The global distribution of seamounts based on 30 arc seconds bathymetry data

Seamounts and knolls are ‘undersea mountains’, the former rising more than 1000 m from the seafloor. These features provide important habitats for aquatic predators, demersal deep-sea fish and benthic invertebrates. However most seamounts have not been surveyed and their numbers and locations are not well known. Previous efforts to locate and quantify seamounts have used relatively coarse bathymetry grids. Here we use global bathymetric data at 30 arc-sec resolution to identify seamounts and knolls. We identify 33,452 seamounts and 138,412 knolls, representing the largest global set of identified seamounts and knolls to date. We compare estimated seamount numbers, locations, and depths with validation sets of seamount data from New Zealand and Azores. This comparison indicates the method we apply finds 94% of seamounts, but may overestimate seamount numbers along ridges and in areas where faulting and seafloor spreading creates highly complex topography. The seamounts and knolls identified herein are significantly geographically biased towards areas surveyed with ship-based soundings. As only 6.5% of the ocean floor has been surveyed with soundings it is likely that new seamounts will be uncovered as surveying improves. Seamount habitats constitute approximately 4.7% of the ocean floor, whilst knolls cover 16.3%. Regional distribution of these features is examined, and we find a disproportionate number of productive knolls, with a summit depth of <1.5 km, located in the Southern Ocean. Less than 2% of seamounts are within marine protected areas and the majority of these are located within exclusive economic zones with few on the High Seas. The database of seamounts and knolls resulting from this study will be a useful resource for researchers and conservation planners.     

火山岩浆活动与富钴结壳成矿间的关系——以中太平洋海山群和麦哲伦海山链所在的中西太平洋区为例

以中西太平洋的麦哲伦海山链和中太平洋海山群为例,从研究区的区域地质背景出发,概括了研究区富钴结壳的分布规律,简单的讨论了火山岩浆活动与富钴结壳成矿间的关系,认为中西太平洋海山上富钴结壳的分布与形成其赋存海山的火山岩浆活动及其后续的岩浆活动改造作用有关。     

中太平洋海山区尖顶和平顶海山结壳成矿与分布的比对研究

尖顶海山和平顶海山是洋底海山的两种类型,同时也是富钴结壳资源赖以成长的主要载体,两者在地形上具有显著差别,资源状况和分布也不尽一致。以地形分类为基础,就中太平洋海山区两类海山结壳的成矿特征、宏微观构造、矿物和化学组成以及空间分布等进行了比对研究。研究认为,尖顶海山体积虽小,但地形演化连续,底层流及环境氧化性较强,有利于结壳的长期稳定生长,结壳厚度总体较大,富成矿元素和生物组分,远景成矿区域连续绵长。平顶海山山体巨大,顶部和斜坡陡崖区不利于结壳成长,底流活动只在山顶边缘和山脊地带表现突出,环境氧化性整体较弱,后期构造活动相对频繁,结壳总体厚度较小,铁,碎屑和热液组分含量较高,远景矿区相对狭窄。     

西太平洋海山年龄及地球化学:地幔过程及岩石成因

Research on seamounts provides some of the best constraints for understanding intraplate volcanism, and samples from seamounts reveal crucial evidence about the geochemical makeup of the oceanic mantle. There are still many seamounts in the West Pacific Seamount Province(WPSP) that have not been studied, meaning their ages and geochemistry remain unknown. A better understanding of these seamount trails and their evolutionary history, investigated with age and geochemistry data, will enable better understanding of the geological processes operating underneath the Pacific Ocean Plate. Here, new ~(40)Ar/~(39) Ar ages and trace element and Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic data for seven basalt rocks from four seamounts in the WPSP are provided. Chemically, these rocks are all Oceanic Island Alkali basalt(OIA type); analysis of olivine phenocrysts shows that the magmas experienced strong olivine fractionation and changed from olivine + plagioclase to olivine + plagioclase + clinopyroxene cotectic during their evolution. Rare earth element(REE) patterns and a spider diagram of the samples in this study show OIB(Ocean Island Basalt) like behavior. The range of ~(87)Sr/~(86) Sr values is from 0.704 60 to 0.706 24, the range of ~(206)Pb/~(204) Pb values is from 18.241 to 18.599, and the range of ~(143)Nd/~(144) Nd values is from 0.512 646 to 0.512 826; together, these values indicate magma sources ranging from EMI to EMII. Finally, new ~(40)Ar/~(39) Ar age data show that these seamounts formed at ～97 and ～106 Ma, indicating that some may have undergone the same formation processes as seamounts in the eastern part of the Magellan Seamount Trail, but other seamounts likely have different origins.     

