, at 21 stations occupied during the DIVA and ANDEEP campaigns (2000, 2002 and 2005) to the southern Atlantic Ocean (Guinea, Angola and Cape Basins) and the Southern Ocean (Weddell and Scotia Seas), respectively. A total of 311 adult Paramesochridae Lang, 1944 (Copepoda, Harpacticoida) was extracted from 437 cores obtained during 83 deployments of the corer at depths between 1107 and 5655 m. All specimens were determined to species based on morphological characteristics. They belonged to 19 species and four genera (Kliopsyllus Kunz, 1962, Leptopsyllus T. Scott, 1894, Paramesochra T. Scott, 1892 and Scottopsyllus Kunz, 1962). Eleven species were restricted to single regions, whereas the others showed a much wider distribution. For example, Kliopsyllus andeep Veit-Köhler, 2004 and Kliopsyllus diva Veit-Köhler, 2005, were both collected from Guinea, Angola and Weddell Abyssal Plains, and Kliopsyllus schminkei Veit-Köhler & Drewes, 2009 occurred in the three West-African basins. This study provides a first insight into the large-scale biogeography of deep-sea harpacticoids, represented by the Paramesochridae, and indicates that distribution ranges, at least in this family, may extend across South Atlantic and Southern Ocean Abyssal Plains.     

A Zonal Pathway for NADW in the South Atlantic

Several large deployments of neutrally buoyant floats took place within the Antarctic Intermediate (AAIW), North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW), and the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW) of the South Atlantic in the 1990s and a number of hydrographic sections were occupied as well. Here we use the spatially and temporally averaged velocities measured by these floats, combined with the hydrographic section data and various estimates of regional current transports from moored current meter arrays, to determine the circulation of the three major subthermocline water masses in a zonal strip across the South Atlantic between the latitudes of 19°S and 30°S. We concentrate on this region because the historical literature suggests that it is where the Deep Western Boundary Current containing NADW bifurcates. In support of this notion, we find that a net of about 5 Sv. of the 15–20 Sv that crosses 19°S does continue zonally eastward at least as far as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Once across the ridge it takes a circuit to the north along the ridge flanks before returning to the south in the eastern half of the Angola Basin. The data suggest that the NADW then continues on into the Indian Ocean. This scheme is discussed in the context of distributions of dissolved oxygen, silicate and salinity. In spite of the many float-years of data that were collected in the region a surprising result is that their impact on the computed solutions is quite modest. Although the focus is on the NADW we also discuss the circulation for the AAIW and AABW layers.     

Tectonic evolution of the Cape and Karoo basins of South Africa

The Cape and Karoo basins formed within the continental interior of Gondwana. Subsidence resulted from the vertical motion of rigid basement blocks and intervening crustal faults. Each basin episode records a three-stage evolution consisting of crustal uplift, fault-controlled subsidence, and long periods of regional subsidence largely unaccompanied by faulting or erosional truncation. The large-scale episodes of subsidence were probably the result of lithospheric deflection due to subduction-driven mantle flow. The early Paleozoic Cape basin records the combined effects of a north-dipping intra-crustal décollement (a late Neoproterozoic suture) and a right-stepping offset between thick Rio de la Plata craton and Namaqua basement. Following the Saldanian orogeny, a suite of small rift basins and their post-rift drape formed at this releasing stepover. Great thicknesses of quartz sandstone (Ordovician–Silurian) and mudstone (Devonian) accumulation are attributed to subsidence by rheological weakening and mantle flow. In contrast, the Karoo basin is a cratonic cover that mimics the underlying basement blocks. The Permian Ecca and lower Beaufort groups were deposited in a southward-deepening ramp syncline by extensional decoupling on the intra-crustal décollement. Reflection seismic and deep-burial diagenetic studies indicate that the Cape orogeny started in the Early Triassic. Deformation was partitioned into basement-involved strike-slip faults and thin-skinned thrusting. Uplift of the Namaqua basement resulted in erosion of the Beaufort cover. East of the Cape fold belt, contemporaneous subsidence and tilting of the Natal basement created a late Karoo transtensional foreland basin, the Stormberg depocentre. Early Jurassic tectonic resetting and continental flood basalts terminated the Karoo basin.     

