The bathypelagic community of Monterey Canyon |
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| Institution: | 1. Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences, The College of William and Mary;2. Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Miami;1. Red Sea Research Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia;2. Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, PO Box 1066 Blindern, 0316 Oslo, Norway;3. Department of Biology, University of Bergen and Hjort Centre for Marine Ecosystem Dynamics, Bergen N-5020, Norway;1. Departamento de Ecoloxía e Bioloxía Animal, Universidade de Vigo, 36310 Vigo, Spain;2. Instituto de Oceanografía y Cambio Global (IOCAG), Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain;3. Applied Ocean Physics and Engineering Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543-1541, USA;1. Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Centro Oceanográfico de Santander, Spain;2. Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Centro Oceanográfico de Gijón, Spain;3. Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Centro Oceanográfico de Madrid, Spain;4. Instituto Español de Oceanografía, Centro Oceanográfico de A Coruña, Spain;5. INSUB, Zemoria 12, 20013 San Sebastián, Spain;6. Grupo SGMar/Tragsatec, Madrid, Spain;1. Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, University of Georgia, Savannah, GA, USA;2. Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero (INIDEP), Buenos Aires, Argentina;1. IMAR Centre of the University of the Azores, Department of Oceanography and Fisheries (DOP) & LARSyS Associated Laboratory, Rua Dr. Frederico Machado 4, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal;2. Fisheries Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada;3. Department of Biosciences, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, University of Oslo, Norway |
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| Abstract: | We used a quiet, deep-diving remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to conduct oblique, quantitative video transects of the bathypelagic fauna at depths between 1000 and 3500 m at a site over the Monterey Submarine Canyon, in the eastern North Pacific off central California. Fifteen such dives were made over a two-year period. Analyses of the video data revealed a rich and diverse fauna dominated by gelatinous animals. In particular, the holopelagic polychaete Poeobius meseres was an important detritivore in the upper half of this depth range. As Poeobius abundance eventually declined with increasing depth, larvacean abundance increased. In contrast, the relative numbers of crustacean grazers, principally copepods and mysids, remained relatively constant with depth. Medusae were most abundant and most diverse among the gelatinous predators, which also included ctenophores, and siphonophores. Chaetognaths occurred chiefly in the upper half of the depth range. While there is considerable overlap, the bathypelagic fauna can be separated into upper (1000 to 2300 m) and lower (2400 to 3300 m) zones, as well as a distinct and populous benthic boundary layer. Within the overall bathypelagic community is a complex web of trophic links involving gelatinous predators that feed on both gelatinous and hard-bodied particle feeders, as well as on each other. The amount of organic carbon contained in this jelly web is substantial but its ecological fate is uncertain. The assessment of bathypelagic communities will be important for establishing baselines to conserve deep pelagic biodiversity within high-seas protected areas. |
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