Seamounts an additional tool to confirm the nature of the crust and to locate possible mineral resources for dredging

Study of bathymetric data for the distal Bengal Fan reveals the presence of positive topographic features resembling seamounts. These features exhibit a relief of about 800 m above the surrounding seafloor at 4,400 m and are associated with large‐amplitude magnetic and gravity anomalies. Magnetic model studies suggest that one of the seamounts evolved along with the oceanic crust represented by the magnetic isochron A32 (～ 72 My), while the other seamount was emplaced over the Cretaceous Quiet Zone Crust with reversed polarity. The seamounts studied provide an environment for possible locations of polymetallic encrustations. Morphology of the seamounts depends on several factors, including physical and chemical composition of the magma, eruption style, sediment thickness, maturity of underlying crust, and time of origin. Studying the seamounts together with integrated geophysical and physical data gave useful indications of their evolution and the existence of possible mineral deposits.     

Quantifying the relative intensity of fishing on New Zealand seamounts

New Zealand seamounts support major fisheries for several deepwater fish species, including orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) and smooth oreo (Pseudocyttus maculatus). Although a high proportion of features in the depth range 500–1000 m have been fished, very little is known about the ecological impacts of bottom trawling on seamounts. The potential impact is likely to be influenced by the spatial extent and frequency of fishing. A new index is presented to assess the relative intensity of trawling on New Zealand seamounts. The fishing effects index (FEI) incorporates information on the density of fishing on the seamount as a proportion of the seabed area and also on tow direction. Detailed fisheries data from more than 250 000 tows were examined to calculate FEI for New Zealand seamounts. The most intensively fished seamounts were on the south Chatham Rise, an area characterised by a large number of relatively small features which were fished serially for orange roughy in the 1980s and 1990s. Other seamounts with high FEI were on the north Chatham Rise, Challenger Plateau, and off the east coast of the North Island. A range of sensitivity analyses indicated that the general rankings of seamounts were relatively robust to the choice of arbitrary thresholds used to assign tows to seamounts.     

Field tests of seasat bathymetric detections

Knowledge of the locations and sizes of seamounts is of great importance in applications such as inertial navigation and ocean mining. The quality and density of bathymetry data in the equatorial regions and the southern hemisphere are, unifortunately, highly variable. Our present knowledge of bathymetry, and in particular of seamount locations and characteristics, is based upon ship surveys, which are both time-consuming and expensive. It is likely that a significant number of uncharted seamounts exist throughout the oceans, and remote-sensing techniques may be the most effective means of locating them.     

CSIRO-SEBS (Seamount,Epibenthic Sampler), a new epibenthic sled for sampling seamounts and other rough terrain

A new epibenthic sled was developed for use in deep water over rough terrain, especially seamounts. It has a Furuno net sonde unit to confirm bottom contact. A novel weak-link system significantly enhanced the probability of successful sampling and retrieval. During a cruise in January 1997, 47 samples were obtained with the sled from the summit, slope and base of 14 seamounts south of Tasmania.     

西太平洋雅浦-卡罗琳海区海山多尺度地形特征

海山地形的多尺度特征研究,有助于理解海山形成与演化过程中的地貌过程,并为深入认识俯冲带地球动力过程提供新的线索。本文基于中国科学院海洋研究所“科学”号科考船近年来在雅浦-卡罗琳海区采集的高分辨率海底地形数据,利用统计学及频谱分析等方法,分析了研究区42座海山的形态及地形粗糙度特征,并对海山地形多尺度特征及其成因开展研究。结果表明,雅浦-卡罗琳海区不同构造环境下形成的海山群,在海山的形态参数和多尺度地形特征等方面存在显著差异。相比于索罗尔海槽,帕里西维拉海盆中的海山具有更大的宽高比与更小的平坦度。两区域内海山形态参数具有不同的线性相关关系,表明区域内海山存在不同的形态演化过程。对帕里西维拉海盆中海山地形的频谱分析显示,其大尺度特征信号不显著,意味着该区域内海山地形受小尺度地貌过程的影响更大。索罗尔海槽中海山的粗糙度与海山体积具有线性相关性,可能与不同海山形成过程的差异有关,较早形成的海山受到了更多构造活动及小尺度地貌过程的影响,进而形成了更加粗糙的表面特征。     