Bathymetric patterns of deep-sea gastropod species diversity in 10 basins of the Atlantic Ocean and Norwegian Sea

Bathymetric patterns of macrofaunal species diversity are best documented in the western North Atlantic where diversity is a unimodal function of depth, peaking in the mid-bathyal zone and being depressed in the upper slope and abyss. There are few inter-basin studies of diversity-depth trends that are controlled for taxonomy, sampling gear, and diversity measures. In this paper, we compare gastropod diversity gradients in the North American Basin of the Atlantic to estimates of diversity in 9 other regions: the Norwegian Sea, West European Basin, Guiana Basin, Gambia Basin, Equatorial Mid-Atlantic, Brazil Basin, Angola Basin, Cape Basin and Argentine Basin. All samples were collected with epibenthic sleds, and diversity calculated by the Sanders-Hurlbert normalized expected number of species. While sampling in other regions is generally less complete than in the western North Atlantic, results indicate that a unimodal pattern is not universal. Diversity can increase, decrease or show no relationship with depth. The level of diversity also varies among basins relative to the western North Atlantic, being depressed in the Norwegian Sea, at bathyal depths in the eastern North Atlantic, and below an oxygen minimum zone in the Cape Basin, and generally elevated at tropical latitudes and in abyssal regions where food supply is high. Associations between gastropod diversity and the ecology and geology of basins suggest that productivity, oxygen concentration, hydrographic disturbance and evolutionary-historical processes may be implicated in shaping bathymetric diversity gradients, but specific causes are difficult to discern. Much more intensive sampling, analyses of other major taxa, and more detailed ecological data are necessary to understand deep-sea biogeography at within- and between-basin spatial scales.     

Reproduction in rare bathyal octopods Pteroctopus tetracirrhus and Scaeurgus unicirrhus (Cephalopoda: Octopoda) in the east Mediterranean as an apparent response to extremely oligotrophic deep seas

Reproductive patterns of two benthic bathyal octopods, Pteroctopus tetracirrhus and Scaeurgus unicirrhus have been studied in extremely nutrient-poor environment of the deep-sea Eastern Mediterranean. Both species were found to exhibit a reproductive tactics of producing eggs much larger than in the western part of the sea which likely results in larger hatchlings with higher viability. P. tetracirrhus exhibited a typical “deep-sea” spawning strategy of simultaneous maturation of a single batch of large eggs with atresia of excessive oocytes, whereas reproductive strategy of S. unicirrhus is particular for shelf octopodids: asynchronous maturation of numerous batches of small eggs with no obvious regulatory atresia. Existence of these two types of ovary development and utilisation of fecundity are closely related to two types of evolutionary stable reproductive strategies based on existence of either very large or very small eggs with a few species occupying the “intermediate” position.     

In situ video observations of benthic megafauna and fishes from the deep eastern Mediterranean Sea off Egypt

Remotely operated vehicle (ROV) video observations were used to document benthic fauna at a hydrocarbon drilling location, at 2 720 m depth, in the poorly studied deep water off northern Egypt. The decapod Chaceon mediterraneus was the most common organism at the site and the only benthic megafaunal invertebrate observed. Three species of fish, Coryphaenoides mediterraneus, Cataetyx laticeps and Bathypterois mediterraneus, were also encountered. These findings confirmed these three species as the deepest-distributed benthic fish in the eastern Mediterranean, and confirmed that the deep Mediterranean, in particular the eastern basin, is one of the world's poorest deep-sea ecosystems in terms of diversity. The behaviour exhibited by the species observed was consistent with their natatory capacity, deduced from their feeding intensity (gut fullness) and diet (mainly suprabenthic prey were consumed), and conservative life strategies adapted to an extremely low energy environment.     

Seasonal and depth-related dynamics of prokaryotes and viruses in surface and deep waters of the northwestern Mediterranean Sea

The study site located in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea was visited nine times in 2005–2006 to collect water samples from the epi- (5 m), meso- (200, 600 m), and bathypelagic (1000, 2000 m) zone. Total abundance of prokaryotes and viruses was determined by flow cytometry (FCM). Prokaryotic abundance in the epi-, meso-, and bathypelagic varied between 0.9 and 15.9×10⁵, 0.6 and 2.1×10⁵, and 0.3 and 1.3×10⁵ ml⁻¹, respectively. Variation of viral abundance in the epi-, meso-, and bathypelagic was between 1.2 and 57.5×10⁶, 0.5 and 3.5×10⁶, and 0.4 and 1.3×10⁶ ml⁻¹, respectively. The fraction of low (LNA) and high (HNA) nucleic acid prokaryotes averaged 42.9% and 57.1% throughout the water column and did not differ between depth layers. Throughout the water column the fraction of low, medium, and high fluorescent viruses (Vir-LF, Vir-MF, Vir-HF) averaged 66.3%, 30.2%, and 3.5%. Vir-LF and Vir-MF did not differ between depth layers; however, Vir-HF showed a preference for surface waters. The fraction of LNA cells decreased in the epi- and increased in the bathypelagic with decreasing stratification. The fraction of Vir-LF viruses increased in the epipelagic and decreased in the bathypelagic with increasing prokaryotic abundance. Also, the relationship between viral abundance and the bacterial community was different in surface and deep waters. The data suggest that different mechanisms of interaction between viruses and their prokaryotic hosts prevail at the surface and in deep waters.     