3D gravity modelling for Anyongbok Seamount in the East Sea

A seamount chain with an approximately WNW trend is observed in the northeastern Ulleung Basin. It has been argued that these seamounts, including two islands called Ulleung and Dok islands, were formed by a hotspot process or by ridge related volcanism. Many geological and geophysical studies have been done for all the seamounts and islands in the chain except Anyongbok Seamount, which is close to the proposed spreading ridge. We first report morphological characteristics, sediment distribution patterns, and the crustal thickness of Anyongbok Seamount using multibeam bathymetry data, seismic reflection profiles, and 3D gravity modeling. The morphology of Anyongbok Seamount shows a cone shaped feature and is characterized by the development of many flank cones and flank rift zones. The estimated surface volume is about 60 km³, and implies that the seamount is smaller than the other seamounts in the chain. No sediments have been observed on the seamount except the lower slope, which is covered by more than 1,000 m of strata. The crustal structure obtained from a 3D gravity modeling (GFR = 3.11, SD 3.82 = mGal) suggests that the seamount was formed around the boundary of the Ulleung Plateau and the Ulleung Basin, and the estimated crustal thickness is about 20 km, which is a little thicker than other nearby seamounts distributed along the northeastern boundary of the Ulleung Basin. This significant crustal thickness also implies that Anyongbok Seamount might not be related to ridge volcanism.     

南海中部海盆海山磁性反演及初步解析

南海中部海盆分布着众多海山,从实测磁异常反演海山磁性是南海海盆古地磁研究新的重要课题,它有助于解决南海海盆的运动方向和运动形式等问题.对南海海盆16座海山作磁性反演取得了较高的计算精度.对南海中部海盆海山磁性反演表明,海山均为非均匀磁化体,海山形成经过多期火山喷溢叠加.海山磁性差异清晰地显示了海盆分区特征.南海海盆分东部海盆区和西南部海盐区,海盆地壳运动规律差异较大:东部海盆以逆时针旋转由南往北运移;西南海盆先经历了顺时针旋转,后改为逆时针旋转,由北往南运移.     

Cenozoic magmatism in the northern continental margin of the South China Sea: evidence from seismic profiles

Igneous rocks in the northern margin of the South China Sea (SCS) have been identified via high resolution multi-channel seismic data in addition to other geophysical and drilling well data. This study identified intrusive and extrusive structures including seamounts and buried volcanoes, and their seismic characteristics. Intrusive features consist of piercement and implicit-piercement type structures, indicating different energy input associated with diapir formation. Extrusive structures are divided into flat-topped and conical-topped seamounts. Three main criteria (the overlying strata, the contact relationship and sills) were used to distinguish between intrusive rocks and buried volcanos. Three criteria are also used to estimate the timing of igneous rock formation: the contact relationship, the overlying sedimentary thickness and seismic reflection characteristics. These criteria are applied to recognize and distinguish between three periods of Cenozoic magmatism in the northern margin of the SCS: before seafloor spreading (Paleocene and Eocene), during seafloor spreading (Early Oligocene–Mid Miocene) and after cessation of seafloor spreading (Mid Miocene–Recent). Among them, greater attention is given to the extensive magmatism since 5.5 Ma, which is present throughout nearly all of the study area, making it a significant event in the SCS. Almost all of the Cenozoic igneous rocks were located below the 1500 m bathymetric contour. In contrast with the wide distribution of igneous rocks in the volcanic rifted margin, igneous rocks in the syn-rift stage of the northern margin of the SCS are extremely sporadic, and they could only be found in the southern Pearl River Mouth basin and NW sub-sea basin. The ocean–continent transition of the northern SCS exhibits high-angle listric faults, concentrated on the seaward side of the magmatic zone, and a sharply decreased crust, with little influence from a mantle plume. These observations provide further evidence to suggest that the northern margin of the SCS is a magma-poor rifted margin.     

Seamont magnetism in the Ionian Sea,eastern Mediterranean

Several seamounts in the Ionian Sea, the largest unit in the eastern Mediterranean, have magnetic anomalies. The magnetization vectors of six of these seamounts have been calculated. These paleomagnetic data suggest that the Ionian Sea is composed of several crustal units which came to their present location from different directions. This implies that there has been relative motion in the past between various land masses around the Ionian Sea. The possibility that the Ionian Sea is composed of several crustal units is supported by observations of the magnetic field over the area which is of different character in the north and south. The major limitation in applying the paleomagnetic data into an evolutionary scheme is that all the seamounts in the Ionian Sea as well as its crust are undated.     

Effect of deepwater trawling on the macro-invertebrate assemblages of seamounts on the Chatham Rise,New Zealand

Seamounts, knolls, pinnacles and other “seamount-like” features are prominent and widely distributed features of the New Zealand marine environment, and also the focus of important commercial fisheries and some exploratory mineral mining. There is considerable debate about the effects of such activities on the benthic habitat of deep-water seamounts. In 2001 a study was undertaken of eight seamount-features on the Chatham Rise, an area that has been heavily trawled for orange roughy since the early 1990s. Half of the study seamounts were considered unfished and the other half fished. Benthic macro-invertebrate assemblages of each seamount were sampled using epibenthic sleds, whilst the presence of habitat-forming fauna (e.g., live corals), substrate type and indications of trawling (e.g., trawl door marks) were determined using a towed underwater camera. Fisheries catch-effort data were examined to determine the amount and distribution of bottom trawling effort on the seamounts. Analyses of camera data revealed that unfished seamounts possessed a relatively large amount of stony coral habitat comprising live Solenosmilia variabilis and Madrepora oculata (predominantly on the seamount peaks) whereas fished seamounts had relatively little coral habitat. Indications of trawling were observed over six times more frequently on seabed images from fished as opposed to unfished seamounts, and appeared related to the amount of fishing effort on individual seamounts. Multivariate analyses of sled data revealed a significant difference in macro-invertebrate assemblage composition between fished and unfished seamounts. The variability observed in assemblage composition between seamounts can in part be explained by the relative fishing pressure measured by a fishing effects index. The results of the study are discussed with respect to management of seamount habitat, and the need for ongoing monitoring and research to derive conservation practices that allow for sustainable seamount fisheries.     

Morphological description and population structure of an ophiuroid species from cobalt-rich crust seamounts in the Northwest Pacific: Implications for marine protection under deep-sea mining

Many seamounts are covered with cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts, and are increasingly attracting interest for the potential extraction of valuable mineral resources from deep seabed environments. However, the impacts of potential mining activities on the vulnerable seamount ecosystem remain unclear. To enhance the understanding of connectivity in benthic invertebrate populations in the Northwest Pacific, several seamounts were surveyed and biological samples collected. In the present study, the ophiuroid species Ophioplinthaca defensor is reported for the first time from four deep seamounts in the Northwest Pacific, and described, providing more detailed morphological diagnosis characters. To assess the population structure of the species between and within seamounts, two mitochondrial markers (COI and 16S) were sequenced. In total, 20 haplotypes from 32 COI sequences and 8 haplotypes from 3716S sequences were recovered. The star-shaped TCS networks and non-significant pairwise population differences reveal the absence of distinct population structures between and within seamounts. In addition, the O. defensor population seemed to have undergone a demographic expansion in history. This is the first study on the genetic population structure of a benthic invertebrate from seamounts in the Northwest Pacific, and this results suggest a potentially high, long distance dispersal capacity in O. defensor between seamounts, which could inform the development of the Regional Environmental Management Plans for the cobalt-rich crust seamounts in the area.     

Effort changes around a marine reserve: The case of the California Rockfish Conservation Area

This article is an analysis of observed changes in the level of fishing effort and the spatial distribution of fishing effort following implementation of a marine reserve off the California coast. The Rockfish Conservation Area (RCA) closes the area between depth contour based boundaries to commercial trawl fishing. In this analysis, commercial fishing vessels are grouped based on their level of fishing effort within the closed area prior to the closure in order to compare changes in effort levels between groups. The results suggest that the RCA may have had a small effect on the level of fishing effort in the California groundfish trawl fishery. Spatial distribution of fishing effort before and after implementation of the marine reserve is also compared. Some concentration of effort occurred along parts of the closed area boundaries. This pattern suggests the “fishing the line” behavior noted in the marine reserve literature, but other possible explanations exist including the effects of coincident changes in other regulations and changing bioeconomic conditions.     