A comparison between the megafauna communities on the N.W. Iberian and Celtic continental margins—effects of coastal upwelling?

Megafauna biomass and feeding guilds were studied on the NW Iberian upwelling Continental Margin in order to determine the presence of enriched zones pointing to enhanced particle input. We compare these findings with similar data obtained from a transect across the Celtic Continental Margin that represents a regime without coastal upwelling. Additionally sediment concentrations of phytopigments (chlorophyll-a, phaeophorbides) representing recent inputs of algal production and of nucleic acids (DNA, RNA) are used as proxies for microbial biomass, to assess if there was a relation between these parameters and the megafauna distribution. The sediment on the upper slope (<1600 m) of the Iberian Margin was found to be inhabited by filter-feeding megafauna (26–73% of total invertebrate density, and 1–35% of biomass), and contained relatively low levels of phytopigments (3–6 ng/cm³ chlorophyll-a) and nucleic acids (12–16 μg⁻¹ DNA, 1.5–3.5 μg⁻¹ RNA). In contrast, on the upper slope of the Celtic Margin the dominant component of the megafauna were deposit-feeders (57–92% of total invertebrate density, and 23–90% of biomass) and the sediments contained higher concentrations of phytopigments and nucleic acid. These observations, supplemented by video records revealing the presence of current ripples on the Iberian upper slope, show that these upper slope regions are non-depositional, high energy environments. Conditions at the lower slope and the abyssal plain on the Iberian transect were more quiescent with large deposit-feeding holothurians dominating the megafauna (72–94% of invertebrate biomass), and with relatively high sediment concentrations of phytopigments (7–9 ng/cm³ chlorophyll-a, 157–170 ng/cm³ phaeophorbides) and nucleic acids (21–38 μg⁻¹ DNA, 2.4–5.5 μg⁻¹ RNA). On the basis of our data we argue that the benthic food for the deepest stations on the Iberian transect does not consist of shelf derived organic matter. More likely, fast sinking offshore blooms, possibly associated with filaments of upwelling water, form the major contribution to the annual food supply of the deep living megafauna.     

Comparative biomass structure and estimated carbon flow in food webs in the deep Gulf of Mexico

A budget of the standing stocks and cycling of organic carbon associated with the sea floor has been generated for seven sites across a 3-km depth gradient in the NE Gulf of Mexico, based on a series of reports by co-authors on specific biotic groups or processes. The standing stocks measured at each site were bacteria, Foraminifera, metazoan meiofauna, macrofauna, invertebrate megafauna, and demersal fishes. Sediment community oxygen consumption (SCOC) by the sediment-dwelling organisms was measured at each site using a remotely deployed benthic lander, profiles of oxygen concentration in the sediment pore water of recovered cores and ship-board core incubations. The long-term incorporation and burial of organic carbon into the sediments has been estimated using profiles of a combination of stable and radiocarbon isotopes. The total stock estimates, carbon burial, and the SCOC allowed estimates of living and detrital carbon residence time within the sediments, illustrating that the total biota turns over on time scales of months on the upper continental slope but this is extended to years on the abyssal plain at 3.6 km depth. The detrital carbon turnover is many times longer, however, over the same depths. A composite carbon budget illustrates that total carbon biomass and associated fluxes declined precipitously with increasing depth. Imbalances in the carbon budgets suggest that organic detritus is exported from the upper continental slope to greater depths offshore.The respiration of each individual “size” or functional group within the community has been estimated from allometric models, supplemented by direct measurements in the laboratory. The respiration and standing stocks were incorporated into budgets of carbon flow through and between the different size groups in hypothetical food webs. The decline in stocks and respiration with depth were more abrupt in the larger forms (fishes and megafauna), resulting in an increase in the relative predominance of smaller sizes (bacteria and meiofauna) at depth. Rates and stocks in the deep northern GoM appeared to be comparable to other continental margins where similar comparisons have been made.     