Abundant seamounts of the Rano Rahi seamount field near the Southern East Pacific Rise, 15° S to 19° S

A widespread seamount province, the Rano Rahi Field, is located near the superfast spreading Southern East Pacific Rise (SEPR) between 15°–19° S. Particularly abundant volcanic edifices are found on Pacific Plate aged 0 to 6.5 Ma between 17°–19° S, an area greater than 100,000 km². The numbers of seamounts and their volume are several times greater than those of a comparablysurveyed area near the Northern East Pacific Rise (NEPR), 8°–17° N. Most of the Rano Rahi seamounts belong to chains, which vary in length from 25 km to >240 km and which are very nearly collinear with the Pacific absolute and relative plate motion directions. Bends of 10°–15° occur along a few of the chains, and some adjacent chains converge or diverge slightly. Many seamount chains have fluctuations in volume along their length, and statistical tests suggest that some adjacent chains trade-off in volume. Several seamount chains split into two lines of volcanoes approaching the axis. In general, seamount chains composed of individual circular volcanoes are found near the axis; the chains consist of variably-overlapping edifices in the central part of the survey; to the west, volcanic ridges predominate. Near the SEPR, the volume of nearaxis seamount edifices is generally reduced near areas of deflated cross-sectional area of the axial ridge. Fresh lava flows, as imaged by sidescan sonar and sampled by dredging, exist around some seamounts throughout the entire survey area, in sharp contrast to the absence of fresh flows beyond 30 km from the NEPR. Also, the increases in seamount abundance and volume extend to much greater crustal ages than near the NEPR. Seamount magnetization analysis is also consistent with this wider zone of seamount growth, and it demonstrates the asynchronous formation of most of the seamount chains and volcanic ridges. The variety of observations of the SEPR seamounts suggests that a number of factors and mechanisms might bring about their formation, including the mantle upwelling associated with superfast spreading, off-axis mantle heterogeneities, miniplumes and local upwelling, and the vulnerability of the lithosphere to penetration by volumes of magma. In particular, we note the association of extensive, recent volcanism with intermediate wavelength gravity lineaments lows on crust aged 6 Ma. This suggests that the lineaments and some of the seamounts share a common cause which may be related to ridge-perpendicular asthenospheric convection and/or some manner of extension in the lithosphere.     

Actions taken by fishing Nations towards identification and protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems in the high seas: The Spanish case (Atlantic Ocean)

In reply to the United Nations General Assembly Resolutions on sustainable fisheries, Spain, either by itself or in collaboration with other Nations, has been carrying out studies on vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) in the high seas of the Atlantic Ocean (areas beyond national jurisdictions) since 2005. Such studies provide advice to the Spanish Government, the Regional Fisheries Management Organizations and the European Union. This paper presents the multidisciplinary methodology used and summarises the following management results: (i) contribution to identification of cold-water corals and provision of evidence to close part (∼16,000 km²) of the Hatton Bank (NE Atlantic) to bottom fishing; (ii) compilation of an international data base to identify VMEs on the slopes of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, Flemish Pass, and Flemish Cap (NW Atlantic) and to redefine areas currently closed to fishing; (iii) improvement of knowledge about deepwater ecosystems on Walvis Ridge and adjacent seamounts (SE Atlantic) as a pilot project for implementation in this region; and (iv) identification of VMEs and closure of an area (∼41,300 km²) on the high seas of the SW Atlantic. Also discussed are progress and challenges related to identifying and protecting VMEs.     

中太平洋海山演化史及与富钴结壳的关系

中太平洋海山区是海山富钴结壳广泛分布的一个重点地区，目前我国正在该区进行富钴结壳资源调查，了解该区海山形成演化史对研究富钴结壳的成因及其分布规律有重要意义。根据大量的文献资料，对该区海山演化史进行了综述，并对海山与其上生长的富钴结壳的关系进行了探讨。     

The interannual variability of thermal atmospheric conditions in the northeastern part of the Black Sea (1935–2007)

A scheme is proposed to estimate actual seasons within the limits of a closed annual cycle. The winter and summer modifications of actual seasons, or base periods, are determined according to the position of three-month intervals with extreme (within the annual cycle) average temperatures on the calendar scale of the year. The spring and autumn modifications of seasons are introduced as intervals between the base periods. This model takes into account the episodes when relatively cold or warm airflows influence the structure of the Black Sea waters more flexibly than the standard branch of the annual cycle into seasons can do. In this alternative model, the seasons acquire the properties that are not inherent in their calendar analogues.