Annual and interannual variability in the South-East Atlantic during the 20th century

Long time-series of sea surface temperature (SST) and pseudo wind stress (τ) in six areas in the South-East Atlantic are analysed as possible inputs into fisheries models. The areas encompass oceanic and coastal regimes. A clear seasonal signal is evident in all areas, with an amplitude in SST of 3–4°C in the upwelling areas and 5°C farther offshore and on the Agulhas Bank. Warming lags in the north and offshore by 1–2 months. Monthly variability is highest in the upwelling areas. An increasing trend in SST is suggested in all areas, the post-World War II era being about 1,0°C warmer than earlier periods. Some coherence occurs between areas at times, although at other times the anomalies are distinctly out of phase. There is a suggestion of an upward trend in the equatorward wind stress in some offshore areas after 1964, with a sharp change in 1975. Benguela Niños are evident in the environmental record and have a periodicity of around 10 years.     

Local and regional species diversity of benthic Isopoda (Crustacea) in the deep Gulf of Mexico

Recent studies of deep-sea faunas considered the influence of mid-domain models in the distribution of species diversity and richness with depth. In this paper, I show that separating local diversity from regional species richness in benthic isopods clarifies mid-domain effects in the distribution of isopods in the Gulf of Mexico. Deviations from the randomised implied species ranges can be informative to understanding general patterns within the Gulf of Mexico. The isopods from the GoMB study contained 135 species, with a total of 156 species including those from an earlier study. More than 60 species may be new to science. Most families of deep-sea isopods (suborder Asellota) were present, although some were extremely rare. The isopod family Desmosomatidae dominated the samples, and one species of Macrostylis (Macrostylidae) was found in many samples. Species richness for samples pooled within sites ranged from 1 to 52 species. Because species in pooled samples were highly correlated with individuals, species diversity was compared across sites using the expected species estimator (n=15 individuals, ES₁₅). Six depth transects had idiosyncratic patterns of ES₁₅, and transects with the greatest short-range variation in topography, such as basins and canyons, had the greatest short-range disparity. Basins on the deep slope did not have a consistent influence (i.e., relatively higher or lower than surrounding areas) on the comparative species diversity. ES₁₅ of all transects together showed a weak mid-domain effect, peaking around 1200–1500 m, with low values at the shallowest and deepest samples (Sigsbee Abyssal Plain); no longitudinal (east–west) pattern was found. The regional species pool was analyzed by summing the implied ranges of all species. The species ranges in aggregate did not have significant patterns across longitudes, and many species had broad depth ranges, suggesting that the isopod fauna of the Gulf of Mexico is well dispersed. The summed ranges, as expected, had strong mid-domain patterns, contrasting with the local species richness estimates. The longitudinal ranges closely matched a randomized pattern (species ranges placed randomly, 1000 iterations), with significant deviations in the east attributable to lower sampling effort. The depth pattern, however, deviated from the mid-domain model, with a bimodal peak displaced nearly 500 m shallower than the mode of the randomized distribution. The deviations from random expectation were significantly positive above 1600 m and negative below 2000 m, with the result that regional species richness peaked between 800 and 1200 m, and decreased rapidly at deeper depths. The highest species richness intervals corresponded to the number of individuals collected. Residuals from a regression of the deviations on individual numbers, however, still deviated from the randomized pattern. In this declining depth-diversity pattern, the Gulf of Mexico resembles other partially enclosed basins, such as the Norwegian Sea, known to have suffered geologically recent extinction events. This displaced diversity pattern and broad depth ranges implicate ongoing re-colonization of the deeper parts of the Gulf of Mexico. The Sigsbee Abyssal Plain sites could be depauperate for historical reasons (e.g., one or more extinction events) rather than ongoing ecological reasons (e.g., low food supply).     

Bathymetric variations in vertical distribution patterns of meiofauna in the surface sediments of the deep Arctic ocean (HAUSGARTEN,Fram strait)

Deep-sea benthic communities and their structural and functional characteristics are regulated by surface water processes. Our study focused on the impact of changes in water depth and food supplies on small-sized metazoan bottom-fauna (meiobenthos) along a bathymetric transect (1200–5500 m) in the western Fram Strait. The samples were collected every summer season from 2005 to 2009 within the scope of the HAUSGARTEN monitoring program. In comparison to other polar regions, the large inflow of organic matter to the sea floor translates into relatively high meiofaunal densities in this region. Densities along the bathymetric gradient range from approximately 2400 ind. 10 cm^-2 at 1200 m to approximately 300 ind. 10 cm^-2 at 4000 m. Differences in meiofaunal distribution among sediment layers (i.e., vertical profile) were stronger than among stations (i.e., bathymetric gradient). At all the stations meiofaunal densities and number of taxa were the highest in the surface sediment layer (0–1 cm), and these decreased with increasing sediment depth (down to 4–5 cm). However, the shape of the decreasing pattern differed significantly among stations. Meiofaunal densities and taxonomic richness decreased gradually with increasing sediment depth at the shallower stations with higher food availability. At deeper stations, where the availability of organic matter is generally lower, meiofaunal densities decreased sharply to minor proportions at sediment depths already at 2–3 cm. Nematodes were the most abundant organisms (60–98%) in all the sediment layers. The environmental factors best correlated to the vertical patterns of the meiofaunal community were sediment-bound chloroplastic pigments that indicate phytodetrital matter.     

Macrofaunal nematodes of the deep Whittard Canyon (NE Atlantic): assemblage characteristics and comparison with polychaetes

Large nematodes form an important component of deep‐sea macrofaunal assemblages, but are often considered to be part of the meiobenthos and are rarely studied. We analysed the standing stocks, diversity, and functional group and genus‐level composition of macrofaunal nematodes at lower bathyal depths (3,500 m water depth) in the Whittard Canyon system (NE Atlantic) and on the adjacent continental slope. Five replicate sample sets were obtained using a Megacorer, at four locations (three canyon branches, one slope). Sediment samples were processed on a 500‐μm mesh to provide both nematode and polychaete data from the same samples. The dominant nematode genera included Paramesacanthion, Metacylicolaimus, Cylicolaimus and Phanodermopsis. Nematode standing stocks (density and biomass) increased significantly from slope to canyon locations. Similarly, nematode dominance increased substantially (and diversity decreased) from slope to canyon locations. Nematode feeding groups and tail shape groups also appeared to exhibit common trends across study locations. Nematode genus‐level faunal composition varied significantly between slope and canyon locations. We describe and discuss the broadly similar trends detected in the matching polychaete data, noting some differences in the polychaete density and diversity responses. We suggest that the similar trends in macrofaunal nematode and polychaete ecology across our four study locations reflect responses to both changing sedimentology and food availability.     

Fauna of whale falls: systematics and ecology of a new polychaete (Annelida: Chrysopetalidae) from the deep Pacific Ocean

Vigtorniella flokati, a new species of polychaete worm associated with decaying whale remains, is described. Three separate V. flokati populations were sampled using submersibles: two associated with implanted gray whale carcasses in the San Diego Trough (1240 m depth) and the Santa Cruz Basin (1670 m) off California, and one from sperm whale and balaeanopterid bones implanted on the slope of Oahu, Hawaii at 1000 m. Extraordinarily large numbers of live specimens were observed and videotaped in situ using submersibles in the San Diego Trough and the Santa Cruz Basin. The populations on the carcass implanted for 4 months in San Diego Trough, and on the bones implanted for 2 years off Oahu, were composed only of small sized individuals (including juveniles). V. flokati most closely resembles the poorly known V. zaikai Kiseleva, 1992, described from the Black Sea. Forty-six morphological characters were used in a phylogenetic analysis of selected nereidiform polychaetes. The resulting most-parsimonious trees indicate sister taxon status between V. flokati and V. zaikai, and that this clade is sister to the putatively ancient polychaete clade Chrysopetalidae. Whale falls, which are intense point sources of organic enrichment at the deep-sea floor, pass through three successional stages. V. flokati appears to colonize the middle, “enrichment opportunist” stage, inhabiting organic-rich bones and sediments 4–24 months after carcass arrival. V. flokati exhibits remarkable behavior, clinging posteriorly to whale bones or nearby sediments to form a writhing carpet at densities exceeding 8000 m⁻². Its extraordinary abundance on whale falls, and apparent absence from other habitats, suggests it to be a whale-fall specialist. The precise feeding mechanism of the worm remains unknown, but we hypothesize that it may utilize dissolved organic carbon derived from the organic-rich setting of whale falls. The widespread occurrence of V. flokati on ephemeral, food-rich habitat islands in the Pacific suggests life-history strategies analogous to those for hydrothermal-vent and cold-seep species.     

Small-scale fisheries and food security strategies in countries in the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME) region: Angola,Namibia and South Africa

This paper provides an overview of the small-scale fisheries sector in countries within the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME), one of the most productive large marine ecosystems in the world. The study revealed that Angola, Namibia and South Africa have very different legal and policy frameworks, show different levels of compliance with international and regional agreements to protect the livelihoods and food security of small-scale fishers, as well as of integration of fisheries into food security objectives. Angolan law recognises and protects small-scale fishers through legal and institutional mechanisms. In Namibia, this sector of fishers is not legally recognised, while in South Africa traditional fishers have been largely excluded from the new fisheries management framework. Trends in national and regional fish consumption and in the extent of export orientation in fisheries are explored, as well as the potential threats to small-scale producers and food security in the region posed by ongoing drives to incorporate fisheries in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements.     

Seismostratigraphic analysis of the Transkei Basin: A history of deep sea current controlled sedimentation

The Earth's climate is controlled by various factors, with large scale ocean currents playing a significant role. In particular, the global thermohaline circulation of water masses like the Antarctic Bottom Water (AABW), or the North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW), is a global motor for maintaining the exchange of water masses. The AABW and NADW have met and interacted off South Africa since Oligocene times. Here, the narrow deep Agulhas Passage gateway, located between South Africa and the submarine Agulhas Plateau, constrains bottom water exchange between the southeast Atlantic and the southwest Indian Ocean. A seismostratigraphic analysis of sedimentary structures in the Transkei Basin, which opens up at the eastern end of the Agulhas Passage, was carried out, to reconstruct the palaeocurrents off South Africa. The analysis of newly collected high resolution seismic reflection data showed the effect of large scale current deposition. There are at least 5 major sedimentary phases to observe, some of which seem to be influenced by NADW and AABW. The first stage represents ongoing deep sea sedimentation from middle Cretaceous to middle Tertiary times. Later stages are separated by discordances, which represent the onset of AABW and NADW, among others, triggered by the opening of the Drake Passage gateway ( 35 Ma) and the closure of the Isthmus of Panama ( 3 Ma). We found two large drift bodies located one above the other. Corresponding to their shape and position, the older drift is inferred to have been deposited by currents flowing in a north–southerly direction, whereas the younger drift lies perpendicular to it and seems to be built up by west–east flowing currents.     

Riphean basins of the central and western Siberian Platform

The Siberian Platform is unique by its volume of Meso-Neoproterozoic sedimentary deposits. For about one billion years (∼1650-650 Ma) several sedimentary basins were developed here, resulting in the formation of several kilometers thickness of sedimentary cover. The Riphean (Mesoproterozoic-Lower Neoproterozoic) rocks are exposed mainly along platform peripheries. The most complete sections are represented by several megacycles. Each megacycle contains terrigenous series at the base and carbonate formations in the upper part. Several isolated and anisochronous basins were created during the Riphean on the territory of East Siberia. Some of them were intracratonic, others were developed on passive margins. Neoproterozoic orogeny along the platform boundaries resulted in re-organization of the Siberian basins, with extensive faulting, uplifting and erosion of the territories.In eastern Siberia, Riphean series contain large hydrocarbon accumulations. The reservoirs were formed mainly due to fracturing and leaching of carbonate strata (e.g. vugular carbonates of the pre-Vendian weathering crust). The Upper Proterozoic deposits are overlain by thick clayey-carbonate and saliferous-carbonate series of the Upper Vendian and Cambrian, isolating them from the upper sedimentary cover. The Riphean basins contained thick, organic rich, clayey and clayey carbonate. In some of them a hydrocarbon generation maximum took place at the end of the Riphean. The pre-Vendian erosion has removed a significant volume of Riphean sediments. During this time a majority of already formed hydrocarbon accumulations have been lost or degraded. Remaining Riphean series have generated hydrocarbons during the Paleozoic.Despite its complex history, the Riphean is still considered highly prospective, with source rocks developing at multiple levels and reservoirs occurring in both carbonate and clastic rocks. Discoveries of new oil-and-gas fields in East Siberia are likely, but will depend on integration of detailed seismic data and a large volume of core data for the correct prognosis of Riphean reservoir distribution.